5 Bad Communication Habits You Must Ditch Now!

Whatever your skill, whatever your trade, whatever your profession you will have to talk to others. At church the other day, our pastor touched up on 5 bad communication habits that we must quit ASAP.

This was very good stuff. I've got to share these with you, so here we go:

Ulterior Motive

Choosing to talk to others only when it suits / benefits us or because we have a hidden agenda is a pattern that our audience (spouse, coworkers, friends, etc.) will pick up on if we do it often enough. This bad habit tends to cheapen the communication and in the long run erodes your credibility with the other party. Stop doing that! Do not just seek conversation only when you need something. Learn to follow up on previous topics. Offer help. Initiate conversation about something positive.

Never Closing the Loop

Whenever communication occurs, disagreements will occur. Choosing not to bring those up again (i.e. not giving closure to the disagreement) will damage a relationship. Stop that! Instead, use those differences to as a bridge. Use those disagreements as a way to keep the communication open.

Fighting

We can get passionate about what we believe. Sometimes, we can go overboard. Many a times this is driven by the desire to be right. Stop! Communication is not about winning. Keep in mind that the relationship itself is important - more so than the fight or the win.

Lying

Lies, even little ones or seemingly insignificant ones tend to lead to the next lie, and the next. Stop that! Do not lie. Period. Honesty is always the best policy and besides the truth is easier to remember than lies.

Interrupting

This is one bad habit with which I struggle, a lot. When the other person speaks, the tendency is to not pay attention to their words. We actively disengage from listening. Because of it, we concentrate our attention to the next thing we are going to say. Stop that! Listen. Actively. Intently. By becoming an active listener we can better understand the other person's argument. Communication can thrive.

There you have it. If you are thirsty for more on this very topic, I have conveniently packaged a Google Search for other articles on this very topic.

Do you have a list of your own? Please, by all means, share it with us in the comments!