Effective communication has always been a required skill in every sphere of life. Whether it is in the workplace, as a couple or family, it is well known that those who know how to communicate effectively achieve greater results and satisfaction in life.
We are now struggling with a society that is drastically changing the way we communicate and relate, we have gone from classrooms and meeting rooms to interact through a screen.
But how to communicate effectively in the digital era? Developing communication and relational skills, the so-called Soft Skills, has now become a requirement!
What changes from offline to online in the relationship?
Conversing through a screen, you lose all those non-verbal signals and clues that the body expresses and communicates when it moves in the environment and when it interacts with others. We are talking about 93% of our communication.
The screen only highlights the face of our interlocutor, and in this way we lose important details. In fact, there are people who tap their foot under the chair from nervousness, or tap their fingers, or even touch their hands or parts of the body repeatedly; these are the information of the communication that in a conversation mediated by a monitor we can no longer identify.
The need to understand facial gestures that indicate nervousness or tension is fundamental, especially in the context of professional relationships and in negotiation.
Let’s take some examples of important signals that the face can give us in case of stress or tension:
- Eyes blink more frequently
- Lips are pressed together
- Lips have a slight trembling
- The chin is stiff
The gaze also plays an important role, we can understand when a person is present, in relationship, or when he is distracted, doubtful or nervous:
- The gaze is lost in the void, the person does not look into the eyes but the screen as a whole. It means that he is in his thoughts and little attentive to the content exposed by the interlocutor.
- The doubtful look is identified by the curled forehead and narrow eyes like those of Clint Eastwood.
- The tension is evident from the smiling mouth, while the eyes remain still.
A person who knows how to communicate effectively even through a screen, knows how to control his degree of attention and manages his emotions:
- Maintains the gaze with the eyes of his interlocutor
- The tone of the voice is rhythmic and harmonious
- The face is relaxed, eyes and mouth do not express tension
- Fluency in dialogue
- Maintaining focus, without any distraction
It is vital to know that there are over two hundred behaviors associated with psychological distress and most of these are not visible on the face. Develop for which a high degree of listening and attention is essential, otherwise the risk is of not understanding the needs, intentions and emotional states of our interlocutor.
How to improve your communication in the digital age?
There is none for anyone! If you want to be impactful even through a screen, you just have to study, read and train to improve your relational awareness and your communication.
You can take courses aimed at developing Soft Skills or courses to understand micro-movements of the face and non-verbal communication. In any case, the real work happens on yourself: before understanding your interlocutor you will have to observe yourself and understand how to become skilled communicators.
Self-awareness and self-improvement are the way to understand others too.