Inter-branch sales convention … tea time… I look around to check if I could get some information on how other branches are doing… but nobody seems interested in speaking to me… how do I start conversing with ease???

I have had the opportunity to interview many candidates in my career spanning more than 15 years, and one common factor that comes across in any description of the person in the resume is

Good communication skills

Excellent Interpersonal skills….

When I ask them to give me an example of their interpersonal skills… they blink!!! So what does this term what does this term interpersonal skills mean? How does one develop these skills?

The first step in developing good interpersonal communication skills is to develop good conversational skills

What are good conversational skills? Does it mean we have to speak good English…. NO… Good conversational skill is the way we communicate with others and often is then the way we are seen or perceived by others.

Good conversation is based on sensitivity to others. It is therefore is a learnable skill once you pay more attention to others.

Developing good conversation skills will allow you to feel more at ease when conversing with others and will help you say what you really want to convey.

The next question that comes into our minds is “Why do we need good conversational skills?

In the current professional scenario, we are required to meet strangers and work along with them, make reports, take part in meetings, and coordinate activities that require making arrangements with our counterparts in the group companies, whom we do not know.

As our career progresses, there is a necessity to attend official and social programs and the way we conduct ourselves in these programs determine our growth within the organization and in our career graph.

Let me list out a few advantages of being a good conversationalist.

1. People trust you and feel close to you.

2. You gain popularity and are liked by everyone

3. People feel at ease with you and you will be invited for many activities which will improve your network.

4. It creates an image that you are witty and intelligent and self confident.

5. Finally, the boss knows that you are the right person to take up the international assignments that you have been waiting for….

So how does one acquire good conversational skills, and start communicating with strangers – people you don’t know with ease? Few techniques to develop the same are listed below

1. Smile and say a pleasant hello. Maintain a pleasant and pleasing tone… not too loud or too soft. Loud tones may create an impression that you are an unpleasant conversationalist and too soft makes it a strain for people to listen… and they may not listen after a while.
2. Stop talking too much…
3. Start listening
4. Plan your basic conversation… current topics… avoid politics and religion, as u may not know their preferences… weather, sports, clothes, current interesting events, food, shopping, anything can help in starting a conversation
5. Don't dominate the conversation.
6. Be frank… talk what you think, do not try to talk something which you may feel will please others.
7. Use positive body language to indicate that you are interested in the conversation.
8. In order to move the conversation forward, ask questions to clarify or invite additional information.
9. Engage in light, pleasant conversation as often as you engage in meaningful, direct conversation – though you want something from the person; make sure you do not show your superior attitude by talking about the same directly.

These are the first few tips to converse with ease... I will continue my presentations based on the response to this blog