preview

Analyse Interpersonal Communication

Decent Essays

Communication is a vital part of having a successful workplace. More often than not, problems in the workplace are caused by miscommunication, or a lack of communication. The most common form of communication used in the workplace, especially a small family business, is interpersonal communication. But what is interpersonal communication? Communication, as defined by the Australian concise oxford dictionary, 6th edition, is ‘The act of imparting, esp. news (p. 280).’ While interpersonal is defined as ‘Occurring between persons, esp. reciprocally (p. 738).’ Therefore, interpersonal communication can be used to describe the way we communicate in small groups. To analyse interpersonal communication in the context of a small family business, we …show more content…

In her TEDx talk, 10 ways to have a better conversation, Celeste Headlee (2015), says that the most important part of a conversation is being able to listen. If you cannot listen, there is no way for you to understand what the other person is trying to convey with their words. In a small family business, listening is an essential skill for every member of the team to have. Unlike a big company, such as McDonalds, in a family business everyone has the same level of seniority. There are no clear roles, this means that interpersonal communication, listening in particular, is an even more important consideration in a small family business. If the family and their employees cannot communicate well there would not a business to manage for much longer. A family business, especially one just hanging on, could potentially go out of business… Another rule that Headlee (2015) says will lead to a better conversation is if you do not know, say that you do not know. Recently, I was training a new employee, instead of asking for help, this person would just assume things. It took my co-workers and myself a while to realise that she was putting things away in incorrect spots and telling customers wrong information about products in the

Get Access