Communication is simply the act of transferring information

from one place, person or group to another.

Every communication involves (at least) one sender, a message and a

recipient. This may sound simple, but communication is actually a very
complex subject.

The transmission of the message from sender to recipient can be affected

by a huge range of things. These include our emotions, the cultural
situation, the medium used to communicate, and even our location. The
complexity is why good communication skills are considered so
desirable by employers around the world: accurate, effective and
unambiguous communication is actually extremely hard.

This page explains more about what we mean by ‘communication’.

Defining Communication
communication, n. The imparting or exchanging of information by speaking, writing,
or using some other medium. …The successful conveying or sharing of ideas and
feelings.

Oxford English Dictionary

As this definition makes clear, communication is more than simply the transmission of
information. The term requires an element of success in transmitting or imparting a message,
whether information, ideas, or emotions.

A communication therefore has three parts: the sender, the message, and the
recipient.
The sender ‘encodes’ the message, usually in a mixture of words and non-verbal communication.
It is transmitted in some way (for example, in speech or writing), and the recipient ‘decodes’ it.

Of course, there may be more than one recipient, and the complexity of communication means
that each one may receive a slightly different message. Two people may read very different
 things into the choice of words and/or body language. It is also possible that neither of them will
have quite the same understanding as the sender.

In face-to-face communication, the roles of the sender and recipient are not distinct. The two
roles will pass back and forwards between two people talking. Both parties communicate with
each other, even if in very subtle ways such as through eye-contact (or lack of) and general body
language. In written communication, however, the sender and recipient are more distinct.

Categories of Communication
There are a wide range of ways in which we communicate and more than one
may be occurring at any given time.
The different categories of communication include:

 Spoken or Verbal Communication, which includes face-to-face, telephone, radio or television

and other media.

 Non-Verbal Communication, covering body language, gestures, how we dress or act, where we
stand, and even our scent. There are many subtle ways that we communicate (perhaps even
unintentionally) with others. For example, the tone of voice can give clues to mood or emotional
state, whilst hand signals or gestures can add to a spoken message.

 Written Communication: which includes letters, e-mails, social media, books, magazines, the
Internet and other media. Until recent times, a relatively small number of writers and publishers
were very powerful when it came to communicating the written word. Today, we can all write and
publish our ideas online, which has led to an explosion of information and communication
possibilities.

 Visualizations: graphs and charts, maps, logos and other visualizations can all communicate
messages.

 |What Is A Communication Process?

The communication process starts with the formation of ideas by the sender, who then
transmits the message through a channel or medium to the receiver. The receiver gives
the feedback in the form of a message or appropriate signal in the given time frame to
continue the communication cycle.

Recall any conversation you have had in your life—be it enquiring about a brand new
computer your friend just bought or your relatives asking you about your examinations—
and you will find that it follows this process.
Elements Of The Communication Process

There are seven important elements of the communication process. Here are the
details:

 Sender
The process of communication starts with the sender. This is the entity that will use
the means of communication to share her thoughts. The sender starts the
communication cycle by deciding to convey her thoughts and chooses the format to
use.

The sender manages her thoughts, seeks clarity and decides what exactly she wants
to put forth. The sender needs to gather the required information and relevant ideas
in order to communicate. For example, a writer begins with an idea and transforms it
into a book.

 Encoding
Encoding is the step in the process of communication where the sender decides how
she wants to convey her thoughts. Selecting the right words, associated symbols in
verbal communication or gestures, tones and sounds in nonverbal
communication are ways of encoding a thought.
To make encoding easier, it is imperative to know who is the receiver. For example,
Ruskin Bond writes clean and short sentences that invoke visuals to instill wonder
among his readers, children.

 Message
A message is formed after the sender decides what she wants to put forth and how
she wants to convey it. It’s also known as encoding. The nature of the message can
change depending on the medium you use and the audience for which it is meant.
Always remember that for communication to be successful, it is important that the
listener or reader understands the message.

 Channel Or Medium
In order to better explain the process of communication, one has to pay close
attention to one crucial wheel of this cycle, which is the medium. This screen that
you’re reading this article on, the newspaper that slides in every morning through
your door, the television you watch your favorite movies on are all mediums. It’s
imperative to consider the medium used for information transmission while encoding
the message or it fails to reach the audience effectively.

 Receiver
The process of communication is incomplete without a receiver to ‘lend an ear’.
Whenever a sender writes, or says or sings or expresses anything, it’s meant to be
read, or experienced. The receiver is a crucial part of this process.
 The receiver gathers the information presented or broadcasted by the sender and
begins to understand it. We take turns between being a sender and being a receiver.
You are a receiver when you watch a movie, and a sender when you tell your friends
how the movie was.

 Decoding
No matter how well the message is crafted (or encoded), it will fail to make an impact
if the receiver does not possess the tools to decode the message. For instance, a
nine-year-old may not understand the point of Harari’s book.

While growing up, we also build the ability to decode various messages. Even if the
word ‘beautiful’ has one meaning in all the dictionaries, globally, it would undoubtedly
mean something different to different people. We decode any message by our own
mechanisms, thoughts, memories and create our own meaning.

 Feedback
The process of communication is a long one. Communication does not stop after a
thought or idea is expressed or a sentence or a word is uttered. It creates ripples
through time, like a stone slung in a peaceful lake. Feedback is one of the last stages
of communication.

After a message is encoded, sent over a medium received, and decoded, there is a
need for the communication to keep moving. Through feedback, the receiver
becomes the sender, broadcasting the views about the information received.

Another important aspect that is present in this cycle is noise. This refers to the
obstructions people face while following the entire communication process. This can
mean actual physical noise, preoccupying thoughts of the sender or the receiver, and
barriers such as language, comfort, and cognitive precision.

In order to eliminate noise, one has to clear their minds, and senders have to make
sure that the message they broadcast is easy to understand for the intended
receiver.

SearchYou can sharpen your communication skills using Harappa Education’s GRT
Framework. GRT refers to Goal, Recipient, and Tone. By harnessing the power of these three
crucial for

elements, you can embark on the road to success. Let us look at them in detail:

1. Goal
You must be clear about your goal. Before starting any kind of communication,
gather your thoughts, set a fixed goal, and make sure that you don’t deviate from it.
Having a goal in mind will help you stick to the point, will give the audience clarity
about the message and the purpose to take an interest.
2. Recipient 
Understanding who your audience allows you to modify your means of
communication to make it more effective. You should know their strengths and
weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and level of understanding to win their hearts. After
all, no matter how cool your boss is, you can’t talk to him like you talk to your
childhood friends.

3. Tone  
As Jody Shields explains in her book, The Winter Station, “People can be reassured
by a tone of voice. By a touch. A gesture. Even if the voice and gestures are false,
the innocent person meets the liar halfway to complete the lie. It’s a partnership.” The
tone of the message decides how the recipient will react to it. A love song sung in an
angry tone will cease to be a love song. Being formal with communication in informal
settings and informal in personal life is necessary for the recipients and senders
e of material found at skillsyouneed.com is free provided that copyright is acknowledged and a
reference or link is included to the page/s where the information was found. Material from
skillsyouneed.com may not be sold, or published for profit in any form without express written
permission from skillsyouneed.com.

For information on how to reference correctly please see our page on