INTERPERSONAL

COMMUNICATION
 DEFINITION OF INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
 Interpersonal
communication is an
exchange of information
between two or more
people.
 During interpersonal
communication there is
message sending and
message receiving.

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PERSPECTIVE OF INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
 The Quality Of Our Interpersonal
Communication Will Determine The Quality
Of Our Work And Quality Of Our Life

 Interpersonal Communication Skills Can Be

Learned

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COMPONENTS OF INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION

1. Conversation
2. Listening
3. Body language
4. Emotional
Awareness
5. Personal
Appearance
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 1. CONVERSATION
Keys to Effective Conversation:
 Avoiding Unnecessary Detail
 Don’t show off with technical knowledge, be considerate of the other person. Don’t bother them with detail
they do not understand and don’t care for.
 Communication is a 50 – 50 process
 Try not to dominate a conversation; give the other person a chance to speak.
 Smile
 This helps put the other person at ease; smiling also gives us self-confidence and helps put us in the right
frame of mind.
 Avoiding Controversial Topics
 Look for topics of shared interest.
 Criticize by asking questions
 Merely ask questions, which sow seeds of doubt in the mind of the other person.
 Speak Clearly and Slowly
 There is nothing more frustrating than having to keep repeating yourself.
 Do Not Insist on Having the Last Word
 A good conversation is not about proving that you are always right; if you insist on having the last word to every argument
then it will make the conversation go on far too long.
 Pay Attention to Signals
 If we remain aloof from the body language of other people, we just get wrapped up in our own agenda and
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annoy other people.
During a conversation you should:
 Be confident, cool, and relaxed

 Be yourself – do not belittle

yourself but at the same time do not
be arrogant – must show respect to
all parties

 Be assertive – do not let other

people step on your head

 Give your opinion if you don’t

agree – with full diplomacy and
respect

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2. LISTENING SKILLS
 Make eye contact and give attention
 But do not do it too close or too long

 Concentrate – do not let your mind wonder to other places.

 Do not look at other places or do other things while listening to people talking to
you

 Show that you are actually listening to them with full interest
 by saying ‘yeah’ ‘oh like that’, nodding your head and continue eye contact.

 Ensure that you understand what they said by repeating it back

to them
 Listen to ideas, not just words.

 Give encouragement for people to keep on talking or to tell you

more
 using phrases such as ‘that’s amazing idea, that’s interesting story, please tell me
more’

 Do not interrupt or try to finish sentences while someone is

talking to you.
 Wait until he or she finishes his or her sentences.

 Do not be too fast to conclude.

 Give your response when you are truly sure he’s finished his points.

 Do not focus on what you are going to say.

 Your main focus should be on what the other person is saying
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3. BODY LANGUAGE
 Proper body language
 Smile
 Stand/sit-up; facing the other person/people
 Nod your head to show that you understand or agree or that you are following the
conversation attentively.

 Give space so that everyone can see each other’s face if you are talking in a
group.

 Mirroring
 Mirror the same body posture with those you are talking to – if they are standing
with there arms crossed, you do the same, if they are holding a cup, you do the
same.
 “Mirroring” will create a more friendly and relaxed atmosphere between you and the
other person.

 Avoid :
 Yawning,
 Scratching your head,
 Fidgeting,
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 Digging in your ears, nose, and other sorts of inappropriate actions
4. EMOTIONAL AWARENESS

 the consciousness of your moment-to-moment

emotional experience

 and the ability to manage all of your feelings

appropriately

Emotional awareness provides you

the tools needed for understanding
both yourself and other people, and
the real messages they are
communicating to you.

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4. EMOTIONAL AWARENESS
 Emotional awareness helps you:
 Understand and empathize with what is really troubling
other people
 Understand yourself, including what’s really troubling you
and what you really want
 Stay motivated to understand and empathize with the
person you’re interacting with, even if you don’t like them
or their message
 Communicate clearly and effectively, even when
delivering negative messages
 Build strong, trusting, and rewarding relationships, think
creatively, solve problems, and resolve conflicts

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4. EMOTIONAL AWARENESS
Emotional awareness is a skill you can learn
 You can develop emotional awareness by learning

how to get in touch with difficult emotions and

manage uncomfortable feelings
 anger, sadness, fear, disgust, surprise, and joy.

 When you know how to do this, you can remain in

control of your emotions and behavior, even in very
challenging situations
 this will help you communicate more clearly and
effectively.

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5. PERSONAL APPEARANCE
 Personal appearance is an often
disregarded part of
communication and
presentation skills.
 First impressions are very
 When you are speaking you are important
representing your organization and  they can be about attitude as well
yourself, as dress.
 but it is still you on the front line.
 It is you that the other person, group,  Visual impact is at least as
or audience sees
important as verbal impact
 and before you have time to open your  people will very quickly make
mouth and give an account of assumptions based on your facial
yourself, certain assumptions, both expressions, the clothes you wear,
consciously and subconsciously, have and how well groomed you are.
been made.

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 BARRIERS TO
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
 There are many reasons why
interpersonal
communications may fail.
 In many communications,
the message (what is said)
may not be received exactly
the way the sender intended.
 It is important that the
communicator seeks
feedback to check that their
message is clearly
understood.

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Common Barriers to Effective Communication:

 The use of jargon.

 Over-complicated, unfamiliar and/or technical terms.
 Emotional barriers and taboos.
 Some people may find it difficult to express their emotions and some topics may be completely 'off-
limits' or taboo.
 Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or irrelevance to the receiver.
 Differences in perception and viewpoint.
 Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or speech difficulties.
 Physical barriers to non-verbal communication.
 Not being able to see the non-verbal cues, gestures, posture and general body language can make
communication less effective.
 Language differences and the difficulty in understanding unfamiliar accents.
 Expectations and prejudices which may lead to false assumptions or stereotyping.
 People often hear what they expect to hear rather than what is actually said and jump to incorrect
conclusions.
 Cultural differences.
 The norms of social interaction vary greatly in different cultures, as do the way in which emotions
are expressed.A skilled communicator must be aware of these barriers and
 For example, the try to reduce
concept their space
of personal impact by continually
varies checking
between cultures and between different social settings.
understanding and by offering appropriate feedback

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CONCLUSION
 The components of interpersonal communication
govern the effectiveness of our communications
 they may be simple to understand but can take a lifetime
to master.

 No form of communication is simple, there are many

reasons why communication is taking place, how it is
taking place and how messages are being broadcast
and received.

 Variables in communication, such as language,

environment and distraction as well as the individuals
involved in communicating all have an effect on how
messages are sent, received and interpreted.

 At any point in communication any misunderstanding,

regardless of how small it may seem, will have an
effect on the message that is being received.

 Through self-awareness and good intrapersonal

communication we can strengthen the effectiveness of
our interpersonal communication
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CONCLUSION
1. Mastering the two basic
types of communication
is the key to successful
socialization.

2. The ability to
communicate ideas,
thoughts and feelings
serves as the basis for
all successful human
interaction.

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