COMMUNICATION BLOCKERS
1. Accusing
Blaming someone and making someone feel guilty is a
sure shot way of creating a negative atmosphere and this
can surely block open communication.
2. Judging
Judging someone too quickly and passing on a verdict
about them as being “bad” or “good” will easily lead to a
feeling of “insecure” and “inferior” in the minds of people
and can lead to loss of communication.
3. Insulting
It is important to manage one’s anger and temper. No
matter what, we should not be using our temper in a
negative way and end up insulting someone.
4. Diagnosis
Many times there will be a need to diagnose the validity
of information provided by someone, especially from
some experts. This can be a very sensitive thing to do. It
must be done with adequate research and care.
Otherwise, we may end up hurting the sentiments of the
people whose information we are trying to validate.
5. Sarcasm
Sarcasm is one of the worst kinds of behaviour we can
use. This is a sure shot way to push people back into
their shell. This creates a feeling of extreme disrespect. It
has all the potential to completely breakdown the
communication. By being courteous we can win people’s
trust and get things done.
6. Globalizing
Using extreme words such “Always”, “Never”, “Absolutely
Not” etc have the potential to create a wall between
people. It is important to involve and engage people in
communication. Hence such strong words should not be
used.
7. Threats or Orders
Ordering or threatening someone by using one’s power
of position is one of the most negative way of engaging
with people. It is important to be understanding in a team
environment.
8. Interrupting
Frequent interruptions to a person can surely create a
negative feeling in his/her mind and that person can
retreat himself/herself from the conversation. Hence
interruption should be done for genuine clarification.
9. Changing the subject
Suddenly changing the topic of conversation also will
have similar impact of making the other person to feel as
if you are not interested in a conversation, leading to
retreating from communication. Hence one needs to be
careful not to suddenly change the subject suddenly.
10. Calling for reassurance
In a meeting, if one of the team members shared some
crucial information, and you try to get this validated and
reassured from others in the meeting immediately, then
the person who shared this information may end up
feeling very uncomfortable. If there will be a need for
reassurance, it should be done in private.
 Whenever i’m talking to someone in a public
place, noise isn’t just the problem but also the
people around us that may interfere us in the
middle of our conversation and may lead to
dismissal of it.
BASIC FLOW OF COMMUNICATION
1. Downward, or top-down communication. In
other words, communication from superiors to
subordinates in a chain of command is a
downward communication. This communication
flow is used by the managers to transmit work-
related information to the employees at lower
levels.
2. Upward communication is the transmission of
information from lower levels of an organization
to higher ones; the most common situation is
employees communicating with managers.
Managers who encourage upward
communication foster cooperation, gain support,
and reduce frustration among their employees.
The content of such communication can include
requests, estimations, proposals, complaints,
appeals, reports, and any other information
directed from subordinates to superiors. Upward
communication is often made in response to
downward communication; for instance, when
employees answer a question from their
manager. In this respect, upward
communication is a good measure of whether a
company’s downward communication is
effective.
3. Horizontal communication, also
called lateral communication, involves the flow
of messages between individuals and groups on
the same level of an organization, as opposed
to up or down. Sharing information, solving
problems, and collaborating horizontally is often
more timely, direct, and efficient than up or
down communication, since it occurs directly
between people working in the
same environment. Communication within
a team is an example of horizontal
communication; members coordinate tasks,
work together, and resolve conflicts. Horizontal
communication occurs formally in meetings,
presentations, and formal electronic
communication, and informally in other, more
casual exchanges within the office.
4. Diagonal communication is the sharing of
information among different structural levels
within a business. This kind of communication
flow is increasingly the norm in organizations (in
the same way that cross-functional teams are
becoming more common), since it can maximize
the efficiency of information exchange. The
shortest distance between two points is a
straight line. Diagonal communication routes are
the straight lines that speed communications
directly to their recipients, at the moment
communication is necessary. Communications
that zigzag along horizontal and vertical routes,
on the other hand, are vulnerable to the
schedules and availability of the individuals who
reside at each level.