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Communication is one of the most important skills that you need to succeed in the workplace.

If you want to be an expert communicator, you need to be effective at all points in the communication process - from "sender" through to "receiver" - and you must be comfortable with the different channels of communication - face to face, online, written, and so on. This is because poor communicators often struggle to develop their careers beyond a certain point.

So, how can you find out how good your communication skills really are? Take this short quiz to find out.

The Communication Quiz

Instructions

For each statement, click the button in the column that best describes you. Please answer questions as you actually are (rather than how you think you should be), and don't worry if some questions seem to score in the "wrong direction." When you are finished, please click the "Calculate My Total" button at the bottom of the test.

Your last quiz results are shown.

You last completed this quiz on , at .

15-35

You need to keep working on your communication skills. You are not expressing yourself clearly and you may not be receiving messages correctly, either. The good news is that, by paying close attention to the way in which you communicate, you can improve your effectiveness at work and enjoy better working relationships with your colleagues! The rest of this article will direct you to some great tools for improving your communication skills. (Read below to start.)

36-55

You're a capable communicator, but you sometimes experience communication problems. Take the time to think about your approach to communication, and focus on receiving messages effectively, as much as sending them. This will help to improve your ability to communicate. (Read below to start.)

56-75

Excellent! You understand your role as a communicator, both when you send messages and when you receive them. You anticipate problems, and you choose the right channel to communicate. People respect you for your ability to communicate clearly and they appreciate your listening skills. (Read below for more.)

Detailed Interpretation

Whenever you communicate with someone else, you each follow the steps of the Communication Process (see figure 1, below).

Figure 1. The Communication Process

During this process, the person who is the source of the communication encodes it into a message, and transmits it through a channel. The receiver decodes the message, and, in one way or another, feeds back his or her understanding or a lack of understanding to the source.

By understanding the steps in the process, you can become more aware of your role in it, recognize what you need to do to communicate effectively, anticipate problems before they happen, and improve your overall ability to communicate effectively.

The sections below help you do this, and improve the way that you communicate at each stage of the process.

(Questions 2, 11)

Understand your objective.Why are you communicating?

Understand your audience. With whom are you communicating? What do they need to know?

Plan what you want to say, and how you'll send the message.

Seek feedback on how well your message was received.

(Questions 1, 5, 8, 10, 15)

Understand what you truly need and want to say.

Anticipate the other person's reaction to your message.

Choose words and body language that allow the other person to really hear what you're saying.

Review your style.

Avoid jargon or slang.

Check your grammar and punctuation.

Check also for tone, attitude, nuance, and other subtleties. If you think the message may be misunderstood, it probably will. Take the time to clarify it!

Familiarize yourself with your company's writing policies or style guides.

(Questions 7, 11, 13)

The sensitivity and emotional content of the subject.

How easy it is to communicate detail.

The receiver's preferences.

Time constraints.

The need to ask and answer questions.

(Questions 3, 6, 12, 14)

Look at the person.

Pay attention to his or her body language.

Avoid distractions.

Nod and smile to acknowledge points.

Occasionally think back about what the person has said.

Allow the person to speak, without thinking about what you'll say next.

Don't interrupt.

(Questions 4, 9)

Confidence levels.

Defensiveness.

Agreement.

Comprehension (or lack of understanding).

Level of interest.

Level of engagement with the message.

Truthfulness (or lying/dishonesty).

Key Points

It can take a lot of effort to communicate effectively. However, you need to be able to communicate well if you're going to make the most of the opportunities that life has to offer.

By learning the skills you need to communicate effectively, you can learn how to get your ideas across clearly and effectively, and understand much more of the information that's conveyed to you.

Whether you're a speaker, a listener, a writer, or a reader, you are responsible for making sure that messages are communicated accurately. Pay attention to words and actions, ask questions, and watch body language. These will all help to ensure that you say what you mean, and hear what is intended.

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How Good Are Your Communication Skills?: - Speaking, Listening, Writing, and Reading Effectively

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Communication is one of the most important skills that you need to succeed in the workplace. If you want to be an expert communicator, you need to be effective at all points in the communication process - from "sender" through to "receiver" - and you must be comfortable with the different channels of communication - face to face, online, written, and so on.

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7 Guidelines For Accepting Constructive Criticism 

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7 Guidelines For Accepting Constructive Criticism 

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7 Guidelines For Accepting Constructive Criticism | Everyday Health

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Do you find accepting constructive criticism difficult? If you find yourself in the position of accepting constructive criticism, here are a few guidelines for making the best use of someone's good intentions.

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Effective Communication: 6 Ways To Improve Communication Skills 

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Effective Communication: 6 Ways To Improve Communication Skills 

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Why Is There So Much Miscommunication Via Email and Text? 

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Why Is There So Much Miscommunication Via Email and Text? 

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How many times have you read an email or text and felt an instant heated wave of irritation? Or felt hurt? Or disregarded? These are familiar experiences for us all. Without any information other than words-typically, very few words-the meaning we make out of the cryptic electronic messages we receive is necessarily shaped by our own feelings and expectations. Consequently, what we believe is being said may have very little to do with what the author wishes to communicate.

Not good.

Emotional agitation often ensues: "How could they write such a thing???" "What is going on here????" "I knew they didn't like me!!" "I am not going to stand for this!!!" Before we know it, we are furiously tapping out a reply that often increases the bad feeling exponentially. Or we forward the note to a friend for confirmation of its awfulness. Or we (indignantly or petulantly or fearfully) don't reply at all.

Let's take a deep breath.
How the miscommunication happens
In the absence of facial expression, tone of voice, gesture or good old-fashioned "vibe," we have very little to help us discern what the other person is trying to tell us. Without these clarifying cues, we frequently "fill in the blanks" with our customary worries and assumptions. So, if we are given to feeling criticized, we will read criticism into the words; if we are nervous about being rejected, "evidence" confirming this will be easily discovered; and if we are anxious about demands being made on us, many messages will read as imperatives.

To complicate matters further, our relationship with the specific person who has sent the message-our particular thoughts and feelings about them -also informs the way in which we fill in the unknown or unclear parts of the communication, the blanks.

My patients arrive regularly with texts and emails to read aloud as support for the bad behavior of the note's author. They read the messages with distinct tone and inflection to dramatize what they know to be the voice with which the note was composed-one of self-centeredness or contempt or disregard or disinterest or directive. No doubt their interpretations are often accurate. But the only thing I can access with any certainty is what my patient assumes and feels-I have little idea of what the author "really" wanted to impart. Words may be read and understood in an almost infinite number of ways.
For example:
Here are a few sentences that might easily be a text or email:

"Can you pick up milk and cookies? I forgot when I was out earlier. Glad you'll be here soon."

This seems simple and straightforward. But, for one who is sent this note by a spouse with whom there is sometimes strain about who purchases the food and/or what time each of them returns home, it might be read as dripping with sarcasm or accusation. It is not, however, clear that this would be intended. In fact, the writer might have been feeling particularly cozy toward their partner at that moment, with no awareness of how their words might be received.

Now imagine this message was sent by a kindergarten teacher to her assistant. If the assistant is harboring resentment and feels exploited, it might be understood as an expression of the head teacher's entitlement as she asks her assistant casually and without apology to take care of something for her. However, the head teacher may have meant to convey breezy collegiality, never suspecting that her note was causing her assistant to seethe.

Finally, picture the in- love person waiting anxiously for word from the beloved with regard to their evening plan. This message might feel insufficiently smitten or romantic, thus prompting disappointment and distress. The unwitting writer might have actually felt much enthusiasm for the upcoming rendezvous-sincerely "glad" for its arrival-and somewhat sheepish about having forgotten some items for their dinner.
What we can do
First, heed the standard, but nonetheless wise, counsel to count to 10 or (1000) before hitting send on a hastily crafted reply. Then, during this interval, ask yourself: can I understand this message in another way? That is, in a way other than the one you find upsetting.

Try to think of an alternative interpretation featuring the author's good will toward you (or, at least, the absence of malevolence). Do this to create some space between you and your conviction; require your mind and feelings to redirect, if only fleetingly.

Of course, your initial take on the message's tone and intent might be entirely correct. The point is we cannot be assured of this-there is always uncertainty inherent in fully comprehending another person's mind and heart. Especially if their expression arrives via email or text.

The exercise of considering distressing emails and texts from a different perspective highlights how thoroughly-and often!-our understanding is shaped by emotions and imaginings from inside ourselves. Allowing for this recognition offers us the possibility of composing a more measured and less defensive reply.

Melissa Ritter, Ph.D., is a psychologist-psychoanalyst practicing in New York City. She is a Supervisor and Faculty at The William Alanson White Institute, as well as Co-Editor of this blog, Contemporary Psychoanalysis in Action, to which she is also a contributor. She is Founder and Co-Chair of the White Institute LGBT Study Group, and an Instructor for the upcoming White Institute Spring Educational Intensive on clinical work with LGBT people. She is also Clinical Supervisor at The City University of New York and Adelphi University.

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Why Is There So Much Miscommunication Via Email and Text?

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How many times have you read an email or text and felt an instant heated wave of irritation? Or felt hurt? Or disregarded? These are familiar experiences for us all. Without any information other than words-typically, very few words-the meaning we make out of the cryptic electronic messages we receive is necessarily shaped by our own feelings and expectations.

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How to Politely Disagree, According to Science

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How to Politely Disagree, According to Science

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How to Politely Disagree, According to Science

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How to use neuroscience and psychology to keep your temper level and your mind open

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5 Simple Tips to Improve Your Communication Skills 

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5 Simple Tips to Improve Your Communication Skills 

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5 Simple Tips To Improve Your Communication Skills

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Created using PowToon -- Free sign up at http://www.powtoon.com/join -- Create animated videos and animated presentations for free. PowToon is a free tool that allows you to develop cool animated clips and animated presentations for your website, office meeting, sales pitch, nonprofit fundraiser, product launch, video resume, or anything else you could use an animated explainer video.

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What is Conflict Resolution and  how does it work? 

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What is Conflict Resolution and  how does it work? 

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PON - Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School

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What is Conflict Resolution, and How Does It Work?

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If you work with others, sooner or later you will almost inevitably face the need for conflict resolution. You may need to mediate a dispute between two members of your department. Or you may find yourself angered by something a colleague reportedly said about you in a meeting.