The Art of Leadership Communication: Identify, Adapt & Listen

When it comes to your leadership communication style, there are so many assessments out there that can help you identify yours. Even a quick Google search brings up at least nine different communication style quizzes to determine your individual or preferred style. From my personal research, I found one that had 40 paired statements awaiting my in-the-moment response, one that was colored-based and one that could tell me about my style in eight short questions. I can’t tell you which of these assessments would be the most valuable or most accurate, but one thing I know for sure is that knowledge is power, and the more we become knowledgeable about communication, our preferred style and the style of others, the more we can improve this critical skill.

I’ve spent much of my career focused on employee training, onboarding and engagement, as well as culture building. In that time, I’ve come to believe that, in general, communication styles can be broken down into four broad categories.

1. Direct – A style that can be valuable when specific tasks need to be completed, when there is a strong focus on the end result and when moving quickly to action is expected. It can be a way of conveying a message or instruction with the least amount of confusion and can be effective for describing expectations, defining boundaries or establishing a set of rules.
2. Systematic – A style that can be valuable when a thoughtful or analytical approach to a project, problem or process would be beneficial. This style may involve asking a lot of questions and aims to include a variety of perspectives that can ensure all angles are being considered. Focusing on the details rather than the “big picture” is a key aspect of this style.
3. Collaborative – A style that can be valuable when collaboration or consensus building is the goal. This style is different from the first two in that it focuses more on relationships rather than tasks. The focus here is on end results and the big picture, rather than the details of getting there. Fostering cooperation and trust and prioritizing team over self is a hallmark of this stye.
4. Influencing – A style that can be valuable when the importance of a message, action or team needs to be heard by others. This style focuses on building emotional connections, describing the bigger “why” and allowing people to see a positive picture of the future. Collaboration is an important piece of this style, so both big picture and small details are considered to ensure the best vision comes to life.

Adaptability in Communication

It's important to remember that no style is really better than another, but that styles should be adapted for certain people and situations, as the key to effective communication is using the style that best ensures your message will be heard.

When focusing on communication as a leadership tool, the best leaders excel because they know it's more important to understand your coworkers' communication style than it is to understand your own. The way to build a bridge between you and others is to adapt your communication style to meet theirs. Here are some scenarios where adaptability makes communication more successful for everyone:

• Are you direct and to the point, but have a member of your team that has a more collaborative style? Build in some time to connect socially and check in on how they are doing before getting down to the task at hand.
• Do you love knowing and sharing details and understanding reasons behind situations, but work with someone who is very direct? Share the specific details that are needed to complete the task and let them know you can provide additional details if needed.

Communication Built on Listening

Another effective communication tool is focusing less on what is coming out and more on what is going in! People want to be heard, to be seen and to feel valued. You can communicate much of this, not through the words you say, but by the listening you do.

Active listening involves paying attention to what the other person is saying, understanding their meaning and responding in a way that shows you’ve heard them. Research suggests that we spend about 70-80 percent of our day communicating in some format and that about 55 percent of that time is spent listening. However, only about 10 percent of people actively listen. This means that many of us are listening to respond rather than listening to understand.

Luckily, making just a few small changes might help improve your active listening skills:

1. Face the speaker (or camera, if communicating virtually) and pay attention to their body language or facial expressions. This may tell you something that is not being said verbally.
2. Don’t assume you know everything the other person is about to say. This is the reason many of us engage in listening to respond rather than listening to understand.
3. Don’t interrupt. Wait for the speaker to pause to ask clarifying questions.
4. Paraphrase the message you heard and repeat it back to the other person to ensure what you received is the message that was sent. This allows them to feel heard or clarify their message. If clarification was provided, paraphrase again to ensure full understanding.

No matter what your style, communication is such a complex yet critical leadership skill. By focusing on improving communication among your team, you can help people feel valued, learn to lead with confidence and make a lasting impression on all those you interact with!

Jeanne Heath is the director of cultural engagement and learning for Vizo Financial Corporate Credit Union. Ms. Heath has spent the bulk of her career conducting training within the financial services industry with a strong focus on technical and change management training during mergers and acquisitions. Jeanne has developed and implemented a dynamic onboarding program which immediately immersed new employees into the company culture of “positively impacting people’s lives” through an atmosphere of high performance, high accountability and high care. She is a certified Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and has earned her Credit Union Development Education (CUDE) designation.