The Beauty Of Jacaranda Trees (The Cost Of Poor Communication)

I was reminded that as we’re now in late August, at time of writing, that while my summer nears an end, winter is nearing it’s end in the southern hemisphere, and spring is on their horizon with Jacaranda trees now in bright purple bloom. Here is a link with a great photo of Jacaranda https://www.refugeesintowns.org/harare

A Toastmaster friend sent me an email covering a few topics and he told me of the progress of the Jacaranda, and reminded me that I had expressed appreciation for the beautiful blossoms when I visited Zimbabwe for just one day in 2016. He sent me a link to a local article that was published when I visited and I had commented on the beauty of these trees. You can read the article here

https://www.herald.co.zw/toasting-to-success/

I re-read the brief article from the Harare Herald and found new appreciation with how the author Monica Cheru-Mpambawashe wrote about Toastmasters and noted the need to effectively communicate with peers, clients, subordinates, the media and other key people.

It can be difficult to fully assess the cost of ineffective communication, but one cost is lost opportunity. Opportunity is lost when people fail to offer ideas in meetings if they are not confident they can deliver their message well. Another is when an unskilled speaker comments to media and the organization needs to correct a poorly phrased message. If someone is representing an organization publicly in any capacity, they really need their communication skills to be sharp.

Earlier this year I wrote a perspective on the cost of poor communication skills (https://gycz.blogspot.com/2022/01/the-cost-of-poor-communication-skills.html). In that post I wrote I had been interested in an online university course at a U.S. institution, but during a presentation promoting the program I quickly tuned out because the presenter was very bad at making his point. His presentation was disorganized, difficult to follow, and filled with ums and ahs as he struggled to sell the program. I did have sympathy, and I did have interest, but my unwillingness to fight through his poor communication skills resulted in me signing off early. You may have had similar experiences. That university lost a revenue opportunity, and possibly a public relations opportunity.

Another view on the cost of poor communication is provided in this Forbes posting

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2017/11/15/the-true-cost-of-poor-communication/?sh=2b8a3f1c20ab

Although difficult to fully assess, poor communication skills are costly to organizations. However, good communications skills can be learned and practiced.