There are no best practices in communication

Yes, you read that right.

An executive communication coach is telling you there are no best practices in communication.

Just like your leadership style, the way you communicate is unique. It is tightly linked to who you are, how you see the world, and what you believe in. So having a ‘best’ one-size-fits-all approach to it makes little sense.

Better practices continuously improve your communication

A best practice implies a perfect standard to achieve. Once you’re there, you’re done. Right?

In our fast-changing world, that cannot be how anything works. Let alone communication, which changes with the culture its embedded in. Every new generation changes the rules of engagement. Every major technological shift does too.

Better practices set an ambition to improve. They tell you there is a better way to communicate. They often consist of techniques, tools and processes that help you grow.

The better practice my clients all know me for? The two questions you ask yourself before every important communication moment.

I’m sure some of them are reading this and already reciting my questions:

• What is your objective for this communication?
• What does your audience need so you can achieve that objective?

It can be really frustrating when I ask you those two questions AGAIN. But if I do, it’s because you didn’t.

The better practice inherent in these two questions is about intentionality. It’s about knowing what you want and need and shaping your communication to deliver those results you’re after.

It’s a mindset. A simple, but demanding one. And it delivers results.

Because you’re never ‘winging’ communication again. You know what you want. And you’re getting it.

That is what better practices in communication are about.

Better practices are sustainable

As an executive, you have more than enough on your plate. And fitting a better practice like top-down communication into the way you work takes time.

But the very reasons why they are more time-consuming are also the reasons why better practices last. When you practice top-down communication in every meeting, e-mail and phone call, it will become second nature. At some point, it will click. You will start seeing the results.

That’s when you’ll know your improved way of communication will last.

To give you an example, one way of integrating top-down communication into your meetings is through an executive summary. One slide at the start of your presentation that brings the key messages first. You show your objective or recommendation to your audience from the start. Only then do you bring in the analyses or details your audience needs to support the key message.

Even an executive summary, one of the ways to practice top-down communication in your presentations, is a better practice. It is not something you can copy/paste.

You’ll make it your own by trying it and experimenting. How you’ll eventually use it, depends among other things on:

• Your personal strengths and style. For example, if you are a subject matter expert you have instant credibility. You’ll need less time convincing your audience you used the right approach.
• Your organization’s communication culture. For example, if anything that goes before the board follows a strict format, your new insights about top-down communication need to be adapted to that reality.
• Your audience. Have they seen this topic a dozen times before? Or are they new to it? Your key message will need more context and details if it’s the latter.

When your presentations become more effective, that better practice is bound to be part of your future communication too.

Better practices can be repeated, passed on, and institutionalized

If someone hands you a ready-made solution, it can work wonders for the problem you were trying to solve. The likelihood of it working for a different problem next week is slim to none, though.

A senior manager comes to me in preparation for a difficult conversation with a low-performing team member. I could give them a script and tell them how to run the conversation. And it might work.

Instead, we have a conversation about what blocks them from having that difficult conversation. They tell me they truly dislike giving feedback to their team members. Now we are no longer working on one specific situation.

If that manager decides to try a better practice like the constructive feedback process, it can be the foundation for the difficult conversation they have already planned. They’ll continue practicing constructive feedback with their other team members. They may even decide to explain the feedback process to their team so they can use it with their colleagues too.

You might not be able to copy/paste a better practice. But you can make it your own and pass it on.

So, no. There are no best practices in communication.

There are only better practices to make your own. And what is more rewarding than picking the things that work for you and seeing the results?

Do you need more communication insights, tools and processes that work for you? Read more articles here or book your free 30-minute consult to talk about your objectives.