Team conflict is often rooted in communication issues. You may think you’ve over-communicated but your volunteers are thinking they were left out of the loop—again! Keep these tips in mind as you communicate with the people you serve:<\/p>\n
Listen, Thank, Respond<\/strong> \u2013 These three words say it all. Listen to people as they share their thoughts and feelings, thank them for sharing and then respond to what they’ve told you. This process values people by letting them know you care what they think and feel.<\/p>\n Ask for clarity<\/strong> \u2013 Make sure you understand the thoughts and responses of the people you\u2019re communicating with by asking for clarity. A good way to do this is by simply saying, \u201cTell me more\u2026.\u201d Then you can rephrase back their message to make sure you received it correctly.<\/p>\n Avoid arguing<\/strong> \u2013 Don\u2019t get caught in a debate or argumentative discussion. That never leads to productive communication.<\/p>\n Say \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d,\u00a0when you don\u2019t know<\/strong> \u2013 It\u2019s okay to let people know that you may not have all the answers. Don’t set yourself up to be the only source of all knowledge and information.<\/p>\n Avoid sarcasm<\/strong> \u2013 Enough said.<\/p>\n Extend grace<\/strong> \u2013 Colossians 4:6 says it best, \u201cLet your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer to everyone.\u201d \u00a0If team members lived out this concept you would create a culture that allows people to talk openly and honestly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Team conflict is often rooted in communication issues. You may think you’ve over-communicated but your volunteers are thinking they were left out of the loop—again! Keep these tips in mind as you communicate with the people you serve: Listen, Thank, Respond \u2013 These three words say it all. Listen to people as they share their thoughts and feelings, thank them […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":82,"featured_media":29894,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[117],"tags":[568,518,342,334],"class_list":["post-30770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lead","tag-communcation","tag-effective-meetings","tag-effective-teams","tag-teams"],"yoast_head":"\n