"Executive women may not realize that they are setting themselves up for sabotage as they rush through their busy days," says Novato Executive Woman Life Coach Michelle DeBerge.
For a Limited Time receive a
FREE HR Report "Top 10 Best Practices in HR Management." This comprehensive special report will give you the information you need to know about these current HR challenges and how to most effectively manage them in your workplace.
Download Now"Most of the executive women I have worked for are intelligent overachievers—true Type A personalities”, says Novato Executive Woman Life Coach Michelle DeBerge. “These women who run their own businesses or who are leaders in large companies are actually doing more work than they need to, and thus are not as effective with their teams.
"The one thing all of these women had in common was a communication issue that they did not even realize existed. Most executives are natural leaders, but not necessarily natural communicators. Because of this problem, less gets delegated, and the workload gets larger," said DeBerge.
"Many don't pay attention to how their message lands on someone else. This is a huge oversight. If a message does not land properly, then either the staff won't do what is asked of them, they will do a poor job, or they may just do it wrong. Then the executives end up frustrated, upset, and at times just takes over that project themselves because they feel it will get done faster and get done right. This pattern will repeat itself over and over," DeBerge said.
Once the executive masters the art of communication, the staff will be more inspired, motivated, and willing to go the extra mile. Then the executive can concentrate on other important tasks and not worry about having to do everything.
DeBerge offers these five tips for effective communication for executive women:
- Acknowledge the listener. This can be as simple as: "Good morning Susie," "Thank you for meeting with me," and "I appreciate you coming in today."
- Make and maintain eye contact. This will ensure that the message lands on the listener; you will connect better with the listener and it has a more authoritative impact.
- Be clear and concise. Make your point clearly without any story surrounding it. You don't need to explain the whys or hows of your reasoning.
- Be personable. Smile when making contact; take a breath; and be human. Your listener will respond better. Thank them when you are done.
- Look for confirmation. Ask your listener if there are any questions. This allows the listener to acknowledge that he or she heard and understood you.