Do you ever feel like you are worlds apart from team members or managers regarding communication styles? You’re not alone. However, for many, professional development training sessions on issues like communication haven’t gone far enough in teaching practical steps to improve these critical soft skills. Issues like perceptual bias and how people interpret information is often left out of the conversation.
Below, we examine how perception affects communication on a neurological level. We also list practical tips and expert advice on how people can improve their perception for better communication in the workplace and all areas of life. Let’s dive in.
Perception & the Brain
Perception involves both recognizing environmental stimuli and actions in response to these stimuli. Through this process, people gain information about the elements of the environment that are critical to their survival. Perception also involves selecting, organizing, and interpreting the information we take in. This selection process is the brain’s way of determining what stimuli it wants to let into a person’s perception field and what it wants to leave out. Next, the brain organizes what is allowed in by sorting and categorizing information based on learned cognitive patterns. Over time, the brain continues to file information and social interactions away to access it another time. How a person interprets what they perceive comes next. Because their perceptual filters continually shift meanings and interpretations, this is when breakdowns in communication tend to happen.
Where Communication Breaks Down
When people interact at work or in their personal lives, they often oscillate between what they know, what they “think” others know, and what they “think” they know. This leads most people to operate under the illusion of assumptions and biases – leading to massive miscommunication. According to the Houston Chronicle, one workplace example of this behavior is when a manager discusses the idea of “breeding efficiency,” and a team member interprets the words as code for “layoffs.” In reality, the manager only refers to the need to be more efficient with the supply of office copier paper. Of course, this assumption can fester privately but such miscommunication compounds if an employee spreads false assumptions to other team members.
Perception Bias
Falling victim to unconscious biases is pretty common. But many types can occur in a workplace setting. For example, perception bias is a type of unconscious bias that occurs when our perception is skewed based on inaccurate assumptions about a group a person belongs to. This can include biases about appearance, age, or gender. For instance, in a workplace situation, if a manager believes that a team of young employees can not handle a project independently because they lack experience, they may not delegate responsibilities as confidently.
So, how damaging can these biases be in the workplace? According to Nicole Smith, CEO/Founder of JMS Creative Leadership Solutions, “Perception bias can affect the workplace and have staggering effects in decision making, especially in recruitment and promotion of talent or even delegation of projects. Perception bias creates superficial judgments and poor decisions resulting in leadership hiring and promoting the wrong talent. Furthermore, when leadership allows perception bias to creep in, it is challenging for them to effectively communicate their decisions and why. This has crushing effects on leadership’s trust and rapport and detrimental, long-term effect to the workplace culture,” Smith tells Endominance.
How to Eliminate Workplace Bias
To stop bias before it starts, several easy techniques can be taught and implemented in the workplace. Smith tells Endominance, “First, it is imperative that organizations invest in education for their team members, especially leaders, to help mitigate biases. This promotes self-awareness and levels the playing field regarding understanding what bias is and how to mitigate it. Second, organizations should examine the processes that are in place which may perpetuate bias. Third, leadership is a collective effort. Leaders cannot make all the decisions, nor should they make them alone. Leaders who are self-aware and seek feedback on their decisions (and thought process) can communicate their reasoning behind the decisions made confidently.”
If miscommunication and bias seem rampant in the workplace, other tactics may need to be implemented, including identifying the problem at its source. Our PIC (Performance, Interpersonal, and Challenges) Report explains the underlying cause of a person’s behavior. It offers an innovative approach to understanding their decision-making process, actions, strengths, limitations, and aptitude – unlocking their full potential. A science-based tool can help take the onus off managers to identify communication trouble areas between team members – making it easier to tackle and fix them.
Fresh Perspectives on Improving Communication at Work
Authors Jennifer Edwards and Katie McCleary highlight some effective strategies for improving workplace communication in their book Bridge the Gap: Breakthrough Communication Tools to Transform Work Relationships from Challenging to Collaborative. In a recent Forbes article by Kathy Caprino, Author & Career/Leadership Coach, the women share some of these fresh ideas, including:
Staying Perpetually Curious
McCleary reveals to Forbes, “Perceptual curiosity is how we question what we perceive things to be. Putting curiosity into action can improve professional relationships because it brings no agenda other than hearing, learning, and connecting with others without judgment, bias, or assumptions. Working to gain awareness of our perceptual curiosity helps us strengthen it as a muscle in our communication and collaboration. Increased perceptual curiosity allows for a clean slate, along with innovation, creativity, and collaboration to emerge, as people are more open and receptive to the talents, strengths, and perspectives of others.” She also adds, “Curiosity is an energy that fuels communication. Choose to show up as someone eager to learn and connect. Invest in understanding their perspective differently by being open to what’s important to them.”
Prevent “AMY” From Highjacking Your Communication
Edwards tells Forbes, “Whenever you feel stressed, angry, or frustrated, your neurochemistry pumps out a chemical cocktail and triggers an invisible yet impactful “frenemy” – the amygdala. We’ve shortened this word to “AMY” and “she” can be an annoying chip on your shoulder that reduces your ability to be communicative, collaborative, creative, and curious.” So how can team members and managers prevent “AMY” from interfering with their communication? Edwards suggests, “The next time you feel AMY hijacking your communication and decision-making skills, choose to pause your reaction by taking 3 minutes to breathe in your nose for 5 seconds and out your mouth for 5 seconds. The few minutes you spend investing in disrupting AMY’s impact will allow you to respond optimally.”
