The quicker you’re able to identify and adapt to someone’s communication style, the better you’ll be able to get that relationship off to a good start right out of the gate. This is also particularly relevant if the relationship, by its nature, is a brief and important one.
For example, I give a lecture at the University of Ottawa to first-year medical school students on how to communicate effectively in difficult conversations with patients.
Being able to recognize a patient’s inherent communication style and adapt your communication style accordingly will help ensure you communicate with them fully and effectively.
Hospital physicians seldom have a lot of time to spend with each individual patient and it’s essential that each patient comes away from the encounter with a clear understanding of their medical condition and a complete buy-in with the doctor’s recommended treatment plan. If they don’t, then the chances of successful treatment diminish — and, when their medical situation is serious, many patients are in a heightened state of stress and communication becomes even more difficult.
In each of my next 4 blog posts, I’m going to talk about one of the four primary communication styles and tell you:
1. what the observable characteristics are of people who have that style,
2. how they tend to behave when under stress, and
3. how to adapt your own communication style so you can more easily connect and communicate with them.
Stay tuned!
Have an enjoyable and productive day.
