Mercy Dolapo Matthew, PhD

Communication is not the goal.

Stay with me…

You send the message.

You explain what you want.

You have said everything you needed to say.

And then you expect the other person to simply go and do it.

But here is the problem: You communicating is not the same as the other person understanding you.

That is where many communication breakdowns begin.

Someone gives an instruction to a team and gets frustrated when the team doesn’t deliver what was expected.

“I already told them!”

Yes, you told them.

But did they understand you?

For me, effective communication has to move through four stages:

1. Clarity
Is my message clear?
Did I say what I mean without ambiguity, unnecessary jargon or insults?

2. Understanding
Does the other person actually understand what I am trying to communicate?

Because you can give a perfectly clear message and still have someone interpret it differently.

3. Influence
How did I communicate it?

Did I communicate in a way that helps the person see why it matters and influences how they think or decide?

4. Action
What happens next?

Because ultimately, communication should move something.

A decision.
A behaviour.
A response.
An action.

So, the next time you communicate, don’t stop at:

“Have I said what I wanted to say?”

Ask: “Was I clear? Did they understand? Was I able to influence? And what action should follow?”

Because communication is not about successfully transferring words from your mouth to someone else’s ears.

It is about moving understanding towards action and that is where effective communication begins to produce results.

Want to communicate with clarity, connect with the right people and turn conversations into meaningful results?
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Mercy Dolapo Matthew, PhD
The Anchor Coach

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