It can sometimes be hard to develop your communication skills and especially when you’re alone, as you have no one to practise with. But, there are ways that you can help to improve your communication skills alone, that will help you in many different situations.

There are many different ways you can improve your communication skills alone, from expressing your thoughts, focusing on what you’re saying and simply by reading books. There are many different ways to practise this, that doesn’t always require someone else to be there with you. So, don’t give up, there’s always something that can be done, to help improve your skills and it all starts with yourself. Read on to learn about 5 ways you can improve your communication skills on your own!

1. Take Time To Reflect on Yourself

Take some time out to have a proper think about what is going on, what’s going well and what could be improved. Focus on past experience where communication has been involved. Reflect on how you dealt with it and in what ways it could’ve been improved, or what you did well! It may be that a different communication method could have been used. Or the way it was said could be improved. Reflection always helps to improve on your skills and this is something that can easily be done alone.

2. Consider How Others Impact Your Communication

Another thing to think about is why you communicate with people in certain ways. Different situations, with different types of people all need to be approached in different ways. Some people have the ‘gift of the gab,’ others you struggle to communicate with. While you’re alone, you can have a think about past situations and possible future ones and play out how you could communicate in that situation.

You can also do some research on how you should communicate in certain situations. You can research into different personality traits, and trends on how best to communicate with certain personalities.  Or research into different communication strategies that can be used skills within the workplace, in a professional manner with your boss and colleagues.

They’re all important things, but often it can be hard to know how to use your communication skills, until you have done it.

3. Read Books

Reading books, articles and blogs on communication (like this one!) can help to improve your communication skills. It is also something that can easily be done by yourself.

On top of this, communication is often reflected by the things you read and are passionate about, so why not sit down every night and have a read of a high-quality book or article, that takes your interest.

Reading also helps to expand your vocabulary range, which then improves your communication and the way you communicate with people. It can be easy to pick up on words and communication methods, when you’re into something and therefore this is reflected in your own skills.

4. Write It Out And Say It

This simple yet effective method, can really help to improve your skills, by yourself. In a situation where you’re communicating, whether it be over text, email or on a phone call, then write it out first and read it back to yourself. By writing it out and saying it back, it can help for you to understand better, how you improve it.

A big thing with communication is expressing your emotions through your voice. So by saying it out loud, you can understand better if the message is clear and the recipient will understand the message easily.  This is something that can easily be done alone, or if you are at work, just whisper it to yourself. It’s a great way for you to work out what needs improvement so you can practise.

We all have our own thoughts and opinions and often we want to share these with others around us. But some people are too afraid to have their own opinion for the fear of being shut down, or not knowing enough. There’s nothing worse than keeping your thoughts to yourself, so why not write what your opinions are on paper. This can help to build clarity and give you confidence while also fine tuning your skills. You can use this method for anything; from telling someone what you think about them, to sharing something you’re passionate about. Why not make notes of the things you feel passionate about and have a think about how you could use your communication skills, to express this to someone else.

5. Practise Getting to the point quickly

Effective communication can often be achieved by getting straight to the point and cutting out the waffle. This is where saying less, can actually mean more. This is something that can easily be practised by yourself, to improve your communication. It’s easiest to start with your written communication.

When writing texts and emails, why not try out the less is more method? Try ways of how you can cut down the conversation, get your point across and be clear in doing so. But at the same time, consider the way you’re coming across to others. You want to make sure you’re giving the right impression to them and not coming across as blunt or rude..

There are many different ways to improve your communication skills, and often the most beneficial strategies are the ones you can DIY!

If you found this article helpful, check out some of our other great articles written by our job experts at Rednax Recruitment. Thought provoking blogs like ‘What is the difference between a Job and a Career‘ or ‘Does it matter what your first job is?‘

While you are here, be sure to check out what Brisbane Jobs we have advertised as we are always looking for great people to join our labour hire team!