Do People Tell You That Your Communication Skills Are As Clear As Mud?

Have you ever traveled to a foreign country, hailed a local taxi and then spent hours driving around in circles before deciding to toss your Spanish dictionary right out the window? Perhaps you have spent many a sleepless night wondering why your new girlfriend is so upset with the Christmas gift that you thought was just perfect for her.

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to get your point across and realizing that the other person has absolutely no clue what you are talking about!

You may begin to feel like an actor in a poorly dubbed foreign movie. Although these situations may bring back painful memories, they can also serve as valuable reminders regarding the importance of having effective communication skills.

Having effective communication skills is essential in all parts of our life – in our home, our work and our relationships.

• Learn how to tell what the opposite sex is saying with their body language...
• ...the signs men use when they try to attract you...
• ...the fear of public speaking and how to conquer it...
• ...why parental conflict exists with teens (hint: communication skills) and what parents can do to resolve that...
• ...what you can do when your marriage has gotten as exciting as aged milk...
• ...and so many many more!

Communication Skills - Did You Know?

When I was in my home country, we followed the British education system. I thought being in America would not be a problem because, hey, it's still English after all, right?

So there was once when I was in a classroom in the middle of a lesson, and there was red ink on the chair I was sitting on. I then innocently declared,

"Hey, I've got blood in my stool!"

Everyone around me started cracking up. Soon the entire class was laughing so hard, even my professor was grinning.

I felt something was wrong. True, it was meant to be an innocent joke, but the way they were laughing told me it's more than just 'an innocent joke'.

Bewildered, I asked my friend next to me if I had just shot myself in the foot. I needed to know what I just said.

"Here in America, 'blood in my stool' means you've just declared that you have, uh, anal bleeding," my friend whispered.

Moral of the story? Not knowing how to make yourself understood can land you into very embarrassing situations. I shudder to think what would have happened if, instead of a classroom, I was in a high-powered business meeting.

Therefore, I started this site hoping to help ordinary people like you and me understand and practice communicating effectively. My goal in building this site is not only to explain the importance of effective communication, but also help you to improve your own communication skills.