How Good Are Your Communication Skills?

Speaking, Listening, Writing, and Reading Effectively

Are you sending and receiving accurately?

© iStockphoto/Floortje

Communication skills are some of the most important skills that you need to succeed in the workplace.

If you want to be an expert communicator, you need to be effective at all points in the communication process – from "sender" through to "receiver", and you must be comfortable with the different channels of communication – face to face, voice to voice, written, and so on. Poor communicators usually struggle to develop their careers beyond a certain point.

So are you communicating effectively? Take this short quiz to find out. 

The Communication Quiz

Instructions

For each statement, click the button in the column that best describes you. Please answer questions as you actually are (rather than how you think you should be), and don't worry if some questions seem to score in the 'wrong direction'. When you are finished, please click the 'Calculate My Total' button at the bottom of the test.

15 Statements to Answer	Not at All	Rarely	Sometimes	Often	Very Often
1 I try to anticipate and predict possible causes of confusion, and I deal with them up front.
2 When I write a memo, email, or other document, I give all of the background information and detail I can to make sure that my message is understood.
3 If I don't understand something, I tend to keep this to myself and figure it out later.
4 I'm sometimes surprised to find that people haven't understood what I've said.
5 I can tend to say what I think, without worrying about how the other person perceives it. I assume that we'll be able to work it out later.
6 When people talk to me, I try to see their perspectives.
7 I use email to communicate complex issues with people. It's quick and efficient.
8 When I finish writing a report, memo, or email, I scan it quickly for typos and so forth, and then send it off right away.
9 When talking to people, I pay attention to their body language.
10 I use diagrams and charts to help express my ideas.
11 Before I communicate, I think about what the person needs to know, and how best to convey it.
12 When someone's talking to me, I think about what I'm going to say next to make sure I get my point across correctly.
13 Before I send a message, I think about the best way to communicate it (in person, over the phone, in a newsletter, via memo, and so on).
14 I try to help people understand the underlying concepts behind the point I am discussing. This reduces misconceptions and increases understanding.
15 I consider cultural barriers when planning my communications.

Total = 0