Communication Barriers In The Workplace

Unfortunately, I still see companies and departments consistently distributing information and news only via Outlook emails, even though SharePoint has already been implemented as an intranet. In addition to document management, SharePoint also offers a news feature and more! This "news web part" can be used not only for company-wide news but also for small team-, department-, project- and process-news. And the best part: With just a few clicks, you can forward SharePoint news as beautifully designed Outlook emails. SharePoint News offers a centralized and easily accessible platform for distributing information, ensuring that all employees, including new hires, can access both current and past updates. Unlike Outlook emails, which can create information silos and overwhelm inboxes, SharePoint News improves transparency, supports real-time updates, and fosters collaboration by integrating seamlessly with other Microsoft 365 tools. This leads to more efficient information sharing and better onboarding experiences for new employees.

📢 🗣️ Communication is NOT just dissemination! Over the last month, I have spoken to many social impact communications leaders. Most of them had the same complaint- their roles and departments are treated as a mere servicing function in the organisation. Irrespective of their experience and skills, comms folks are often only expected to dole out press releases, design social media posts, disseminate reports and improve the organisation's and partners' visibility- without being considered an integral part of programme strategies! Yes, communications plays a crucial role in building a narrative for your issue and organisation- but that can only happen if you treat it as a strategic function. A press release in isolation or a stray social media post is not enough. You need to treat comms as a strategic function within your programme. What does it mean? ⭐ Any and every dissemination should tie with the broader objectives and goals set by the programme. Ideally, comms teams should be a part of yearly and quarterly milestone planning. This would enable them to plan their dissemination that feeds into the strategic objectives of the programme. Stop using comms to merely close the loop on achieved outcomes. Use it as a means to take your strategic vision forward! ⭐ Comms teams should get enough time and freedom to engage with important stakeholders-communicators, NGO leaders, etc. Most comms teams are so caught up in the day-to-day to-do lists that there is seldom any 'thinking time.' If we do not fix this, all we will get is vanilla content without any out-of-the-box ideas. Think beyond text- working with art, images, illustrations, video, the possibilities are endless. ⭐ Comms can play a major role in building knowledge tools, training materials and capacity building programmes for internal programme teams as well as partners and grassroots orgs. This function enables programmes and communities to build cohesive narratives using different comms tools and strategies without always relying on the comms team. This means creating media literacy programmes, manuals for bottom-up storytelling, etc. ⭐ Allocate a separate, considerable budget for comms. Good communication requires money. Organisations hire 'multipurpose' resources who can churn out reports and canva designs in a jiffy. But comms does not work in isolation and we need people who understand ground-level realities and are skilled in working with communities and social issues. These skills take years to build. Organisations also need to invest in good design, visuals, editing tools, etc. I have been fortunate to have found organisations and programmes that value communications and its strategic function. But with budget cuts and the pressure on visibility without vision, it is sad to see several talented folks working in social impact comms being used as servicing agents for their teams. Remember, comms should always be an integral part of your programme, not just an afterthought! 📢

"Can we talk for a minute?" Those six words used to send me into panic mode. Dark scenarios start to emerge, and my body starts to sweat. Have you experienced that? I'm sure you have. Unfortunately, sometimes it really is a bad scenario. As a CEO, my first thought is often: “Are they leaving?” At some point I realised: "This tiny habit of sending vague messages is unnecessary stress we create for each other." So I changed my own behavior first and stopped writing: ❎ “Hey, can we talk?” ❎ “Let’s meet to discuss something.” And started writing things like: ✅ “Can we talk for 15 minutes about Client X?” ✅ “I’d love your input on this project decision.” ✅ “Nothing urgent, just want feedback on Y.” Same meeting but completely different emotional impact. The why matters and context removes anxiety. We all carry enough stress. Let's not add to each other's load with ambiguous messages. Small change. Big impact. 💪

He froze when 200 people stared at him.” The conference hall was buzzing—200 leaders, the smell of strong coffee lingering, microphones catching every shuffle of paper, the air thick with expectation. The senior director—brilliant, decorated, flawless on paper—stood at the podium. His slides had ended. Then came the dreaded moment: 👉 The Q&A. A voice from the crowd cut through the silence: “If this strategy fails, what’s your backup?” He opened his mouth… But nothing came out. Seconds stretched like hours. His eyes darted. Hands trembled slightly. The weight of 200 pairs of eyes bore down on him like floodlights. His face tightened. And then… silence. It wasn’t lack of knowledge—he knew the answers. It was lack of structure. Under pressure, his thoughts scrambled. His brilliance stayed trapped inside. Later, in a quiet corner, he looked at me and whispered, almost embarrassed: “I don’t understand. I’ve been doing this for 20 years… why can’t I speak when it matters most?” That was his vulnerability. Not ignorance—paralysis under pressure. So I introduced him to a simple but powerful framework: PREP. • Point: State your answer upfront. • Reason: Explain why. • Example: Back it with evidence. • Point again: Re-emphasize with clarity. We practiced it until it became muscle memory. Short questions. Long questions. Even curveballs. Two weeks later, at another leadership forum, the test came again. A tough question landed. This time, instead of freezing, he paused… took a breath… and said: “Here’s my view. The reason this works is… Let me share an example… And that’s exactly why we’re confident in this strategy.” His voice was steady. His gaze unshaken. The room nodded, pens moved, whispers stopped. Afterwards, his CEO leaned over and said with a half-smile: 👉 “You handled that like a statesman.” That moment wasn’t just redemption—it was transformation. 🌟 Lesson: Pressure doesn’t break you. Lack of structure does. When you know how to answer, confidence follows. In the boardroom, it’s not the absence of fear that makes leaders powerful. It’s the presence of structure. #ExecutivePresence #CommunicationSkills #LeadershipDevelopment #SoftSkills #CrisisCommunication #PublicSpeaking #Boardroom #Fortune500 #ImpromptuSpeaking #Leadership

Ever felt those nerves kick in just before a high-stakes moment? Whether it’s a role-play assessment, a big meeting, or a job interview, it’s natural to feel the pressure! Part of my work, over the last 15 years, has involved assessing role plays and providing feedback on essential customer service skills, focusing on: ⭐ Service language and English proficiency ⭐ Pronunciation, tone and intonation ⭐ Body language and creating a positive client experience A little bit of anxiety shows you care, but too much can hold you back. That’s why I’m sharing the “6Cs” approach to help you manage nerves and bring out your best self under pressure: 1️⃣ Connection: Take a few deep breaths before entering to center yourself and feel connected to the moment. 2️⃣ Clarity: Use all available preparation time to make notes, reinforcing your understanding and focus. 3️⃣ Compassion: Remind yourself that nerves are natural; be kind to yourself, as you would to a friend. 4️⃣ Curiosity: Approach the role-play as a learning experience; curiosity can help shift your focus from nerves to growth. 5️⃣ Customisation: Tailor your approach to what works best for you; experiment with techniques that help you stay calm. 6️⃣ Consistency: Build a routine of positive affirmations, like an athlete does, to cultivate confidence and resilience over time. 👉 What are your go-to strategies for staying calm? Let’s share tips! If you’d like a 1-on-1 consultation session to prepare for your next presentation, big meeting, or podcast guest appearance, let’s connect! 🦋 Hi, I’m Lisa, a communication specialist and podcast host in Singapore. As the founder of SIXCOMMS, I create spaces for connection and help professionals enhance their communication skills. #CommunicationSkills #ManagingNerves #PresentationSkills #ProfessionalSkills

You’re not bad at hard conversations. You just lose composure when it matters most. It’s rarely your words that cost you credibility. It’s how you show up under pressure. When tension rises, your tone tightens, your pace speeds up, and your message gets lost in the noise. Here are 12 moves that change that fast 👇🏼 1️⃣ Regulate your nervous system first ↳ Take 3 deep exhales before the conversation starts ↳ A calm body reads as confidence and credibility 2️⃣ Start with the hard part ↳ Don’t warm up with small talk when tension is high ↳ Try: “I want to talk about the tension I’m noticing between us.” 3️⃣ Name what’s happening in the room ↳ “This feels uncomfortable, and that’s okay.” ↳ Acknowledging discomfort actually reduces it 4️⃣ Use “I notice” instead of “You always” ↳ “I notice we’ve had different interpretations of this deadline.” ↳ Removes blame, invites curiosity 5️⃣ Ask what they need, not what you think they need ↳ “What would make this situation better for you?” ↳ Let them tell you instead of guessing 6️⃣ Slow down when you feel defensive ↳ Your instinct is to speed up and explain ↳ Pause for 2 seconds before responding 7️⃣ Validate before you correct ↳ “I can see why you’d interpret it that way.” ↳ Validation isn’t agreement - it’s acknowledgment 8️⃣ Lower your voice instead of raising it ↳ Dropping tone creates instant composure and control ↳ It makes others lean in instead of fight back 9️⃣ Get curious about their position ↳ “Help me understand what you’re most concerned about.” ↳ Curiosity disarms defensiveness instantly 🔟 Own your part without over-apologizing ↳ “I see how I contributed to this misunderstanding.” ↳ One clear acknowledgment, then move forward 1️⃣1️⃣ Focus on the future, not the past ↳ “Here’s what I’d like to do differently going forward.” ↳ The past can’t change, the future can 1️⃣2️⃣ End with a clear next step ↳ “So we’re aligned on [specific action]?” ↳ Ambiguity creates tension later Difficult conversations aren’t about control. They’re about turning tension into trust. Which line would have helped you most in your last tough talk? -- 🔖 Save this post to revisit before your next high-stakes conversation ♻️ Repost to help your network handle tough conversations better 🔔 Follow Dr. Carolyn Frost for practical psychology for ambitious professionals

Most B2B marketing teams rush content distribution because they treat it as an afterthought. They upload a blog, publish one or two LinkedIn posts, check the box, and move on to the next project. But real impact comes from strategic, ongoing distribution—not just a couple of LinkedIn post. The key? Build distribution into the content creation process from the start: 1️⃣ Capture expert insights in a scalable way. Instead of creating isolated assets, run interviews that fuel multiple formats—LinkedIn posts, video clips, podcast episodes, articles, and more. 2️⃣ Make content easy for your team to repurpose. Give sales, leadership, and subject matter experts pre-written content they can use on LinkedIn or in customer conversations. 3️⃣ Think in distribution cycles, not one-and-done pushes. A strong post shouldn’t live and die in a single day. Repurpose it, repost it, add a new angle. The best ideas get better with repetition. Most teams don’t need to create more content—they need to distribute it more effectively over time. When you get that right, you don’t have to choose between speed and impact. You get both.

Your words aren't neutral. At senior levels, they're infrastructure. Every sentence you speak shapes what gets surfaced next time. What gets hidden. What people decide is "safe" to say. I learned this the hard way. Early in my career, I'd speak from urgency. Fill silence. Discharge tension. Move things along. But I wasn't leading. I was reacting. And my team felt it. One day, a trusted colleague pulled me aside: "When you speak in meetings, people stop thinking. They start calculating." Leadership communication shouldn't be about speed. But about downstream impact. The leaders who build strong systems understand this deeply. They know clarity beats cleverness. That restraint often creates more momentum than force. That silence can be more powerful than words. 🔹 Here's how to communicate with intention under pressure: → Pause before you speak in high-stakes moments → Ask questions instead of giving answers → Name the tension instead of avoiding it → Say less, but make every word count → Create space for others to think out loud → Acknowledge uncertainty when it's real Because here's what I've seen over and over: What you say today trains the system you'll be leading tomorrow. Your words either build psychological safety or erode it. They either invite truth or train people to hide it. Most senior leaders underestimate how much weight their voice carries. What are your words reinforcing? 🎁 Are you a senior leader feeling overloaded? Map where pressure is landing. 👉 https://bit.ly/4qXO1TA ♻️ Repost to share this with other leaders in your network ➕ Follow David Parsons for more on leadership under real pressure

Most dissemination plans describe activities. Evaluators are scoring outcomes. The typical dissemination section contains: a project website, social media accounts on two or three platforms, a final conference, a newsletter sent to the organisation's mailing list, and a statement about sharing results through the partners' networks. An evaluator reads this and marks the section as present. Not as credible. The distinction matters because present and credible score differently. What the evaluator is actually reading for is not whether dissemination activities exist. It is whether the right outputs will reach the right people in a way that produces real use. The criterion is not activity. It is adoption. The question underneath every dissemination criterion: who specifically will use this output, in what context, through what mechanism, and how will you know they did? Dissemination plans that score well answer these questions with names, relationships, and mechanisms that exist before the project starts. Not "we will share the toolkit through our networks." But "the toolkit will be piloted by the three partner organisations as part of their 2027 spring programme cycle, with formal adoption reviewed and documented at month 18 of the project." Not "results will be shared through social media and our newsletter." But "three policy briefs, each co-authored with the relevant national agency partner and targeted at their ministerial audience, will be submitted in the final project quarter through institutional channels established in advance." Not "we will organise a final dissemination event." But "a structured review session with representatives from 6 youth work organisations not involved in the project will be held in month 22 to assess whether the methodology can be adopted in their context, with documented feedback incorporated into the final version of the guide." Not "the results will be available on the project website." But "the methodology will be submitted for inclusion in the Erasmus+ Results Platform with a structured abstract targeting the specific practitioner audience that needs it, using the indexing categories that make it findable in a targeted search." The principle is consistent across all of these: dissemination is not posting. It is the organised process by which specific outputs reach specific audiences who have both the need and the capacity to use them. If the dissemination plan in your proposal could be copy-pasted from a different project and still be accurate, it is not a dissemination plan. It is a placeholder. Dissemination is not the final step of a project. It is the proof that the project was worth funding in the first place. #ErasmusPlus #EUProjects #Evaluation #Dissemination #GrantWriting