Five Communication Principles for Business Success

Why You Need These Communication Principles

There’s one place where most problems in any business come from – challenges in communication. Communication principles are vital because communication is:

• by far the biggest issue in small businesses
• the source of most arguments in relationships
• the root cause of most problems in general between human beings

Communication is key. It affects everything in your business. Once you master how to communicate effectively and clearly, you will be on your way to achieving massive success.

My team and I focus heavily on communication — both internally as a team and externally with our clients. And we succeed by living by the following five communication principles on a daily basis.

1. Implement a Communication System

The first communication principle is to use some type of system. Ours is called the Charfen Cadance. You need a clear communication system that says, here’s how we’re going to communicate, here’s when, and here’s what’s going to be said.

When you have a communication system, mistakes and issues go down to a minimum. You stop having to hear about how everyone’s frustrated. You get more projects done, and you get projects done faster.

When there’s a communication system, there’s less hassle for you and the team. Everyone on the team is more efficient, and they get better at what they do.

2. Be Transparent

People can’t read your mind. You have to communicate what you need help with and where you are struggling.

When you’re transparent, you can get the help you need. When you make it a team norm to be transparent, everyone will be vulnerable and ask for help when they need it.

Transparency has been a critical component to our team’s success. This is possibly the trickiest communication principles to apply, but if you exemplify a culture of transparency, others will follow suit.

3. Focus on Accountability

Without accountability, there is no commitment or encouragement to succeed. My team and I are big on accountability. We hold each other and ourselves accountable to the things we’ve committed to.

Each of us is responsible for our daily tasks, but every week, we also create weekly commitments. These are a handful of extra tasks that aren’t part of our day to day work, but that fall into our area of expertise. Our leadership team delegates what additional commitments need to be done for the week and who will do them. That person then agrees and essentially commits to doing each of those items by the end of the week.

But our accountability stretches farther than just our work. We often share personal goals with one another. By doing so, it helps us stay accountable to the things we said we would do and gives the rest of the team permission to motivate us.

4. Don’t Communicate if You’re Triggered

This is probably the biggest of the communication principles because it can cause the most damage if it isn’t followed.

Don’t communicate with others when you’re triggered. I’ve learned this the hard way. Take it from me; it’s something you don’t want to do.

When we’re triggered, our communication will usually cost us. When we’re emotional, we’re likely to make irrational decisions. If you find yourself in this state, realize that you aren’t yourself, and responding immediately will only hurt you and everyone else.

Going forward, when you’re triggered and feel the urgency to reply, back down. Instead, use strategy and finesse when you’re communicating with others – it will change everything.

5. Have Predictable Outcomes

When the team knows what to expect, they can be prepared. This goes from having repetitive and choreographed meetings to knowing when a project deadline is. Always make sure the people you are working with know the outcome of whatever you are doing.

When you communicate, and you are clear about the outcome you want, the team will know what is expected of them. It will also eliminate stress and confusion for you and everyone else on the team.

This is also one of the basic communication principles that FreeUp highly values, so don’t hesitate to communicate this to any freelancer you hire during onboarding.

Over to You

Living by these five communication principles has been a game-changer for us. They have brought us closer together, allowed us to achieve massive milestones, and eliminated tons of pressure and noise.

Try implementing these five communication principles into your business and see how fast your company grows!

Once again, if there is a single key to success, it’s communication.