Communication barriers in the workplace can have a serious effect on the functioning and of an organization. In the following article we shall understand what some of these communication barriers are and how to overcome them.
What are the Communication Barriers in the Workplace?
Difference in Perception
No two people can perceive an event in the same way. What I infer from a particular incident, the other will not necessarily perceive the same. This can act as a major communication barrier because what I convey to a subordinate or colleague will be based on my perception and what he understands from it will be based on his. If the two viewpoints end up differing, it could cause the task at hand to suffer, as well as lead to misunderstandings.
Language Barriers
Language can have its own special meaning. One develops jargon and other catch words that denote a completely different meaning than what the word signifies, to cite an example 'Going out ' could mean the physical task of leaving a premise or in the colloquial sense it could mean a couple that is dating. Things like these are shared within a group who have common experiences and spaces. With this in mind, workplace communication can face major barriers when there are so many people with so many languages and jargon, and a connotation meaning something different for each of them (possibly). So then the possibility of communication barriers gets heightened. That is why one needs to understand the importance of communication in business or the professional world. The best way to avoid miscommunication is to make use of words that are simple and which cannot be interpreted in very many ways.
Channel Barriers
The communication process happens through a channel or a medium. It could be the word of mouth, any of the gadgets like phones, emails, faxes etc or through another person. And as many mediums that there are, those are the amount of miscommunication