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Chapter 1 Communication

Communication is the act of transferring information between a sender and a recipient, involving a message that can be influenced by various factors. It encompasses different categories such as verbal, non-verbal, written, and visual communication. The seven Cs of communication—clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous—serve as a checklist for effective communication.

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12 views3 pages

Chapter 1 Communication

Communication is the act of transferring information between a sender and a recipient, involving a message that can be influenced by various factors. It encompasses different categories such as verbal, non-verbal, written, and visual communication. The seven Cs of communication—clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous—serve as a checklist for effective communication.

Uploaded by

Tanishq Saini
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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What is Communication?

Communication is simply the act of transferring information from one place, person or group to
another.

Every communication involves (at least) one sender, a message and a recipient.

The transmission of the message from sender to recipient can be affected by a huge range of things.
These include our emotions, the cultural situation, the medium used to communicate, and even our
location. The complexity is why good communication skills are considered so desirable by employers
around the world: accurate, effective and unambiguous communication is actually extremely hard.

As this definition makes clear, communication is more than simply the transmission of information.
The term requires an element of success in transmitting or imparting a message, whether
information, ideas, or emotions.

A communication therefore has three parts: the sender, the message, and the recipient.

The sender ‘encodes’ the message, usually in a mixture of words and non-verbal communication. It
is transmitted in some way (for example, in speech or writing), and the recipient ‘decodes’ it.

In face-to-face communication, the roles of the sender and recipient are not distinct. The two roles
will pass back and forwards between two people talking. Both parties communicate with each other,
even if in very subtle ways such as through eye-contact (or lack of) and general body language. In
written communication, however, the sender and recipient are more distinct.

Categories of Communication

There are a wide range of ways in which we communicate and more than one may be occurring at
any given time.

The different categories of communication include:

• Spoken or Verbal Communication, which includes face-to-face, telephone, radio or television and
other media.
• Non-Verbal Communication, covering body language, gestures, how we dress or act, where we
stand, and even our scent. There are many subtle ways that we communicate (perhaps even
unintentionally) with others. For example, the tone of voice can give clues to mood or emotional
state, whilst hand signals or gestures can add to a spoken message.

• Written Communication: which includes letters, e-mails, social media, books, magazines, the
Internet and other media. Until recent times, a relatively small number of writers and publishers
were very powerful when it came to communicating the written word. Today, we can all write and
publish our ideas online, which has led to an explosion of information and communication
possibilities.

• Visualizations: graphs and charts, maps, logos and other visualizations can all communicate
messages.

The seven Cs of Communication

The seven Cs of communication provide a checklist for making sure that your meeting, emails,
conference calls, reports, and presentations are well constructed and clear
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1. Clear

When writing or speaking to someone, be clear about your goal or message. What is your purpose in
communicating with this person? If you’re not sure, then your audience won’t be sure either.

To be clear, try to minimize the number of ideas in each sentence. Make sure that it’s easy for your
reader to understand your meaning. People shouldn’t have to “read between the lines” and make
assumptions on their own to understand what you’re trying to say.

Information and actions required, must be clear so the reader has the information they need to take
action.

2. Concise

When you’re concise in your communication, you stick to the point and keep it brief. Your audience
doesn’t want to read six sentences when you could communicate your message in three.

Are there any adjectives or “filler words” that you can delete? You can often eliminate words like
“for instance,” “you see,” “definitely,” “kind of,” “literally,” “basically,” or “I mean.”

Are there any unnecessary sentences?

Have you repeated the point several times, in different ways?


3. Concrete

When your message is concrete, then your audience has a clear picture of what you’re telling them.
There are details (but not too many!) and vivid facts, and there’s laser-like focus. Your message is
solid.

4. Correct

When your communication is correct, it fits your audience. And correct communication is also error-
free communication.

Do the technical terms you use fit your audience’s level of education or knowledge?

Have you checked your writing for grammatical errors? Remember, spell checkers won’t catch
everything.

Are all names and titles spelled correctly?

5. Coherent

When your communication is coherent, it’s logical. All points are connected and relevant to the main
topic, and the tone and flow of the text is consistent.

6. Complete

In a complete message, the audience has everything they need to be informed and, if applicable,
take action.

Does your message include a “call to action,” so that your audience clearly knows what you want
them to do?

Have you included all relevant information – contact names, dates, times, locations, and so on?

7. Courteous

Courteous communication is friendly, open, and honest. There are no hidden insults or passive-
aggressive tones. You keep your reader’s viewpoint in mind, and you’re empathetic to their needs.

All of us communicate every day. The better we communicate, the more credibility we’ll have with
our clients, our boss, and our colleagues.

Use the 7 Cs of Communication as a checklist for all of your communication. By doing this, you’ll stay
clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous.

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