How to Improve Your Communication Skills: 20 Tips & Best Practices

Developing good communication skills is very important both in the business world and in private life. Communication skills can be practiced every day in settings ranging from social to professional.

Improving communication skills is a continuous journey that encompasses active listening, clear expression, and confident non-verbal cues.

There are some tips and tricks you can use to improve your communication skills so that you appear more confident and friendly. In this blog post, we have mentioned 20 ways to improve your communication skills in order to build a successful career or become a more effective leader.

Updated on 22 April, 2025.

Effective communication techniques

How to Improve Your Communication Skills: 20 Effective Communication Techniques

Do you often feel shy when talking to new people? Do you avoid situations that require you to speak in public, such as giving lectures or speeches in front of co-workers?

Most of us go through those times when we feel unable to communicate effectively with others, but fortunately, it is easy to treat this condition with training and simple steps to improve communication skills with others.

Developing effective communication skills is very important, as these skills work to build distinctive social relationships, and help the individual to find permanent contact with the professional community, all of which facilitate the achievement of personal and professional success.

Here are 20 effective communication techniques that will improve your conversation skills and make you excellent.

20 Ways to Improve Your Communication Skills

Effective communication is a key interpersonal skill to success in many aspects of life. Communication skills are the abilities you use to convey ideas to the people around you.

Communication skills are both universal and specialized at the same time. This is why some environments have special requirements when it comes to communication.

People with good communication skills typically have better interpersonal relationships with friends and family, and learning how to improve your communication skills has many benefits.

Below are 20 ways to improve your ability to communicate effectively with others.

1. Know who you are talking to

Knowing someone's personality and communicating is one of the most important things that must be worked on when looking to improve communication skills, as it is decoding the other's understanding and this includes everything in his personality, including his emotional temperament.

Choosing the right words for your target audience is the key to effective communication. Therefore, it is imperative that you familiarize yourself with the social site of the person you are communicating with before starting the conversation.

You should have at least a brief description of the cultural background of the person you are speaking with, their political views, and personality, and you should have an understanding as much as possible of their emotional nature.

The goal is to gain as much information as possible from the listener before and during the conversation, as this greatly simplifies the task of communicating.

Anything that can be known before and during communication can improve the ability to deliver the message as required.

2. Listen well to others

It is important for the person to be a good listener in order to become a good communicator, which requires the individual to practice active listening, pay attention to what others are saying, and clarify ambiguities by reframing their questions to achieve a greater understanding.

People who have effective communication skills tend to talk less and listen more. They communicate their messages more clearly than their counterparts who speak a lot.

Paying attention to the speaker and letting him continue his speech without interruption is one of the good listening techniques.

This is difficult and needs training, but realizing the idea that a good conversation is a two-way street, in which the methods of communication between the two parties are not required to be identical, will reduce the anxiety and tension that occurs when communicating with others.

3. Ask what do you mean?

Do not rely on guesswork to understand what other people want to communicate during their conversation with you.

If you do not understand a specific point in the conversation, it is okay to ask and inquire about what other people mean by their words.

And because people are social creatures, the person you talk to will feel appreciated when you ask them questions during conversations. Asking questions is the surest way to show someone you care about what they say.

4. Improve your body language

If you want to have the best form of communication, pay attention to your body language as you care just as you pick your words during the dialogue. Non-verbal communication or physical signals have a great impact on others beyond words.

If you don't feel confident giving a lecture, for example, people will perceive it from a variation in your tone of voice, or from the way you move around the stage.

It is important to practice good body language, by making eye contact, hand gestures, and choosing the right tone of voice when communicating with others.

Eye language is one of the important languages that must be mastered to improve the skill of communication, as it helps to deliver the message effectively and intelligibly to others, and improves and increases one's self-confidence. Studies have shown that women master eye language more than men.

5. Think before you speak

Make sure to think before speaking, and be careful not to say directly what comes to mind.

Take a moment and pay attention to what you say and how you say it. Check the message before sending it and make sure what has been written matches the intended message.

Don't blame the other person for not understanding the message. Instead, find ways to clarify or paraphrase what you're trying to say so that it can be understood. This habit will allow you to avoid embarrassment.

6. Reduce fillers and crutch words

Start with small steps and try to eliminate or significantly reduce your use of hesitant words and crutch words in everyday conversation.

The speaker should take care to convey the message in as few sentences as possible, and avoid stuffing words because this causes confusion for the listener.

You should also avoid excessive speaking or using confusing words that may cause confusion among the audience.

7. Speak with confidence

Ensure confidence in what is said, and interact in communicating with others. Maintain your eye contact, relax your body, and speak briefly.

Thinking about how to sit down, how to speak, and how to pronounce words before any important meeting will help you achieve the best possible communication.

Learn how to sit confidently, and dress appropriately, and when you stand up to talk, break the deadlock with a cute but relevant joke.

Telling a story during a conversation has a profound effect on the listener because the stories stimulate the mind, and also make the topic more persuasive.

Avoiding making the statements sound like questions, or appear aggressive or offensive, will secure effective communication as well.

8. Build high self-esteem

A person's communication style can change the way people view them, by affecting their career opportunities, emotional relationships, and the formation of friendships.

People with high esteem tend to possess better communication skills, due to their job accommodation, communication with their needs, and conflict management.

People with low self-esteem have difficulty communicating, which leads to difficulty in developing strong relationships, and a further decrease in their self-esteem.

Assertive communication is the ability to clearly articulate a person's needs in a way that is not overly aggressive or conciliatory.

9. Be relaxed when talking to someone

Do you constantly feel tense or pressured? The most important thing you must understand is that talking to people is not a performance.

When the individual communicates with others, he tends to believe that they judge him for everything he does, or says, and this affects what he does during that, whether he notices it or not, but that is not really true, which means that others are not interested in judging the individual.

Thus, if the person reaches the conviction of this, he will feel comfortable that allows him to relax, and communicate more clearly and confidently.

So, be quiet in talking to someone so that you can start putting yourself out there and stop judging everything you do.

10. Avoid aggression during dialogue

Effective dialogue hinges on the ability to manage emotions and foster mutual respect. One way to avoid aggression during conversations is by cultivating an awareness of your emotional triggers and employing techniques such as deep breathing to maintain calm.

It is possible to encounter hostile people in conversations, especially when it comes to political or religious conversations.

You should keep your calm in this case and not allow their hostility to control your speaking style as well.

If a conversation escalates, agree to take a short break and return with a more balanced mindset. Establishing ground rules for respectful dialogue can prevent conflicts before they arise.

11. Be open to criticism

Our exposure to criticism may be one of the reasons we are afraid to speak in public. The solution here is not to remain silent all the time for fear of being criticized but to accept criticism and learn how to discuss and benefit from it.

If you are criticized by one of your colleagues or managers, try first to get more information about the weaknesses that they think exist in your business, and if you find that they are right in their criticism, ask them for advice about effective ways to avoid this weakness.

But if they criticize just because of criticism, then a little discussion with them will show that they are wrong.

12. Engage your audience in discussion

Engaging your audience requires a deliberate approach that invites participation and values every contribution.

Understand your audience’s interests and context so you can tailor the discussion topics to areas where they naturally feel invested.

One of the most important skills for effective communication with the audience is to involve them in the topic and interact with it in case you are giving a lecture.

If there are no interactive discussions and brainstorming sessions, your audience will feel bored, and their lack of interaction will affect the way you cast and trust yourself.

Maintain a welcoming and non-judgmental atmosphere where mistakes are seen as opportunities for learning, and every question fuels the conversation forward, turning a simple discussion into a collaborative journey of discovery.

13. Master the art of timing

Mastering the art of timing may be the most important part of the communication process. It is about aligning your words and actions with the natural flow of conversation or performance.

Never seem to be in a hurry. Always be patient, as if you know everything will eventually come to you.

Good communicators are able to feel out their audience to determine when to move on to a new topic or when to repeat an idea.

If you merge self-awareness with deliberate practice, you learn to read subtle cues and adapt in real time, ensuring your timing amplifies your message and enhances your connection with your audience. This continuous adjustment ultimately transforms timing into a compelling art form in every interaction.

14. Respect your audience.

You must genuinely care about the unique needs and perspectives of those you communicate with. Remember your message is not just about you or what you want.

Humans are unique creatures on Earth with the gifted ability to think, judge and analyze things. Everyone has different points of view and perceives things differently and everyone seems to feel offended when they encounter anyone expressing anything that challenges their long-held beliefs.

Therefore, respect people with ideas and views different from you. One of the best ways to show your respect is simply by paying attention to what they say.

The other person will feel appreciated, which will result in a more honest and productive conversation.

15. Don't try to look smart

When you are managing a conversation with someone you don't have to look smart or clever, keep your conversations simple with others and just aim to be comprehensible.

Make sure that you spend your time listening to others and understanding their views before responding to them.

If you are patient enough to hear arguments, you will always be able to formulate the best response in your mind. If they misunderstand your response, take it upon yourself to interpret or paraphrase it.

16. Treat people appropriately

You must deal with people in a good and decent manner, and talk to them in a civilized manner, without paying attention to other matters such as religion, gender, race, and others.

Treating people appropriately is key to fostering mutual respect and creating meaningful connections. It begins with empathy—strive to understand that each person has unique experiences, challenges, and perspectives.

Practice kindness in both your words and actions. Respect personal boundaries and cultural differences, and tailor your behavior to be considerate in varying contexts.

Be patient and maintain a calm demeanor, especially during conflicts. Recognize that everyone is fighting their own battles, and extending grace often diffuses tension.

17. Increase general culture

Increasing your general culture is a rewarding, lifelong pursuit that opens your mind to diverse perspectives and deepens your understanding of the world.

It is preferable to be knowledgeable in different areas of life, by reading books and novels on a permanent basis, as this method helps to increase general culture, and thus improve communication and communication skills with others, in addition to improving linguistic vocabulary.

If you integrate the best practices into your routine, you'll continuously expand your general culture, enhancing both personal growth and your understanding of society.

18. Learn new languages

Learning a new language is both an exciting journey and a gateway to new cultures. This method helps to increase the general culture, and thus improve and increase the skill of communication and communication effectively, so it is preferable to read foreign books or participate in various courses.

Over time, try incorporating the new language into daily tasks—labeling household items, journaling, or even thinking in that language.

With persistent effort and immersion, you'll see gradual improvement, making the learning process both effective and enjoyable.

19. Ask for help

The great lecturers you loved weren't perfect in the early stages of their careers. Some of them received many lessons on how to write a clear, coherent and easy-to-understand idea, and on how to deliver and influence the audience.

So if you aspire to be a distinguished speaker, it is okay to ask for help and look for the best ways to write your ideas and present them to the audience.

20. Choose the right communication method

It is extremely important to choose the right communication method and the steps to take in deciding which communication method would be the most effective.

Choosing the appropriate form of communication has a great impact on achieving good communication between individuals. For example, it is more appropriate to communicate personally and directly about serious matters than to send an email to discuss them.

Read Here. Importance of Life Skills Education -10 Essential Life Skills

Conclusion: How to Improve Your Communication Skills

Improving your communication skills is essential for personal and professional growth. Enhancing communication skills requires consistent dedication, self-reflection, and proactive engagement.

Continuous practice and willingness to listen actively form the basis of improvement. Embracing clarity in speech and writing ensures that ideas are conveyed precisely, reducing misunderstandings.

Hands-on practice in real-world scenarios, such as team discussions, presentations, or even casual conversations, contributes significantly to developing these skills.

Paying attention to non-verbal cues and body language can enrich your communication, conveying confidence and empathy.

Seek constructive feedback from peers, mentors, or trusted friends, and use it as a tool for continuous improvement. Embrace digital communication by mastering the etiquette of virtual meetings, emails, and social media.

Ultimately, adopting an iterative approach, where every conversation is a learning opportunity, propels your growth as an effective communicator.

In a world where clear dialogue can bridge cultural divides and foster innovation, investing in these practices not only enhances professional success but also deepens personal relationships for a more fulfilling life.