Communication is the process of exchanging information, ideas, thoughts, or feelings

between individuals or groups. It involves sending, receiving, and interpreting messages

through verbal (spoken or written words), nonverbal (body language, gestures, facial
expressions), and visual means. Effective communication requires clarity, understanding, and
mutual feedback to ensure the intended message is accurately conveyed and comprehended.

Communication Process

Communication is a dynamic process that begins with the conceptualizing of ideas by the sender
who then transmits the message through a channel to the receiver, who in turn gives the feedback in
the form of some message or signal within the given time frame. Thus, there are Seven major
elements of the communication process:

1. Sender: The sender or the

communicator is the person who initiates
the conversation and has conceptualized the
idea that he intends to convey it to others.

2. Encoding: The sender begins with the encoding process wherein he uses certain words or
non-verbal methods such as symbols, signs, body gestures, etc. to translate the information
into a message. The sender’s knowledge, skills, perception, background, competencies, etc.
has a great impact on the success of the message.

3. Message: Once the encoding is finished, the sender gets the message that he intends to
convey. The message can be written, oral, symbolic or non-verbal such as body gestures,
silence, sighs, sounds, etc. or any other signal that triggers the response of a receiver.

4. Communication Channel: The Sender chooses the medium through which he wants to
convey his message to the recipient. It must be selected carefully in order to make the
message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. The choice of medium depends
on the interpersonal relationships between the sender and the receiver and also on the
urgency of the message being sent. Oral, virtual, written, sound, gesture, etc. are some of
the commonly used communication mediums.

5. Receiver: The receiver is the person for whom the message is intended or targeted. He tries
to comprehend it in the best possible manner such that the communication objective is
attained. The degree to which the receiver decodes the message depends on his knowledge
of the subject matter, experience, trust and relationship with the sender.
 6. Decoding: Here, the receiver interprets the sender’s message and tries to understand it in
the best possible manner. An effective communication occurs only if the receiver
understands the message in exactly the same way as it was intended by the sender.

7. Feedback: The Feedback is the final step of the process that ensures the receiver has
received the message and interpreted it correctly as it was intended by the sender. It
increases the effectiveness of the communication as it permits the sender to know the
efficacy of his message. The response of the receiver can be verbal or non-verbal.

Note: The Noise shows the barriers in communications. There are chances when the message sent by
the sender is not received by the recipient.

The 7 C’s of Communication is a checklist that helps to improve the professional communication skills
and increases the chance that the message will be understood in exactly the same way as it was
intended.

To have effective communication, one should keep the following 7 C’s of communication in mind:

1. Clear: The message should be clear and easily understandable to the recipient. The purpose
of the communication should be clear to sender then only the receiver will be sure about it.
The message should emphasize on a single goal at a time and shall not cover several ideas in
a single sentence.

2. Correct: The message should be correct, i.e. a correct language should be used, and the
sender must ensure that there is no grammatical and spelling mistakes. Also, the message
should be exact and well-timed. The correct messages have a greater impact on the receiver
and at the same time, the morale of the sender increases with the accurate message.

3. Complete: The message should be complete, i.e. it must include all the relevant information
as required by the intended audience. The complete information gives answers to all the
questions of the receivers and helps in better decision-making by the recipient.

4. Concrete: The communication should be concrete, which means the message should be clear
and particularly such that no room for misinterpretation is left. All the facts and figures
should be clearly mentioned in a message so as to substantiate to whatever the sender is
saying.
 5. Concise: The message should be precise and to the point. The sender should avoid the
lengthy sentences and try to convey the subject matter in the least possible words. The short
and brief message is more comprehensive and helps in retaining the receiver’s attention.

6. Consideration: The sender must take into consideration the receiver’s opinions, knowledge,
mindset, background, etc. in order to have an effective communication. In order to
communicate, the sender must relate to the target recipient and be involved.

7. Courteous: It implies that the sender must take into consideration both the feelings and
viewpoints of the receiver such that the message is positive and focused at the audience.
The message should not be biased and must include the terms that show respect for the
recipient.

Note: This checklist applies to both the written and oral communication.

Common Barriers to Effective Communication:

1. The use of jargon. Over-complicated, unfamiliar and/or technical terms.

2. Emotional barriers and taboos. Some people may find it difficult to express their emotions
and some topics may be completely 'off-limits' or taboo. Taboo or difficult topics may
include, but are not limited to, politics, religion, disabilities (mental and physical), sexuality
and sex, racism and any opinion that may be seen as unpopular.

3. Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or irrelevance to the receiver. (See our page Barriers
to Effective Listening for more information).

4. Differences in perception and viewpoint.

5. Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or speech difficulties.

6. Physical barriers to non-verbal communication. Not being able to see the non-verbal cues,
gestures, posture and general body language can make communication less effective. Phone
calls, text messages and other communication methods that rely on technology are often
less effective than face-to-face communication.

7. Language differences and the difficulty in understanding unfamiliar accents.

8. Expectations and prejudices which may lead to false assumptions or stereotyping. People
often hear what they expect to hear rather than what is actually said and jump to incorrect
conclusions. Our page The Ladder of Inference explains this in more detail.

9. Cultural differences. The norms of social interaction vary greatly in different cultures, as do
the way in which emotions are expressed. For example, the concept of personal space varies
between cultures and between different social settings. See our page on Intercultural
Awareness for more information.