Perhaps you tried pitching a ground-breaking project, you were chairing a departmental meeting, or you needed to deliver a compelling presentation. You gave it your best shot, but all you got back were blank looks and awkward silences.

Chances are, there wasn't much wrong with what you were trying to say; it's just that you needed to work on how you said it.

Many people struggle to communicate effectively – verbally and in writing. They impart thoughts and ideas that don't reflect their intended meaning, and that their recipients misinterpret or misunderstand.

This can result in confusion, frustration, wasted effort, and missed opportunities. Communication breaks down, causing collaboration and progress to become impossible.

Communication is one of the most important skills that you need to succeed in the workplace.

If you want to be an expert communicator, you need to be effective at all points in the communication process – from "sender" through to "receiver" – and you must be comfortable with the different channels of communication – face to face, online, written, and by telephone. This is because poor communicators often struggle to develop their careers beyond a certain point.

Do you want to find out more on how to be a good communicator?