44907

Is your organization suffering from severe communication problems? Someone once said that "communication is the lifeblood of an organization" - and it truly is. An organization that is experiencing a breakdown in communication will not live for very long because many problems will crop up and eventually cause the organization to die a natural death.

If your organization is experiencing communication problems, you must do what you can to resolve these as soon as possible. The life of your organization is at stake.

How do you know if your organization is experiencing communication problems? There are 12 possible signs that you should look out for:

1) You find it hard to get some people to cooperate.

2) Some people are being left out of the communication loop.

3) Replies to messages are being delayed or completely ignored.

4) Groups in the organization are failing to reach their goals.

5) Mistakes are cropping up more and more often.

6) people are resorting more to criticism and placing the blame on other people.

7) Morale of teams is going down.

8) Productivity is dull or at zero level.

9) You receive many complaints.

10) Moments of conflict result in expressions of anger.

11) There is significant employee turnover.

12) business is going to your competitors instead of to you.

If you find that there are some or many (if not all) of these warning signs present in your organization, it is advisable for you to take steps to address such problems before they kill your organization.

How does one correct or resolve such problems? There are different steps to take to counter the prevalence of communication problems in organizations.

1) First, listen to the people involved or who have caused the communication problem in the first place. Doing so allows you to uncover the depth, nature and roots of the communication problem for that particular group of people.

2) If the problems are quite vast and have deeply-rooted causes, you may want to secure the help of a neutral negotiator. This third party may be able to get inside the problem more thoroughly than an insider because when communication problems crop up, the group involved may choose to clam up or point fingers rather than admit to their role in creating the problem.

3) To maintain confidentiality, it is possible to use a tool such as a survey. people who might be scared to tell the truth because of reprisals would then have another safer option compared to coming out of the crowd.

4) After you have uncovered the problem and its roots, you may choose to initiate group counseling or training. The point of this is to address the problem of the group, rather than focusing on just one person. Finger-pointing is avoided. The saying "united we stand, divided we fall" should become the motto of the group.

5) It is important for the leader to have great communication skills so that communication problems can be resolved. communication skills are required to diagnose communication problems, and naturally, provide the necessary solutions. Leaders who lack adequate communication skills might benefit from more training in communication.

6) Do your research - perhaps the communication problem you are experiencing now has occurred before in the history of the organization. And perhaps someone knows the solution that could work now. So look inwards into the heart of the organization, ask around, and you may find the way to properly address your organization's communication problems.

Remember, if your organization is already suffering communication problems, don't wait for these symptoms to get worse. Good communication is necessary for an organization to function properly and stay viable amidst the influx of a multitude of challenges from the environment. Act immediately on communication problems and stem the bleeding of your organization.

Peter Murphy is a peak performance expert. He recently produced a very popular free report: 10 Simple Steps to Developing communication Confidence. apply now because it is available only at: conversation starters

I always like to say it is much easier to prevent an injury from occurring than rehabilitating from one. The next few articles will discuss common injuries from the golf swing and how a golf fitness program can assist in the prevention of such injuries. Probably one of the most common injuries, and one as amateurs we are well aware of is to the lower back. Research indicates that one out two recreational golfers will incur a lower back injury at some point during their playing career.

Why is the lower back so often injured during the game of golf? Research studies have provided us some keys as to why this is the case. The golf swing is typically broken down into phases (address, backswing, downswing, follow through), and the sum of these phases is the full swing.

Each phase of the swing can be performed either efficiently or inefficiently. A professional is more likely to perform each phase of the golf swing more efficiently than that of the amateur. As a result the professionals swing has more efficient mechanics from start to finish, requiring lesser amounts of activity from the muscles to execute.

An amateur or less skilled golfer is more likely to have less efficient mechanics. To compensate for these improper mechanics the golfer will attempt to generate extra force from specific muscles than the amateur. Causing these muscles to work much harder to execute the golf swing.

Research from Hosea indicated in certain situations amateurs may develop up to 80% more peak torque in their lumbar spine (i.e. lower back) than a professional, muscles required to generate greater amounts of force are at a much higher risk of overuse injury.

Additionally, Hosea found professional golfers generate 34% more clubhead speed than the amateur, yet amateurs were producing spinal forces 50 to 80% higher, and 50% more trunk muscle activity than the professional.

All of this research points to the first reason as to why the lower back is commonly injured in the amateur golfer. Inefficient golf swing mechanics cause the muscles of the lower back to work harder to generate torque in the swing. Over time these muscles will become fatigued from the trauma caused by inefficient mechanics. Increasing dramatically the possibility of an overuse injury to the lower back.

How can the amateur take the first step in the prevention of a lower back injury? First and foremost is the development of more efficient swing mechanics. This can only be done through proper instruction and practice. If you are finding yourself in the category of a candidate for a lower back injury, my first suggestions is begin developing a more efficient golf swing.

Sean Cochran

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly working with professional golfers, most notable PGA and Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. To learn more about Sean Cochran and his golf fitness exercises and training programs go to http://www.seancochran.com