Communication is Life

Wondering how the world was formed? People are of the view that the world came out of an explosion. Some scientists believe that too. But wait a moment! The religious persons also have a different view. If it was science, how do scientists bring out ideas and share them with each other to develop or invent that idea? Through which channel do they interact? How do they understand each other? How do they interpret what their fellow scientists share? How is the analysis made? How would they know that the other scientist is really sharing an idea of importance? How do they manage themselves to solve the identified problem? 

If we should side with religion, what happened before the world came into being? Was it through science? Or a Deity? If it was through a Deity, what did the deity say? Was it a spoken word or an unspoken word? Oh! but that’s communication right there.

We say Communication is the exchange of ideas- any idea at all. Once there is an exchange, it means COMMUNICATION has taken place.

Communication is Intentional & Unintentional 
Communication is intentional and unintentional. Communication is life. It goes beyond what people perceive as the spoken word.

A typical example is when a regular customer gives an amount of money to a food vendor and without uttering a word, the food vendor dishes out the food to the regular customer. Obviously, this customer must have been buying food with the same amount over and over again. Although there was no spoken word, from the definition of communication, communication has taken place because there has been the exchange (money and food) between the food vendor and his/her regular customer.

Let’s take another example. What will be your reaction when you are talking to a friend and you see him/her lean forward to you [trying to close the gap between the two of you]? Instinctively you will lean back because you feel he or she is up to something *funny*. Your friend might not have said anything about his/her intentions but you feel that someway somehow, he/she is invading your personal space. Thus, without a spoken word, there has been an exchange of message [your friend leaning forward] and there has been a response from you [retreating because you feel unsecured]. This is called non-verbal communication.Communication is Life

So folks, you see, communication is life; it is not limited to spoken words… I know you remember the quote which says, ‘You are addressed by the way you dress’. Why would someone judge you for the way you have dressed?Let’s take a look at this scenario… You are an interviewer on a panel interviewing people for a managerial position for your company, you call for the next interviewee only to see a young man with his short pulled down, with a cap, wearing a black T-shirt with flip-flop. What would you ask him to do? Would you offer him a seat? or ask him out? If one of these young men appear on the panel, which of them would you hire? [without both saying a word]…  I am pretty sure your choice is as good as mine.

 















For all you know, the gentleman dressed in the black T-shirt may be qualified for the job but for his appearance. Although, he has not spoken a word, he has already been disqualified. Conversely, the gentleman neatly dressed may not be qualified. From this instance, it is observed that communication is not just about what we say consciously. It is also the way we unconsciously send out signals and messages without a spoken word. That's why Communication is said to be Life, because it cuts across all disciplines.