Communication is the daily bread of every HRist, and it is in it that trust is often undermined and unnecessary tension is created. According to the rhetoric tutor and stand-up comedian Radek Petráš Many recruiters make the same mistakes all the time. How to avoid them and fully manifest the gift of the word, you will read right now.
Speech is the most powerful HRist's weapon
Radek Petráš is a professional rhetorician and stand-up comedian. He has been involved in the spoken word for over 12 years — whether on the theatre stage, in communication courses or in company trainings. To the rhetoric he got through own disappointment with the coursesthat gave him no real guidance. So he began to teach himself: practically, intelligibly, without abstract instructions and, most importantly, in such a way as to help people cope with the difficult situations that they experience in communication every day.
Feedback from one of the participants of the course also proves that his approach works:
“I had a 30-minute inter-company TED-talk today on the challenging topic of honesty in the company. I said what I wanted, how I wanted it, and I had a lot of pauses and silences to voice my thoughts. Occasionally voice modulation and I managed to use my hands! But most of all, I realized that without last year's course at Radko, I would never have composed the content and form. It wouldn't be personal, it wouldn't be with stories. It was important, I wanted to inspire and name the right things. It had great acclaim! “
Talk ≠ communicate
“Every human resources professional can speak, but only the person who thinks, who is talking to, can really communicate,” says Petráš. According to him, communication is not about how quickly and colorfully we sprinkle words from each other. It is about what and to whom we say and, more importantly, why. A good HRist speaks differently to the job applicant, differently to the management and even differently to a colleague in the team. Petráš argues that the art of communication begins with listening, and especially with the difference between “listening” and “listening”. While listening, we are already preparing the answer in our head, listening, we also focus on why the other person is telling me just like thisOr why is he silent? We simply go more in depth, below the surface of the spoken word.
Why HRISTs Need Rhetorical Skills
Personnel is not only a messenger of good news. They often have to say unpleasant things. Rejection, denunciation, feedback that is hard to listen to. It is in these moments that every word, look or attitude of the body matters. The problem is when HRist tries to be a little too nice and packs the message into “nice-sounding” words, while the meaning is lost. According to Petráš, the other side often senses this, and instead of trust comes uncertainty or doubt. Rhetoric in HR is not about fancy talking. It's about the art of saying things accurately, respectfully and at the same time directly.
In communication, it is also important how the personnel officer faces, how he holds his body, how or where he sits, whether he squeezes paper in his hand, etc. Radek Petráš adds that he is absolutely fine, especially in potentially unpleasant situations, to say things straight. For example, “I need to discuss Project XY with you. I received negative feedback on the way you approach it.” The staffer opens the topic clearly, not starting with a small talk about coffee or a new vending machine on the second floor — he just goes straight to the point. And that's what the other side will appreciate. She doesn't have the feeling that something is hiding from her or that an unexpected blow is coming.
HR communication as a driver of corporate culture
According to Petráš, HR has a huge influence on the communication culture in the company — not only towards management (vertically), but also among colleagues (horizontally). But how to improve it? Maybe when HR starts herself to speak openly, For example, through stories and storytelling. “Imagine leading a group of newcomers who are afraid to ask anything. Instead of mentoring, tell them a story about when you were too afraid to ask more experienced colleagues or leaders, and what came of it. You don't tell them what to do, but you give them instructions on how to behave in that culture,” Petráš says.
But what if the leadership itself does not communicate well? This is often the case in companies as well. According to Petráš, many managers are even aware of this, they only push it down in the ranking of priorities. In these moments, HR should take on the role of initiator and come up with a proposal for training or teambuilding focused on communication, conflict management or work with stress.
“The moment you get people out of the office, without laptops and phones, into a different environment — suddenly the principles of communication become more natural. And then they bring them back into daily operation,” says Radek Petráš.
The important thing is to start and give the first impulse. The culture of intra-company communication in companies is always changing from the inside, often at HRISTs.
Compliments vs. Compliments: How to Give Feedback
In the feedback Radek Petráš recommends sticking to a simple procedure:
- Start with a specific compliment. Not in the style of “you are a super worker”, but for example: “I appreciate how you solved the water situation at the conference without hesitation.” What is the difference between a compliment and a compliment? You can say flattery to anyone. A compliment is aimed at a specific act of a particular person. It is factual, honest and unchangeable and that is why it has weight.
- Open the topic you need to address. “I need to discuss with you a style of communication that someone in the team didn't like. “
This creates a space for dialogue. When a man feels appreciated, it is much easier to accept even a critical message and most importantly he knows that you call it to him as a person to a person, not as an authority from above.
Silence as a powerful tool for HR professionals
What is one of the biggest mistakes when speaking? Talk when we don't know what we want to say yet. The result is verbal vata, repetition, hedonism and, most importantly, chaos on the part of the listener. Radek Petráš is clear about this:
“Silence is the best remedy for all inconveniences in communication. “
The moment we stop being afraid of pausing, we begin to speak more clearly, more clearly — and most importantly, more calmly. Silence is not a weakness. Silence is room for thought.
Practical tips for communication training of HRists
According to Peter, speaking can be trained. And what's even better: you don't need a stage light to do that. You just need to start with these tips:
To be clear about what I want to convey, Even before I start talking.
Record on a voice recorder or mobile phone and listen back. It's annoying, but impossibly effective.
Notice the emotions behind the words of others. What do they really want to tell me? What reason do they have for that? Am I just listening right now, or am I really listening?
Learning to work with silence, which can become your powerful weapon to sort out thoughts.
Communication training is not about standing in front of a mirror and honing gestures. It's about that be aware of what, to whom and why I say — and how it affects the other.
Communication is HRIist's everyday tool and its most powerful weapon. There is no need to take a course in rhetoric right away or aim for perfect speech. It is enough to start today and with small steps: simply noticing how I speak, listen or work with silence. And occasionally remind yourself that every word can make a difference — even the one that remains unspoken.
