Page 49 - Effective communication Skills by Dale King

Buy a Good Thesaurus and Dictionary

The most loyal companions on your desk need to be a thesaurus and
dictionary. You can use the dictionary to learn the derivations and meanings
of new words you come across. You can also use it to check the spelling of
words that you aren’t sure of. A thesaurus can help you when you are writing
and need a different word so you can stop using the same word or create a

different meaning.

Write and Edit

Everybody writes. It might be sending a text on your cell phone, an email, or
you might be working on the world’s next bestselling novel. One way to
improve your writing is by reading what you have already written and ask
these questions:

1. Are there ways to make it more accurate and concise?

2. Have I expressed exactly what I mean?

3. Is it comprehensible and clear to readers?

Seize New Words

There is a feature in Reader’s Digest that is entitled “It pays to expand your
Word Power.” This is very good advice. If you come across a new word, you
should turn to that dictionary sitting on your desk and take some time to learn
its derivation and meaning. It is very easy to just skip over new words and

race through the book. We have to have discipline if we don’t want to lose
these opportunities.

Playing with Your Words

Children learn language by playing with their words. They test, experiment,
make mistakes, and get corrected gently. You need to adopt a playful attitude
with words and treat them like they are good friends. Word games can
increase your intelligence rating and verbal dexterity. Most IQ tests will use

word puzzles to determine a person’s IQ. Doing rebuses, word searches, code
breakers, cryptic crosswords, anagrams, word puzzles, and other conundrums
are great mental exercises to keep your mind sharp.