Do teams have communication problems? You might notice their communications are full of misunderstandings, a lack of feedback, or mixed messages. While all of those things are a problem, they are seldom the real problem.

Take, for example, someone who is coughing. Coughing is a symptom of a problem. You can take something to suppress the cough, but the underlying problem won’t go away. You may have stopped the coughing for now, but it will return.

Communication is much the same. You can teach people to communicate more clearly, seek feedback, and be crisp. But, if your team doesn’t trust each other, for example, you’re only going to have better communication hindered by a lack of trust.

Communication is often the symptom of real problems. Find and address the real problems, and I’m pretty sure everyone will do just fine in their communications. After all, they’ve made it through life this far, haven’t they?

You’ve got this.