The Three Components of Your Message

The Three Components of Your Message

Albert Mehrabian of UCLA conducted a series of studies into effective communication some years ago. He concluded that there are three components of any spoken message: the words, the tone of voice, and the speaker’s body language.

The Words

Surprisingly, according to Mehrabian, the words count for only 7 percent of the message conveyed. Of course, the words you use are vitally important and must be selected with care. They must be organized in a proper sequence and be grammatically correct.  But everyone has heard a boring, academic speaker whose words were brilliant but whose message fell flat. The words alone are not enough.

The Tone

The second element of communication that Mehrabian identified was the tone of voice. In his calculation, 38 percent of the message is contained in the speaker’s tonality and emphasis on various words.

Recite the sentence ‘‘I love you very much.’’ By putting the emphasis on any one of those words or by making the sentence a question rather than a statement, you can change the entire meaning of the sentence. Try it. Make your tone reflect a sincere statement or a question. Notice how the meaning can be completely different just by focusing on a single word.

 Every man has had the experience of arguing with the woman in his life over a simple subject. Because men tend to use words as tools and women tend to use words for understanding and relationship building, they hear the same words differently. For example, she might become angry or hurt at something he said. He will respond by saying, ‘‘But I just said such and such.’’

She will reply angrily, ‘‘It wasn’t what you said; it was the way you said it.’’

 By deliberately changing your tone of voice and being aware of how important it is, you can change the entire message and the subsequent effect it has on your listeners.

The Body

Mehrabian also found that fully 55 percent of the message is contained in the speaker’s body language. This is because there are 22 times as many nerves from the eye to the brain as from the ear to the brain.

For this reason, visual impressions are very powerful.