Here's how you can foster effective communication within your social impact team.

Ao cultivar uma prática de escuta ativa dentro da equipe, você não apenas promove um ambiente mais colaborativo e inclusivo, mas também melhora a comunicação e fortalece os relacionamentos entre os membros da equipe.

Clarifying questions are very important for asking questions. But let's do it in such a way that is not intrusive or distruptive, but doing it with patience (let the other person finish, and let all who have something to say to say something.), compasion and curiosity. i.e. never asume we have undertood 100%. Hence the need to summarise at the end, particularly the most critical parts, intent, facts, consequence or impact, actions or next steps.

Active listening goes beyond hearing words; it’s about understanding the message behind them. In my experience developing gender-responsive modules, I found that when I truly listened to my team’s diverse perspectives, we achieved more innovative solutions. Encourage your team to listen with the intent to comprehend, not just to reply. This means being fully present, asking clarifying questions, and reflecting on what’s been said to ensure mutual understanding. When team members feel heard, they’re more likely to share insights and concerns, fostering a collaborative atmosphere where everyone contributes to the social impact mission.

A escuta ativa é uma ferramenta poderosa para o engajamento dos colaboradores e o sucesso das empresas. Quando um colaborador se sente ouvido e valorizado, ele se torna mais engajado, produtivo e criativo. Os colaboradores que se sentem ouvidos sentem que fazem parte da equipe e da empresa, se sentem mais motivados a contribuir para o sucesso da empresa. Além disso, a escuta ativa ajuda a reduzir os mal-entendidos e a melhorar a comunicação entre os colaboradores. Quando os colaboradores se sentem seguros para compartilhar suas ideias, eles são mais propensos a serem criativos e inovadores. A escuta ativa pode ajudar a identificar e resolver problemas de forma mais eficaz.

Listen to understand, not to respond. I know this may sound familiar, but in order to establish effective communication with your team I recommend establishing a sense of who they are, what are their goals?, asses their personalities. This all starts with listening.

Emotion is contagious. One one laughs, many join laughing. When one is tried and starts yawning, many will start doing the same. The same happens with positive or negative emotion. The same way happens with OPENESS, start showing the good example of opening up. Create an environment in which it's ok to open up (with respect, with our fear of being judged or being blamed.). Then psychological safety happens, as a result, like magic. But if you seek psychological safety you shall not find it; the same way if you try to laugh or sleep with out feeling it, anyone would know it is fake. It needs to be genuine.

Creating a space where team members feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings is vital for effective communication. As a leader, set the tone by showing vulnerability—share your own challenges and encourage others to do the same. This builds trust and demonstrates that it's okay to speak up. Openness is essential when tackling complex social issues, as it fosters diverse perspectives and innovative solutions. By embracing this approach, we create a stronger, more collaborative team.

Sharing your own personal stories is a good way to show your team that you go through challenges just like they do. Once you create that open door into your life it tends to create a safe space environment where the team may start to open up as well.

Be intentional in your goal setting. Set realistic targets and timelines that walk the team through the journey of achieving said goal. There is a time for working towards the goal and a time for feedback forums, but that needs to be clearly defined in the process so that deadlines can be met.

Goals are paramount. A great method for goal setting is OKRs (Objectives & Key Results) vs INITIATIVE (how): - Objective should be client centric (internal or external user or stakeholder who needs valueble works from us or funds us. So they set TRUE NORTH, where to go. - Convert that Objective/Goal into a tangible measureble outcome NOW vs FUTURE. - Initiative (the roadmap, tasks, solutions how to get there.) Example: Objective = Improve client satisfaction from 3 start (Key Result now) to 5 star (Key Result in Future). Initiative = Improve customer journey, by fixing X,Y,Z

OKRs are a method of empirical hypothesis testing. i.e. it can go as expected, worse or better. Hence we must review OKRs in cadence (monthly, quarterly, yearly) to be able to inspect & adapt empirically to be able to improve based on outcomes. (objectively, not subjectively.)

There are great OKRs tools on the web. Even Excel can do. What matters is that OKRs are collaborated, agreed, shared, worked upon, reviwed and improved periodically.