Why Communication is the Key Soft Skill in UX
To make a career in UX, you need to work on communication. This is the most important soft skill of all, and I’ll tell you why. As I explain in my introduction and who I am, I’m not a Swiss Army knife, nor did I ever want to become one. I see some UX Researcher and Designer proudly exhibiting all their skills and expertise. I don’t think that’s relevant. Even if it were true.
Some people talk, we communicate.
Communication is a complete skill that is almost self-sufficient when properly assimilated. I’m not here to tell you that the other skills are useless, but here’s my thinking: User experience is a user-centered discipline. Nothing is done without providing value to the end user. To achieve this, we always work through an exploratory and immersion phase.
So, the first objective is to understand the user so we can offer him a service or product that corresponds to his needs or future needs. Without going through this phase, there are damaging consequences and risks too important to launch a product or service on the market. as I often say, there can be no innovative business without strong insights.
You know my philosophy: no research, no design and no insight, no innovation. But let’s get back to the point: communication.
How communication and empathy are linked.
During this immersion phase, we’ll try to understand users in all their complexity, and collect valuable qualitative and quantitative data. Then we’ll study their attitudes and behaviors, and analyze the results.
But how can we master this phase without the art and practice of communication?
Communication is a vast field. We won’t get into the philosophical question of “what is communication” in this article. In the most common sense, let’s consider communication as all interactions with a human being that transmit one or more information.
During this first phase, you’ll collect information by communicating. Through surveys, interviews or tests, you’ll transmit information to obtain information back. And if you’ve done your work well, you may just get the valuable insights you need to innovate. The more your communication is adapted to the situation, the more you’ll be able to understand the user. With users, you need to quickly understand their codes, their language, to be on the same page as them during your research.
How to handle communication correctly during a User Interview?
When I interview a user, I go deep into the topics in which I perceive deep-seated problems. At some point (there’s always that one moment) the user will pronounce a word, a phrase that will change everything. And at that precise moment, it’s time to dig deeper. And if you look closely, you may notice a change in his attitude. Now is the time for you to use the art of communication to gently redirect the conversation towards this problematic topic, without rushing him or judging him. The rest is just bread and butter.
If your communication skills get you through this stage. The other arc of communication comes into play: listening. But we’ll come back to this topic in an article on active listening. At this point, record, take notes, go deeper and deeper… Everything the user says is a business opportunity. Help yourself.
From today, in your resumes, during your job interviews, with a recruiter, highlight communication as your key strengt! As an UX Researcher, just say you’ve mastered the art of communication.
Contact me, if you need me!
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I believe that we have to redefine our self-worth if we want to thrive in today’s world. Let me help you find it, so you can start your journey with peace of mind, feeling that you are where you belong.
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