Communication skills are vital and among the most important life skills. They help you in all facets of life, including work and social situations. Being able to communicate clearly is one of the biggest advantages a human can have.

Oftentimes, communication skills aren’t taught in school. Luckily there are many resources online to help you teach yourself. If you start with the basics, you’ll be a step ahead of most other people.

These ten strategies can help you to communicate effectively:

Listening is the most crucial element of communication.

When communicating with others, it’s important to spend more time listening than talking. Most people get impatient when you don‘t let them finish what they were saying and find it annoying if you only wait for your turn to talk. Spending more time listening helps you learn more too.

Be confident in the way you communicate.

Your message will be more effective if you appear confident and make it clear what you’re saying. Speak slowly and with conviction.

Be mindful of the non-verbal signals that you are sending.

Be appropriate and confident in your posture, use gestures that match the situation, and maintain eye contact so that you create an authoritative image. You can convey authority, openness to an audience, or any level of formality through your body language.

Choose the best communication medium for the circumstance.

There are many ways that you can communicate with others, for example in person, by phone or email. Different types of conversations call for different methods of communication.

It’s important to communicate clearly.

Communication is all about transferring information - so if you’re not clear, you’re failing to communicate effectively. Make sure the recipient of your communication understands what it is you're trying to convey.

Be concise.

Unless you’re chatting with a good friend, most people have something they’d rather do than listen to you. Avoid rambling and stay on topic. You’ll lose the other person’s attention if you fail to be concise.

• Keep the main points of discussion in mind and get to them as quickly as possible. It's obvious when you're intentionally beating around the bush and stalling.

Think before you speak.

When you speak too soon, you say things you don’t mean. Take the time to gather your thoughts. Consider how your words will be interpreted. Could you say it a better way? It’s easier to avoid misunderstandings than it is to fix them.

Drop the fillers.

Many of us have the bad habit of using filler words like “um” and “ah” when we’re thinking. Try being silent instead. Those that use these types of phrases are viewed to be less competent. You’ll have less ability to influence others and it can also be annoying to your listeners.

• Breaking this habit can be hard, and to make any real progress you’ll need to keep a close eye on yourself.

Give your full attention.

Put your full focus on the other person. Put your phone away and avoid scanning the room to see what else is going on. Give the other person and the conversation the attention they deserve.

Have a purpose in mind.

What are you trying to communicate? What is the outcome you seek? Know what you’re trying to accomplish and you’ll be successful more frequently.

The English language has roughly one million words, yet we still struggle to communicate effectively with others. Unfortunately, miscommunication has the potential to be damaging to both your career and personal relationships. Give your communication skills the attention they require. You’ll be glad you did!