Topic: 3 ways to improve communication while wearing a mask, from a top speech coach
You wear your mask, keep 6 feet between yourself and others and are committed to safety. But the measures that help minimize your risk of Covid-19 can also have an impact on your interactions with others.
As you stroll the aisle of a supermarket, you approach someone who looks familiar. To avoid an awkward exchange, you flash them a friendly smile. It’s not until you pass you remember: Your smile was hidden behind a mask. Unloading your groceries at home, you see your neighbor. You excitedly ask her how she is, but when she doesn’t respond, you worry your mask has muffled your voice.
As the head coach for Mississippi State University’s Speech and Debate Team, my job is to teach effective communication. Without question, masks have disrupted social interactions. But communication has many components. You can adjust and enhance your communication by focusing on some of the other pieces that aren’t hidden behind a mask.
Facial expressions are the primary way people exhibit emotion and decipher the feelings of others. Happiness, sadness, surprise, disgust, fear and surprise can be communicated through facial expressions alone. But when part of the face is masked, it becomes more difficult to recognize these cues.
If you cannot read someone else’s emotional state, your ability to empathize with them may be compromised. Likewise, if your own mask is hiding your emotional state, others may not be able to empathize with you. Wearing a mask can also make you feel more distracted and self-conscious, further weakening your connection to others.
Fortunately, you can regain some control over communication by working with what you have left — the eyes. If you want to increase understanding with a masked individual, you should look them in the eyes, which may be easier said than done. Eye contact triggers self-consciousness, consumes extra brain power and becomes uncomfortable after only three seconds. But bear in mind, eye contact can also make you appear more intelligent and trustworthy.
Topic Discussed: 3 ways to improve communication while wearing a mask, from a top speech coach
