It’s NBA playoff time. Our favorite teams are defending, rebounding, and shooting from the paint on courts across the country, hoping to make enough buckets to head into the finals. It was widely reported in 2023 that each playoff game had an average of 5.47 million viewers, making it the most watched season in five years. That record is expected to be broken in 2024.
The communication between players, coaches, refs, and even the crowds during a game can be deafening. It can also be silent.
“Effective communication is a key element of successful teamwork,” according to Michael Jordan, considered by most to be the G.O.A.T., the greatest NBA player of all time.
Nonverbal signals between players is complicated. A gesture or glance toward another player can mean many things. It takes time, and especially trust, to understand each other. It can be subtle. Or sometimes, not so much.
Set against an arena filled with chanting fans, thundering music, announcements, buzzers, and time-out antics, every spoken and unspoken word matters.
When we use verbal and non-verbal communication, we play “off” each other. We listen and look for clues as to the meaning of a message, a desired action to take, and even what not to do.
When you communicate through your spoken and unspoken words, take a minute to think about how you play “off” others and if they get your “point.”
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