Talking to your Teen

There is a difference between "good communication skills" and "good for nothing communication skills" according to Sri Hari's website, "How to Master Communication Skills and Confidence."

One of the best tools as parents is communication. We just need to be certain that the communication we are using is affective. How do we know that? According to the website, good communication is more than the words coming out of our mouth. It's your body language, the tone of your voice and lastly the words you use.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines communication as, "the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behavior."

The word "exchange" emplies giving and receiving reciprocally. This means that talking with your teen needs to be a two-way stream of communication. From parent to child, then from child to parent.

4Parents.gov gives a checklist for talking with your teen:

• What is the tone of your voice?


• What is your body language?


• What does your face look like?


• Are you listening?

"Effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the exact information or idea that the sender intended to transmit," according to the website, "Communication and Leadership." Doesn't this make sense? Simply said, make sure your teen understands what you are really saying.

For more information on how to talk to your teen go to:

http://www.4parents.gov/talkingtoteen/whytalk/whytalk.html