Interpersonal & Listening Skills
By Digby R. Kerr, Founder, Kerr University™ · November 3, 2026
Developing communication skills means building three habits on purpose: listening until you can repeat the other person's point, speaking in short and structured messages, and checking that you were understood. For entrepreneurs and business owners who work abroad in English, these habits matter more than vocabulary. Clients and partners forgive a grammar mistake. They do not forgive a message they cannot follow.
At Kerr University™ I coach business owners one-on-one in exactly these skills. This guide gives you the framework we use in class, with phrases you can use in your next meeting.
Communication skills in business are the abilities to listen accurately, explain an idea clearly and briefly, adapt your tone to the person in front of you, and confirm agreement. In practice they fall into four groups: listening, speaking, writing, and nonverbal signals such as pace, eye contact and pauses.
When you run a business in a second language, every one of these is tested at once. A sales call, a supplier negotiation and a team update each need a slightly different mix. The good news is that all four groups can be trained, and they improve fastest when you practice them together in real situations.
Develop communication skills in five steps: listen actively, answer first and explain second, use simple structures, ask clarifying questions, and get feedback on recordings of yourself. Practice one step per week in real conversations instead of studying all of them in theory.
Listening is the most important communication skill because every good answer depends on understanding the real question. Active listening means giving full attention, paraphrasing what you heard, and asking one follow-up question before you respond.
Many non-native speakers spend the other person's turn preparing their own sentence. Try the opposite. Listen for the key word in each sentence, then repeat it back. Useful phrases:
Asking someone to repeat themselves is not a weakness. In business English it signals care and precision.
Entrepreneurs abroad communicate clearly by keeping messages short, leading with the main point, slowing their speaking pace to about 120 to 140 words per minute, and confirming next steps in writing after every important conversation.
When you work across cultures, clarity beats style. A simple pattern for any update is Point, Reason, Example, Next step:
| Part | Example sentence |
|---|---|
| Point | "We should move the launch to the first week of next month." |
| Reason | "The packaging supplier needs ten more days." |
| Example | "Last quarter a rushed launch cost us two weeks of returns." |
| Next step | "I will confirm the new date with the supplier by Friday." |
Then send a two-line email that repeats the decision and the owner of each task. Written follow-up protects you when accents, connections or time zones get in the way.
Confident business English uses clear signposts: "My main point is...", "There are two reasons...", "Let me add one thing...", and "To summarize, we agreed..." These phrases organize your message so listeners can follow it, even when your vocabulary is simple.
For more meeting language, read meeting phrases that build confidence.
Small talk builds the trust that makes business conversations easier. In English, "How are you?" is usually a greeting, not a real question. A short, positive answer followed by a question back, such as "Good, thanks. How about you?", is the expected response.
Practice two or three ready answers for openers like "How are you?", "How was your weekend?" and "Busy week?" Small talk in interviews follows the same rules. See interview small talk in English.
Most professionals notice clearer communication within four to eight weeks of focused weekly practice. Lasting change comes from using one new habit at a time in real conversations, recording yourself, and getting specific feedback from a coach or colleague.
Interviews compress every communication skill into one hour: listening to the exact question, answering with structure, and handling pressure in English. If you have an interview coming up, start with my guide on how to prepare for a job interview in English, then practice with a mock interview in English.
Live 1-on-1 business English classes online: $125/month for 4 classes (one live hour every week). See the price FAQ or the pricing page.
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