Introduction An important step in becoming an effective leader is to develop effective communication skills. Communication is the transmission of meaning from one person to another or to many people, either verbally or nonverbally (Barrett, 2006). Effective communication enables leaders to lead. Effective communication occurs only if the recipient understands the exact information or idea that the sender intended to convey. As a leader, studying the communication process is important. Communication skills, including the ability to solve problems, work in teams, and adapt to different audiences, are critical in today's workplace (Levy & Murname, 2004). Because the most successful leaders communicate well, understanding how communication works and how it could work better is critical to achieving similar success. The purpose of this document is to evaluate my communication skills and develop a recipe for successful communication that other leaders can use to evaluate their own communication skills. I will describe my approach to evaluating my communication skills and describe my development plan for improving those skills. Methods According to Chambers (2001), communicating is a complex process. The ability to draft a message, deliver it to another, listen to feedback, process it, and continue to communicate in understandable ways requires skills that take time to develop. The best place to start is to first understand what communication skills need development. The first tool I used to perform my self-assessment was a comprehensive communication assessment tool developed by IHC Health Services (see Appendix A). I chose this tool because I wanted to begin my assessment by measuring my overall understanding of the...... middle of paper...... communicator. My second goal is to understand different communication styles and adapt my communication style to the needs of others. This goal will be achieved once I have mastered the art of modifying my behavior to better suit another person's style. This skill will need to be practiced and honed until it is perfect. It will take time to master this skill. Conclusion Improving communication skills should be a priority for all leaders. Becoming an effective communicator takes practice. Identifying communication skills to work on personally is the first step to becoming a better communicator and a better leader. Great leaders recognize the importance of good communication. Responsible leaders work to prevent communication incidents and keep communication flowing within their organizations.