In face-to-face communication, meaning is conveyed not only through words but also through tone of voice and body language (facial expressions, hand gestures, etc.). As a result, listeners pay more attention to our tone and body language than to our word choices in order to derive additional clues to our meaning.

Challenges of Online Communication

One of the challenges of communicating online is that we must depend entirely on words to convey meaning. For example, we do not have the opportunity to reinforce our intention to be positive and encouraging with a smile or a nod. Without the accompanying tone or body language, people can misconstrue the meaning of the message. Consequently, written communicators need to carefully choose their words to avoid any negativity or misunderstanding. A careless joke can flop, or an offhand comment can come back to haunt us.

Visual Enhancements in Written Communication

Written communication does not allow for visual cues (such as......

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Title: Tone And Communication
Approximate Word Count: 888
Approximate Pages: 4 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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