Ineffective Communicators

This category of bad communication is a bit harder to define and the problems caused by it lie solely with the communicator. While it is said that communication is a two way street, the person doing the talking needs to make sure there are no road blocks that impede his ability for clear communication.

Lack of clarity is the root of many communication problems -- mainly because the person simply did not understand exactly what you wanted. You need to be able to clearly define what your needs are when asking for something. There is a big difference between telling someone to build a scripting tool versus telling someone to take three weeks to build a tool that allows the designers to create AI pathways and place enemies in specific locations on the map. Having no idea what their manager was asking for is more common than people probably want to admit, so instead of asking questions or getting more information, they just start working on something and hope it fulfills the request. This approach will create instances where work has to be re-done or even completely discarded.

Poor presentation is another catch-all used to describe ineffective communication. Poor presentation means that the communicator has bad public speaking skills -- he mumbles, he doesn't make eye contact, his body language is closed, he doesn't have information to back up his requests, or he is reluctant to take suggestions or answer questions. In situations like this, you are not motivated to actively engage in a dialogue with someone and you don't feel like it is okay to ask questions. Also, you literally may not be able to understand what is being said because the person is mumbling.

Another culprit that contributes to non-effective communication is the "telephone effect." This is named for the popular kids' game, where one person whispers something into someone's ear, and this person whispers it into someone else's ear and so on. By the time the information has gone through several people, the end result is not even close to what the person originally communicated.

So keep in mind that the context or intent of any information you receive third-hand, or even second-hand, is always going to change with each re-telling. If someone tells you that the lead designer said a certain feature was being cut from the game, you should go talk to this designer directly to find out specifically what was said. I'm sure you've have many instances where you've done this, and the person said, "that's not what I said at all!"

Office Politics

While you may not like to admit it, office politics also play a large part in bad communication. If you are in a politically charged situation at work, you may find it difficult to talk to the person you need most. For example, you might be an artist who needs to speak with the art director about an issue you are having with someone on the art team -- however, this person happens to be the art director's best friend. You don't feel comfortable discussing your problem with the art director, for fear that he may start giving you grunt work to do (for the sake of argument, assume it is a legitimate problem that needs to be addressed, or else the game will be at risk of not shipping on time) so instead you say nothing and the problem grows into a huge risk to the game.

Hidden agendas and lack of respect are other symptoms of office politics at work. These can also work in concert with each other -- someone may not respect your work and has an agenda to get you moved into another position on the project. It is unfortunate that situations like this occur, so in order to minimize the problems these things can cause, you need to constantly assess the quality of your work and how you may come across to people. If you are team lead, this self-awareness is critical to being the best manager you can be.