Communication skills are very important both in personal and professional lives. One has to know to convey thoughts and opinions honestly and respectfully. Communicating truth is the toughest thing as it may have positive or negative outcomes depending on how the receiver is taking it. Candid and Candor are the two important characteristics of communication.
Candor vs Candid
The main difference between Candor and Candid is that Candid is a noun form of speech, and Candid is an adjective form of speech. Candor means to speak clearly about the matter directly and honestly. On the other hand, candid means to communicate truth on complicated topics without maintaining secrets. Candid expresses the degree of condor or frankness.
Candor is honesty communicated by the behavior and personality of a human. Candor is to communicate the whole truth as it is without thinking about how the receiver takes it. Candor’s communication is good, but it also makes people uncomfortable. Candor communication increases trust within the organization and helps to explore different ideas.
Candid is a frankness communicated in the expressions. Candid communication is to communicate truth to help others without hurting. It is very important to communicate candidly to resolve issues and improve performance. Candid communication helps the receiver to understand where they are wrong by unmasking the whole truth. It is also practiced in organizations to improve team performance.
Comparison Table Between Candor and Candid
| Parameters Of Comparison | Candor | Candid |
| Definition | Candor means to be honest. | Candid also means to be frank. |
| Parts of Speech | Noun | Adjective |
| Derived from | Latin word Candere means pure and white | Latin word Candidus means pure and white |
| Result | It allows others to communicate in the same way clearly without any fear. | It allows others to respond candidly. |
| Type of communication | It requires a person to prepare for candour communication. | It is spontaneous and unprepared communication. |
What is Candor?
Communication is the way to express opinions and share knowledge with others. However, when communicating, people try to be nice to others, which stops them from conveying the tough truth. It is the fear of embarrassment, the isolation that stops people from speaking the truth. Being nice does not always have good results in the end, and being frank does not always have bad results. Trust is the factor that fills the gap between the good and bad in communication.
Candor is one of the characteristics of Verbal and written communication where people speak with honesty, frankness about the situation. Candor communication is very important in organizations, educational institutes, and other fields to reveal the truth for benefiting others. Leaders with candor communication will communicate clearly about the missions and company goals with employees and encourage them to be honest in their feedback.
Candor communication requires research and preparation to convey the message without hurting the receiver’s feelings. Candor communication helps leaders to communicate clearly. To communicate with candor, one has to be patient and listen to others’ points of view. When not prepared for communication, candor will have negative consequences and lead to conflicts.
What is Candid?
Candid communication is another characteristic of effective communication skills that has the same meaning as candor. A Candid is an adjective used in communication to express opinions frankly. It is an unprepared communication where a person speaks spontaneously. Candid communication may have negative results if the speaker is unable to speak properly.
Candid is used to express honesty and frankness in communication. It means honesty is seen in words and the person. It is used to measure the candor of a person. Candor and candidness are used interchangeably. Even though candid means the same, it is grammatically wrong to use in place of candor.
Candid communication does have biases, prejudice. It is spontaneous and makes listeners uncomfortable. Candid communication may also harm the reputation of the listener. The sender and receiver of the information need to understand each other’s perspectives. The communicator has to use words or convey the bitter truth in such a way that it helps the listener to improve and not to degrade.
In business organizations, Candid communication has to be initiated by the leaders to eliminate the fear of conflict among employees. They need to reward the employees who communicate candidly. Candidness increases idea generation in the workplace, and also speeds up performance. It helps people and organizations to become great from the good.
Main Differences Between Candor and Candid
- Candor is used as a noun form in a sentence, and Candid is used as an adjective in a sentence.
- Candor communication is straightforward and polite, while Candid communication may be rude if there is no trust relationship among the communicators.
- Candor communication is prepared communication, while candid is spontaneous unprepared communication.
- Candor is derived from the Latin word Candere, and Candid is from Candidus.
- Candid communication makes listeners uncomfortable, but not candor.
Conclusion
Communication is an important tool in business and personal life. The communication barrier occurs when both the receiver and listener fail to understand each other’s perceptions. Though a person has good communication skills, he fails to handle tough conversations without hurting others’ feelings. Practicing candor and candid communications helps to fill the gap. Candor and Candid are terms with the same meaning. However, the terms cannot be used in a sentence alternatively because candor is a noun form and candid is an adjective form.
Candidness is the synonym of Candor, but not candid. Being Candor within the organization builds trust and loyalty among the management and employees. It also increases productivity, retention, and performance. However, Candid and Candor communication has positive results only when there is trust between the communicators. Otherwise, it is challenging to practice candor communication. Trust and loyalty are the building blocks of effective communication in any field.
References
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00909880600769944
- https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Candor/1GQEEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=candor&printsec=frontcover