As Oscar Wilde once said: “The first duty in life is to be as artificial as possible. What the second duty is no one has as yet discovered.” In English-speaking, Anglo-Saxon culture people see directness as a form of aggression, and being polite is above being sincere. It is absolutely vital to pay attention to subtle details of communication. Learn and understand these subtleties if you would like to build good business and social connections.
I recommend the following instructions if you want to master the art of subtle communication:
Master your listening skills
Create eye contact with a speaker and look at them with empathy and a smile. People relax when you smile at them
Observe the way a person speaks. Namely intonation, tone of voice, speech speed, loudness, etc. You can learn more about it in the book Get Rid of your Accent Part Two, Advance Level, and the apps Fluent English Speech and 4Ps, Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause
Learn to read between the lines and pay close attention to words, voice, intonation, and facial expressions. Listen to the feelings and emotions behind words and voice, and respond to them appropriately
Imagine that you are a psychotherapist who is talking to a patient and that you are paid for listening
Allow a pause after what was said and connect with what was said
Work on your messages
Substitute negative words with euphemisms, for example instead of saying “poor” say “not bad”, instead of saying “I disagree” say “maybe I understand it differently”, and so on
Avoid giving orders, ask or request instead, for example, instead of saying “Do it!” say “Would you like to do it for me, please?”, and so on
Use a friendly tone of voice and intonation even when speaking about something difficult. You can master it with the app Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause