Reflections on 10 Weeks of Interpersonal Communication Experiences
This weekly journal is going to be about the interpersonal relationships and the development in communication that I have achieved through the 10 weeks of studies and experiences. The context of the journal is the main reflection of my learning journey through the unit and the application of interpersonal communication skills in different contexts. The journal is going to be divided weekly from week 2 to week 10 and the reflections will be divided into 10 different interpersonal experiences of communication (Braithwaite, Schrodt & Phillips, 2021). This journal entry writing will see how I experienced different communication skills throughout the week and all the experiences helped me understand the significance of all the communication skills in the long run. I also evaluated my strengths and weaknesses after the journal entries for the 10 weeks.
The first week was a time when I had an experience rapport development. Rapport is any form of connection or a relationship with an individual. It can be considered to be a state of unity and harmony of mental understanding with a group or another individual. Sometimes rapport can happen very naturally and other times it needs effort and practice (Baby Gale & Swain, 2018). I had an experience of communication where I had to build rapport with a group of children when I went on a workshop at an NGO where I sometimes work (Mata et al, 2021). This NGO caters to children who do not have any parents and it helps them have a proper education and a proper life. I applied my interpersonal skills of building rapport by communicating freely with the children ad talking about their favorite activities as well as participating in those activities. Then I asked them to paint with their hands on paper, they were very excited and I too joined in which increased our rapport. This experience made me realize that children are more expressive and form relationships through shared actions rather than words. When I joined in the fun of painting with them, they were happier rather than when I was verbally communicating with them. This experience helped me understand the significance of building rapport and establishing good relationships with behavior and expressions. Children are not easy to please and therefore, this was a very important experience for me (Baby Gale & Swain, 2018).
This week I used my listening skills because I have a very low attention span and I needed to improve my listening skills. Active listening is an integral part of communication. Active listening is extremely important when it comes to communication. Talking is not the only factor that is essential in communication. Listening is important to obtain information and it is also helpful when we want to understand something or someone (Vogel, Meyer & Harendza, 2018). Listening is also very significant (Karnieli-Miller, 2020). I was in my class and the teacher had given us a group project for a debate on any topic. The topic was “should universities be free of cost?”. I had gone for the motion and I was listening intently to the person speaking against the motion which helped me strengthen my points. After my turn, our group won in the round and this was because I had been a good listener and given attention to the person stating the points against the motion. This helped me formulate the same points for the motion. Listening to the person speaking against the motion not only helped me understand the viewpoint of the candidate but also helped me form better points for the motion in order to win (Vogel, Meyer & Harendza, 2018).
Building Rapport with Children: Importance of Expressive Actions
Assertiveness is a healthy manner of communicating and the ability to speak up for yourself. This week I showed my assertiveness in a situation where I was feeling very scared. I had to go and talk with the principal to request an opportunity to organize a green revolution drive where we all plant trees and saplings on the premises of the university. I had to be very polite but assertive when I spoke about the request so that the principal agreed. This experience made me learn that if I was right and assertive in a polite way people will be bound to say yes (Baby Gale & Swain, 2018). I was very polite but assertive when I had to state my own point across to my principal. I believed that the green revolution drive was not only helpful for the environment but it was going to help the community come together. Therefore, I put forth my points in an assertive manner with logic and sternness so that the principal agreed to my plan. Fortunately, she did agree to the plan and let me go forward with it and include all the students into it.
This week tested my skills in verbal communication and usage of language. Verbal communication is both written and spoken. Verbal communication is dependent on language but it can both be written and also by voice. It also uses gestures, body language and but mostly it uses language. It refers to the usage of words and communicating thoughts to another individual. I had met an exchange student and I had to communicate verbally with them. They were from South Korea and I was an avid fan of Korean culture so I was learning Korean (Bambara et al, 2018). But I was not so fluent. That is why I tried to talk in half English and Korean sentences but the student was very impressed that I knew their language. They were very active in communicating and they appreciated my effort. This experience made me realize that verbally communicating respectfully with another person can increase rapport. Even when my friend was Korean, I still tried to cooperate and communicate with them in their own language because they were not comfortable with English. This not only increased my skills in the Korean language but brought both of us closer through verbal communication.
This week I had to experience cultural differences and diversity in communication. Cultural diversity makes communication very difficult because of the mindset of the different cultures. This aspect of communication can relate to dissimilarities between all the different communication which help in the exchanging of information. It does not just refer to the differences between language and dress codes. It also entails the differences in thinking, managing, and communicating. This experience was nerve-wracking because I did not know the language of the individual at all. The person was a Spanish individual and I had gone on a trip to Spain. I was sitting in a restaurant with my family and I had to order my food. I did not know any Spanish so I ordered in English but the last “thank you” I said was in Spanish. The waiter was very happy that I tried to understand his language and culture because most of the customers were rude and were not even trying to appreciate the Spanish culture( Bambara et al, 2018). This was an experience of communication gap but due to the mutual respect, we both could communicate. This experience made me realize that we need to respect all cultures and communicate in a respectable manner (Vogel, Meyer & Harendza, 2018).
Active Listening: Improving a Low Attention Span
The use of silence and power is very crucial in communication and interpersonal communication. silence is louder than words and sometimes it can help more than words. Leaders use silence in order to seem powerful. Silence also helps to emphasize a particular point and also assert the fact that someone is trying to say “no” ( Bambara et al, 2018). I had an experience where I was being bullied by my classmate and they had spread a rumor about me. But I remained silent and did not retaliate. Finally, when the principal got to know the truth, the person was punished and I was not accused of reprimanding anyone. This experience proved that silence was necessary for certain situations. The bullies were extremely rude and they always tried to instigate me to retaliate but I had learned from childhood that sometimes, the silence was more powerful ( Braithwaite, Schrodt & Phillips, 2021).
Communicating nonverbally was another thing I learned this week. Nonverbal communication is anything that involves gestures and body language. Nonverbal communication is the usage of body language, gestures, and silence as well as signs. I communicated non verbally to a fellow woman who was traveling on the same train and I signaled her to sit next to me because a man was harassing her. This saved her and made a rapport between us. This experience was important to establish that non-verbal communication is essential (Baby Gale & Swain, 2018). Nonverbal communication is essential in certain circumstances where verbal communication does not work or suffice. This incident made me realize that in situations like the one stated above, non-verbal expressions can save a person’s life. This experience was essential for me to understand that the non-verbal communication is necessary in certain situations and it can cause a better bonding as well.
I had to share feedback with fellow students about their presentations because that was a part of an assignment. Feedback sharing is a process where one individual gives constructive criticism to another person for the sake of their improvement. I shared feedback with my classmate about her presentation on the topic of social community and culture. It was healthy and constructive feedback and I gave it in a polite and healthy manner as possible. I was nervous that the student might get offended by the feedback but she took it very nicely and appreciated my ideas. This experience helped me understand that giving and receiving feedback was essential for the well-being of society and to improve communication within the community. Feedback is very important to have transparent and authentic communication so that there are no misunderstandings.
This week I used friendliness which is one of my strengths. Friendliness is being kind and helpful to anyone irrespective of their race, ethnicity, or any other criteria. I was friendly with a new student in our class and helped them with homework (Karnieli-Miller, 2020). He became one of my closest friends after that. this experience made me realize friendships are the most powerful relationships and it takes very little effort to be nice to someone. This experience helped me gain friends and also become friends with people. It is very important to be kind to each other as it increases healthy community building (Baby Gale & Swain, 2018).
Respect is crucial no matter what age an individual is. Respect is acknowledging another person’s worth and appreciating them. I showed respect to the elderly and helped them cross the road before going to my errands today. This not only made him appreciate me but also
established a respectful relationship between us. Each and everyone deserve respect and it is one of the most essential aspects of the self. If an individual does not respect themselves or others, they cannot have healthy relationships (Karnieli-Miller, 2020). Respect should be given to everyone and no one deserves to be disrespected. As soon as an individual shows respect, they gain the trust of the other person which makes communication far more easy.
Conclusion
I have learned that all forms of interpersonal communication skills are important in life and they establish good relationships with people. They also increase self-esteem in help in all the different stages of life. This journal entry writing helped me understand the significance of communication and interpersonal relationships. It also helped me understand that my weakness is my attention span which is low and my strength is verbal communication. Communication is key when it comes to social relationships and interpersonal relationships. I have experienced assertiveness, respect, friendliness, verbal as well as non-verbal communication in this past week which has helped me understand all the different facets of communication.
References
Baby, M., Gale, C., & Swain, N. (2018). Communication skills training in the management of patient aggression and violence in healthcare. Aggression and violent behavior, 39, 67-82.
Bambara, L. M., Cole, C. L., Chovanes, J., Telesford, A., Thomas, A., Tsai, S. C., … & Bilgili, I. (2018). Improving the assertive conversational skills of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder in a natural context. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 48, 1-16.
Braithwaite, D. O., Schrodt, P., & Phillips, K. E. (2021). Introduction: Meta-theory and theory in interpersonal communication research. In Engaging theories in interpersonal communication (pp. 1-23). Routledge.
Karnieli-Miller, O. (2020). Reflective practice in the teaching of communication skills. Patient education and counseling, 103(10), 2166-2172.
Mata, Á. N. D. S., de Azevedo, K. P. M., Braga, L. P., de Medeiros, G. C. B. S., de Oliveira Segundo, V. H., Bezerra, I. N. M., … & Piuvezam, G. (2021). Training in communication skills for self-efficacy of health professionals: a systematic review. Human resources for health, 19(1), 1-9.
Vogel, D., Meyer, M., & Harendza, S. (2018). Verbal and non-verbal communication skills including empathy during history taking of undergraduate medical students. BMC medical education, 18(1), 1-7.
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