Strengths and Challenges in Communication (Blog Post #1) [Submission]

Communication is a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs as well as behavior. No matter what industry I am in, it is vital to be equipped with the ability to communicate effectively with both colleagues and superiors. Amongst all the channels of communications, my greatest strength in communication lies in being a good listener. In my opinion, a good listener perceives more meaning on what the other person is saying because it allows me to pay close attention to their words. Good listening skills involve the practice of active listening which allows a better understanding of the person you are speaking to, as well as being able to respond appropriately. By being a good listener, one would gain respect and trust from the speaker because they are being acknowledged verbally and their verbal messages are not neglected.

The challenges I faced in communication are picking the right medium to convey a message, being confident in my interactions with others and friendliness through communicating with peers whom I am not fond of. Based on my experience, I had trouble communicating with my colleagues through face-to-face interactions because I prefer to relay my ideas virtually as it allows me to better organize my thoughts and prevent miscommunication from happening. Furthermore, when I am speaking to a person whom I am not fond of, I tend to ignore what they are conversing about which is apparent through my body language. However, after forming a rapport to my peers, I discovered that it is best to express my thoughts appropriately so that I will not hurt the feelings of others

My resolution by the end of this course is to have a flexible and open mind. In return, this allows me to be able to accept and encourage constructive feedbacks from others and listen to a person’s point of view, rather than simply getting my message across. By opening my channels of communication, I will be able to have honest and productive conversations.

Secondly, I also aim to improve on my nonverbal communication such as body language, eye contact, and hand gestures. Sometimes during a conversation, I tend to display inappropriate body language such as slouching and folding my arms which might be misinterpreted by others.

Expectantly, by the end of this course, I hope to display an open mind and improve my non-verbal communication.    (400 words)

Classmates whose post I have read: Azziz, Syu Lynn and Sing Ying.

Strengths and Challenges in Communicating (Blogpost #1) [Draft]

Communication is a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs as well as behavior. The ability to communicate effectively with colleagues, superiors, and staff is crucial, no matter what industry I am in. Amongst all the channels of communications, being a good listener is my greatest strength in communicating with people. In my opinion, I felt that good listening perceived more meaning on what the other person is saying because I will pay close attention to their words. Good listening skills require time to practice active listening which allows a better understanding of the person you are speaking to, and thus, can respond appropriately. Through being a good listener, you would gain respect and trust from the speaker because their words they spoke are acknowledged and are not neglected.

Challenges I faced in communication are picking the right medium to convey a message, being confident in all of my interactions with others and friendliness through communicating with peers whom I did not like. From my experience, I had trouble communicating with my colleagues through means such as face-to-face interactions because I would prefer to pitch out my ideas through electronic mails or text which I can rearrange my thoughts so that my words are not misinterpreted. Furthermore, when I am speaking to a person whom I dislike, I tend to ignore what they conversing about which can be seen through my body language. However, after being close to my peers, I found out that it is best to express my thoughts appropriately so that their feelings wouldn’t be hurt.

Firstly, by the end of this course, I would like to accept and encourage constructive feedbacks from others. To achieve this, I need to have a flexible and open mind to listen to a person’s point of view, rather than simply getting my message across. By being willing to enter into a dialogue, even with peers with whom I disagree, I will be able to have more honest, productive conversations. Secondly, I would want to improve on my nonverbal communication such as body language, eye contact, and hand gestures. Sometimes during a conversation, I usually slouch and fold my arms which might appear that I am not interested in the topic. Expectantly, by the end of this course, I would achieve having an open mind as well as improve my nonverbal communication.     (399 words)