Exploring and Understanding Communication

Alessandra Lechuga 2-1

1. What do you acknowledge are your strengths when it comes to communication?

A strength that I have in communication is that I am an active listener so I really try to

understand what someone is telling me, understand their perspective, before I say anything or
give feedback/advice. Another strength to my communication skills is that I am mature and
empathetic so when someone is telling me something personal I feel for them and don’t joke
around or do anything that might get in the way of them telling me their thoughts. When
someone is talking to me, I make sure to try and focus on what they are telling me and refrain
from interrupting them. I would also say that I am good with body language, when someone is
talking to me I make sure I show them that I am listening and understanding not doing so can
make one feel ignored which I wouldn’t want to be done to me and therefore to others as well. A
limitation to my communication skills is that I never want to say anything that may upset the
person I am talking to, which is why sometimes I do not truly say what I want to say or at times
even stand up for myself. So whenever I am in conflict with a friend or even family, I tend to not
be honest about or hide away what I am truly feeling or thinking about a certain situation due to
my fear of having them get mad at me or losing a friend, which is a big barrier to good
communication. Another weakness that I have with my communication skills is that on many
occasions if what someone said to me was not clear enough, or fully understood by me, I don’t
ask questions. This is because I fear what people will think of me if I don’t understand something
they are telling me, especially when I am with a group of people and everyone but me seems to
be comprehending what is being discussed.

2. What challenges you when you communicate with others?

A limitation to my communication skills is that I never want to say anything that may upset the
person I am talking to, which is why sometimes I do not truly say what I want to say or at times
even stand up for myself. So whenever I am in conflict with a friend or even family, I tend to not
be honest about or hide away what I am truly feeling or thinking about a certain situation due to
my fear of having them get mad at me or losing a friend, which is a big barrier to good
communication. Another weakness that I have with my communication skills is that on many
occasions if what someone said to me was not clear enough, or fully understood by me, I don’t
ask questions. This is because I fear what people will think of me if I don’t understand something
they are telling me, especially when I am with a group of people and everyone but me seems to
be comprehending what is being discussed. I think the overall barrier that I have with effective
communication skills is that I am nervous of what people will think of me when I express my
thoughts or confusion and that I am doubtful with myself which can cause me to not be honest
with what I am sometimes saying.

3. What characteristics do you notice/appreciate in others when they communicate

with you?

Something that I really appreciate in the communication skills of others is listening. Just as I give
people my full attention, I also appreciate it when the person I am speaking to is not ignoring me
or looking uninterested because that can make one feel down especially when you are saying
something personal. I also appreciate it when people are clear and honest with their feelings, not
in a rude or blunt way, but just simply in a way that is sincere yet fair and therefore reliable. I
always tend to notice and appreciate when people are empathetic, not self absorbed, with others
and actually make an effort to understand their perspective before making any sort of judgement.
I also tend to notice people are impatient when they are listening to one speak, having
immigrated to Canada and not speak english as my first language I have definitely experienced
People being impatient when communicating with me which I do not appreciate. Some things
that I also notice and appreciate are friendliness and positive non-verbal communication (body
language). I simply want people to communicate with me the same way that I communicate with
them.

4. What is your relationship like with technology and communication? Does it help
you or hinder you? How so?

I think in many ways technology makes it easier to say things that are much harder to say in
person, which is why many people act and say things much differently in social networks than in
real life. In my opinion I think that to an extent that can be unhealthy because it can harm your in
person communication skills and almost make it seem as if you are living two different lives. I
really do not appreciate it when people tell me rather serious things online that they would not
say to me in person. However, sometimes I myself am tempted to say things online that I would
not say in person. I also greatly do not appreciate it when I am trying to talk to someone but they
are not listening because they are on their phone, I’ve even had teachers do that to me and it does
not feel good at all. Because of this I try to be on my phone as least as possible when I am in any
social interaction. I try my best not to express important things to the people I care about more
online than in person because I have a great belief that it would harm my communication skills
and create a lot of confusion as to who I am. I don’t want to be one of those people who is
always on their phone because to an extent they like their online self better than they like their
actual selves, which is why I try to say my opinions and make memories more in my real life
than to just post about it. In summary, I think technology has the great power to hinder my
communication skills, which is why I do my best to avoid it when it comes to rather more
important communication moments.

5. Is it possible for a person to change the way he/she communicates?

I think it is possible for a person to change the way they communicate, however there are many
factors that can be applied into this being able to happen. If a person is still young, it will be
easier for them to learn a new form of communication and change how they communicate than
an older person who has been communicating the same way their whole life. Another factor that
goes into this is how much that person is willing to change the way they communicate because it
can take much effort and patience which is what often drives people to give up. I also think that
it is easier to learn and integrate a new communication skill into the ones you already have than
having to forget or neglect one and change into a new one.