Communication Style Revelations

                                                 

This week was very interesting. I learned a lot through the communication testing that we did. What I learned is that I viewed myself a little more harshly than other people do. For example, my co worker and brother rated my anxiety communication moderate, and even though I graded myself moderately as well, mine was closer to being elevated. Also, on my verbal aggression scale, my co worker and brother graded my moderately, but I also graded myself moderately, but on a higher scale. What was similar from me graded myself, my brother's response and my co-worker's response was that my listening style was in Group 1 which was people oriented. I do know this to be true because I'm very empathetic and very emotional and can put myself in other people's shoes frequently. On the same note however, I can get caught up in my emotions that can sometimes impair my judgement.

I think it's great that I scored in Group 1 for the Listening Styles Profile because my profession is geared towards building relationships and trust with people. I hope to gain more insight about my communications styles in more than one way. I also like the fact that I do have a balance of respect and consideration when listening to other people's viewpoints. I just hope to continue to always be mindful of other's feelings and points of views when I am listening and conversing with them.

Communicating Differently with Different Groups

I do find myself communicating differently with people from different groups and cultures. I tend to speak a little slower and upbeat. I try not to use a lot of non-verbal gestures and try to listen and ask as much questions as I can to make sure there is not miscommunication in our conversation. When speaking to people who have disabilities, I try to give them eye contact and not look at their disability. I do this because I do not want them to feel I am being disrespectful. I am most confident when I am in a conversation and the subject at hand is something I know very well. If I do not know the subject well, I tend to let others take the lead and chime in as needed. I do always try to be respectful when talking to all groups of people, and more conscious of what I do and say. It can be hard sometimes to communicate with different groups and cultures because you are not sure what is correct or too much, or not enough. I feel as long as I am being respectful, empathetic, and an active listener, then I am doing my part as an effective communicator.

Effective Communication

The person I felt spoke very well and was an effective, competent communicator was my Mother. She was an active listener, who always made sure she fully listened to what the other had to say before responding. She also had great eye contact, as well as had respectful body language. My Mother always made it easy to talk to her. She always made sure that you were comfortable, and gave the best advice for the situation addressed. She would always be accountable for her actions and.or mistakes. She was very honorable in that way, and communicating with her was always reassuring. My Mother was very kind, and you could feel that when speaking to her. She was not judgmental, made you feel like important and human.

I would want to take her kindness and accountability into my communication style; which I have, but I want to continue to do so because this helps put people at ease when communicating. This is so important in the early childhood field, and I want to be able to effectively communicate to my children and families, and vice versa. It starts with me, and I want to exude competent communication with all I come into contact with.