Alena Mae M. Malit
amalit1@bruinmail.slcc.edu
Interpersonal Theme Paper
Communication 1010
Communication is an important part of one’s life. People all engage in
communication, both verbally and non-verbally. In fact, every one of us has our own
way of communicating. We use this tool to interact with others. Oftentimes, it is the key
to be successful in life.But we should also be awarebecause if we don’t use our
communication skills properly, it could bring us into dangerous situations or could affect
others emotionally and or physically.
Communication is also another way of reaching out to others. As we send our
thoughts, we get feedbacks to enhance our knowledge, improve our abilities either in
formal and informal type of conversation. Communication is always a two way process.
Technology, for example, is one of the biggest influences when it comes to reaching out
to others with the use of mobile phones, computers, televisions, radios, emails, text
messages, web cameras: audio/video conference, etc. and I will site in this paper about
some “Concepts of Communication.”
Communication is Unavoidable – we communicate whether in verbal or in nonverbal communication. Facial expression, our gesture, the way people dress, posture,
or other people’s behaviors are cues that we send our messages to and or receive. We
tend to communicate with others too even if we are not present in a certain meeting,
school, work, etc. and could leave a questionable conclusions. As communication is
unavoidable it is essential to consider the unintentional messages you send (Source:
Communication at Work 11th Edition by McGraw-Hill pg.7)
In my everyday living I encounter so many people who have different ways in
communicating. In a retail store where I work, I can tell by just looking at their eyes, their
gestures that they wanted to tell me, “I need help”. For example, I could tell that
customers wearing scrubs in a light green color work at the health-care in surgical area.
There are some people whom I’ve encountered have different accents which makes me
know if they are coming from England, London, Australia, New York, Asian countries,
etc. Every Sunday when I go around Salt Lake City, I see people who are dressed in
coat and tie andSunday dress. Just by looking at their gestures and behaviors, I could
say that they are going to church. In my first year here in United States, getting used to
the standards of living in a foreign country with different cultural behaviors was a
challenge. I got offended by people or co-workers when they call me using their finger
(index finger calling).To them, it is pretty normal to call someone in this casual way but
to us Asians, it is a rude way of asking someone to come to you. I got used to it
eventually but I still prefer people to call me using their whole hand (five fingers). There
also customers who still ask me questions about certain items in the store even though I
am not wearing my uniform and am obviously avoiding to communicate. These things
make me believe that communication is unavoidable in our day to day lives.
Communication is Irreversible - What have been said or done, oftentimes cannot
be taken back everyone has wished he/she could take back the words they regretted
uttering. Communication written can be tore or burned down but the words and deeds
were already inside the memories of others. History of the past cannot be erased or be
reversed. Actions would stick more and stand out. “What goes out of your mouth, you
cannot swallow again.”
I have seen so many friends using Facebook, Instagram and other social media
sites to tell the world how they feel, where they went, what they ate, even their personal
information which is not so wise to post in public. I have a friend in Facebook who posts
comments of as if she is always fighting with someone, cursing, saying negative things
to others and even if she would erase those posts she made, people who have seen
those comments would remember these.. In my case, it is very hard for me to lie
because I am not used to it and I usually get caught if I try to lie. The results are I
cannot take back the words I have already said once. For example, there was a time
when a Cop caught me speeding. I lied and I said I wasn’t but I was very uncertain with
my words. I ended up with a ticket.
Cultural Communication Concept - All of us have had encountered people with
different cultural backgrounds, different religious beliefs, races, ethnicity, etc. Respect
and understanding is a must when dealing with other people. We must learn and be
aware of each person’s style, gesture, behavior, regional differences and manner of
speaking. Social class has a great impact on how people communicate whether on the
job or in interacting with other people. There are two types of social class; Workingclass Families and Middle-Class Families. Formality in communication, time, manners
which includes Monochromic and Polychromic, gender roles are also essential and
must be respected per each person’s culture.
In our Church, formality in dress, time (Monochromic), manner of speaking is
greatly valued. We may have members from different countries but when it comes to
religious beliefs and customs, we are all united and have one culture. In our Church we
also address each other by using “Brother and Sister.” In most Asian countries such as
Japan, Malaysia, Korea, Burma, China, including Philippines, it is not appropriate to us
to call someone even if they are not our relatives by name most especially when they
are older. In Philippines, we call those who are a bit older from us as “Kuya (Brother),
Ate (Sister)” and those who are the same as our parent’s age, we call them “Tita
(Auntie), Tito (Uncle) and Lola (GrandMa), Lolo (GrandPa) for old people.
Personal Networking Concept- Networking is usually the tern being used to meet
people, maintaining contacts to get information, advices, and in helping others, with
better networking people have more access to career sponsorship, resources and
information. (Source: Communication at Work 11th Edition by McGraw-Hill pg.22).
I found this Personal Networking affective. One example I have is when I started
this semester. There were some problems I have encountered; the subjects I am taking
and some assignments that were very hard for me to figure out. With the help of my
friends, my sister and my parents who have knowledge in these subjects, I was able to
get the help I needed. Networking also helped me to find interview prospects for my
“Interview Homework in Communication 1010.
Listening Concept – The importance of Listening is when you understand the
sender’s messages. Effective Listening is when you pay attention, comprehend and be
able to respond to the speaker. Effective Communication is the sender and receiver’s
responsibility. The sender must provide effective strategies in able to help the receiver
understand its message. It is also vice-versa to the receiver, he/she must listen intently
and clarify those misunderstood information. “Listening is Passive” is a fault
assumption. Good Listening is hard work. The receiver is like a “sponge”, it absorbs
every information that the sender is giving. In many instances, you also have to speak
while listening, making sure that all the ideas of the sender are being understood.
Listening can be exhausting, especially when there are too much background noise, too
many people are talking at the same time. There are “Barriers to Effective Listening”,
people can only input and be able to remember information in certain amount of time,
approximately 10 minutes with 50% of information absorbed, 48 minutes with 25%
information absorbed. Environmental Barriers, Physiological Barriers, Psychological
Barriers – (Preoccupation, Message Overload, Egocentrism, Ethnocentrism, Fear of
Appearing Ignorant). There are many other ways to be an effective listener and as more
Analytical, Relational, Task-Oriented, Critical Listener you are, the more successful
you’ll become. “The art of effective listening is essential to clear communication, and
clear communication is necessary to management success. -James Cash Penny”
My job requires a lot of listening skills. I work in a wireless connection area,
dealing with people’s technical problems, asking suggestions on which phone and
service provider/plan best suit their needs. Often times, while trying to give solutions to
their problems, I deal with different barriers in listening. Unconsciously, people try to
communicate with me while solving the issue with the help of another customer
representative on the phone. The results were “poor understanding” from the person on
the phone and the customer face to face. There was an instance when I tried to help the
customer to change his mobile carrier into another company. I was required to transfer
the phone call to the customer to confirm his request. The customer kept on
complaining he couldn’t understand the agent because of his accent. I was sad to think
that the customer is being prejudice and also what we call “Ethnocentric” wherein he (or
most people) assume that accented speakers are less intelligent and unable to
understand spoken words. In contrast, I did not have any issues understanding the
speaker’s messages. People who are being influenced by their
Psychological/Physiological Barriers will not be able to communicate effectively.
Interpersonal Communication has many ways to exchange information between
two or more people. It is very important to realize that in order to be successful in
communication, one must possess some of the examples of skills, strategies and
contexts mentioned above. These are some of the ingredients that we need to use if we
want to be successful.
“Communication is a skill that you can learn. It’s like riding a bicycle or typing. If
you’re willing to work at it, you can rapidly improve the quality of every Part of your Life.
–Brian Tracy”