Our Communication Skills to Conduct Business - Assignment Example

One of the most important lessons in life is that which is communication. We as human beings rely on our communication skills in order to conduct business, learn, try to offer a point and express our emotions. The lack of communication skills can stymie any positive efforts that we may make and as a result, our interpersonal skills are, whether we like it or not, crucial. To this end, I have completed a number of assignments which have caused me to take stock and reflect upon my own skills. In so doing, I learned that simply because I seek to convey a message does not mean that I am. Selective perception is the personal and subjective filtering of what we may see or hear and interpret the statement or action to suit our own agenda or needs. It is believed for the most part that the process of selective perception is a psychological process and therefore a process that is not done consciously. The best analogy of this process is when a person says "You only hearing what you want to hear". As absurd as this sounds, the example stated is in fact exactly what happens in selective perception. This is not to be interpreted as a bad thing, but rather a byproduct of a society that is multitasking consistently. Each person has their own list of priorities and simply because two people may have an issue in common does not mean that the issue takes the same place on that list of priorities that we keep subconsciously. Because we are consistently bombarded with too much stimuli every day to pay equal attention to everything, we pick and choose according to our own needs. In completing our assignments, I noticed that not only are most people guilty of selective perception but I am as well. Although my intentions were good, the fact was that I did not get the message that the other person attempted to convey and I found this issue to be a part of my life in my educational pursuits and my job. Selective Exposure is the tendency to avoid information inconsistent with one's beliefs & attitudes. This, to me is somewhat akin to the theory supplied by selective perception, yet on a more conscious level. For example, as I noted in my essay, I would deliberately avoid people that cursed incessantly because the whole notion of cursing is an unnecessary coping skill and is not a necessary one. I don't see why I could expose myself to those who I consider to be "serial cursers" and as a result, they are consciously excluded from my social circles. I learned from this experience that selective exposure will ultimately retard my growth in my personal relationships and for my professional relationships. In employing selective exposure, I learned that the message I am really conveying is "I don't care what you think or say" and "Whatever you have to say is not worth my time to listen to." It makes me appear to be extremely close minded and ultimately stops others from wanting to communicate with me. It would be remiss of me to not convey the fact that the Johari Window presented a bit of a challenge to me. While I can certainly understand the theory behind the category, I do find it rather difficult to apply to my own business relationships. While I am aware of the fact that trust is an essential component of business team relationships, there is still a competitive piece to it and that cannot be ignored, especially in this economy. With pink slips being sent out on a daily basis I cannot imagine that it will be easy to accept members of a team as anything other than competition. Workers in every field are trying to demonstrate that they are better than their co-workers so I cannot imagine that team spirit is really existing at this juncture. Thus while the Johari window is one that would work in the perfect economy, I don't believe that it would work in today's dire economic times. I think that one of the more difficult tasks is honest reflection of self perception. People decide on their own attitudes and feelings from watching themselves behave in various situations. This is particularly true when internal cues are so weak or confusing they effectively put the person in the same position as an external observer. I found myself able to provide an honest reflection of myself and while I do have certain weaknesses, I think that for the most part I do demonstrate a confident woman who is unrelenting in her views. This is not to say that I will not listen to the opinions or reflections of others but I think that if I do not stand by my views, I will not be seen as weak. I have learned to pay deep attention to my internal cues and also to look at them truthfully without a filter. I think that this class has helped me to overcome a fear that I had with self examination. It is always so easy to examine others and to attach a quick label to their actions and behaviors but so difficult to do it to ourselves. I learned not to be so quick to label and predict but to be patient and see what happens in others. In looking at others, I learned how to not be so predictable myself. In conclusion, I never realized how much communication was intermingled with our own perceptions. I had always thought that if I wanted to give off an impression to another, all I had to do was act a certain way. I had not realized that more often than not, the impression that I give is based upon my own views. Thus, others are interpreting me through my own views. I learned to be open to the reflections of myself and others without trying to "cover up" that which I think others may not accept. Read More