Competent
Communication
A colleague at work
demonstrates competent communication. An
attribute she exhibits that stands out as very effective in her workplace
communications is that she attempts to understand a particular situation while
evaluating and respecting other’s input before making a response (O’Hair, 2009). Many times she interjects with probing
questions prefaced by, “May I ask…” During
individual conversations and meetings my colleague maintains eye contact and
usually sits leaning slightly forward demonstrating her interest. Her behavior at
work is professional indicative of her ability to determine the appropriateness
for the particular culture and situation (p. 19).
I admire my colleague’s ability to
communicate effectively and would like to model her competent communication
processes. My friend’s ability to demonstrate
professionalism is apparent in her verbal communication as well as her appearance. I believe appearance enhances the effectiveness
of communication. We portray an image by
our vocalizations, listening skills, body language, and appearance. My colleague is adept at “behavioral
flexibility” (p. 19), a skill I admire and strive to achieve. I remind myself frequently to practice better
listening skills and monitor my verbal and non-verbal interactions in a culturally
sensitive manner. I appreciate my colleague’s
honesty and respectfulness in her communications and strive for the same.
Reference
O’Hair, D., &
Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication: An introduction. New York:
Bedford/St. Martin’s
I agree 100%. It is so important to fully understand a situation before interjecting our own opinions and/or solutions. This is usually a lesson that is learned over time. It is great to have such a good role model for effective communication. I find the older I get and the more life experience I have the more I have learned to really listen to what someone is saying and not jump into the conversation with my opinion, etc. before I understand all the facts.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! It is nice working/learning with you again.
Wonderful post. I especially like that you added body language as something that is important. In many situations, I can gather more about a person's feelings by their body language than their verbal response. For example, I had a coworker who would always say the proper thing and never said anything bad to say. She always agreed to do things and never complained. However, she would roll her eyes or sigh even when she was agreeing. While she could get away with this behavior over the phone or even in front of her very young students, her true feelings were evident if you talked to her in person. Great post. -Sarah Holtz
ReplyDeleteHi Joey,
ReplyDeleteIt is good that your co-worker is a competent communicator because with an effective communication skill will help resolve conflicts, address crises and make good decisions for others. It is good to model a communication behavior that one would like people to emulate in order to have a better working atmosphere. I enjoy communicating with others and also enjoy knowing people, but I am still growing in building my communication skills.