Caela Carter

Richard Morales

COMM 2206

5 December 2018

Reflection Essay

This communications course has taught me many things. Communication is not only

verbal, but nonverbal as well. The words we speak, tone of voice, hand gestures, and facial

expressions all play a part in both the message being spoken and how it is received by others. In

order to communicate well, we have to take all of these actions into consideration. The three

main lessons I have learned from this class are how to become a better listener, manage conflict,

and to tell others our thoughts and emotions.

One of the lessons I learned while taking Interpersonal Communications is how to be a

more effective listener. In chapter seven of our textbook we discussed the various listening styles

and how to become a better listener. During that lesson I came to realize I identified most as a

task-oriented listener. Task-Oriented listeners are most focused on efficiency and completing the

task at hand which describes me perfectly. I am constantly worried about getting things done on

time such as school assignments, paying bills, and different activities with my children. I am

trying to become a more rounded listener because I have learned that this listening style may not

always be an advantage in every scenario. This listening style can cause a great amount of stress

for both myself and those around me if I am constantly worried about tasks that need to be

completed, rather than how others may feel in certain situations.

Another lesson I have learned from taking this class is how to effectively manage

conflict. There are five main conflict styles: avoidance, accommodation, competition,
compromise and collaboration. I learned that the collaboration style is a win-win solution so both

parties benefit from it. Typically in this conflict style each person is satisfied with the outcome

because they work together to solve the issue. I generally am not the greatest at managing my

conflict with others because I tend to hold grudges and like things to go a certain way. I would

like to start implementing this style whenever I have a conflict that needs resolved rather than

having everything go “my way or the highway.” Utilizing this style of conflict management

would benefit both myself and anyone I may have an issue with especially in my close emotional

relationships.

Lastly, the third lesson I have learned from this course is how important it is to

communicate with others. It is important to communicate not only our emotions and how we

feel, but also our needs and wants. It is unhealthy to hold in how we feel. I tend to hold a lot of

my emotions in which makes it hard for me to get over issues I have with other people. When

our feelings are not being shared, a lot of different emotions and tension can build up in

ourselves which can lead to us “blowing up” so to speak. We also have to be aware of how our

words affect others because we can say the same thing to separate people and each person may

take the message a different way. If anything, this class has taught me communication is

perceived differently by each individual. Numerous factors play a role in how a person

communicates such as their gender, culture, age, etc.

Communication is a key part in every relationship we have whether the relationship is

personal or professional. When we communicate we should tell others how we feel about certain

topics so we do not hold all of that emotion in. However, it is important to handle the conflicts

that may arise from our communication reasonably and take the other person’s feelings into

consideration. When we communicate we must also be careful on how we speak and how we
present ourselves in a conversation so others don’t take our words the wrong way. How we

communicate with others has a lot to say about our character. If we utilize the skills learned in

this course, it can help us create and maintain healthy relationships with those around us.