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| This is not what effective communication looks like |
Prior to the consideration of the importance of effective
communication skills, we must first understand what possession of these skills
entail. To me, these skills are the key to effective communication. Effective
communication is when the sender and receiver share the same message and thus
keeping misunderstandings at bay.[1]
In
my opinion, having effective communication skills are important because
communication plays a significant role in our everyday life! Even when we think
we are not communicating, we actually are. We communicate not only through
verbal means, but in actual fact even things such as the way we dress is a form
of non-verbal communication. Communication, being an integral part of life,
influences my profile, emotions, educational endeavour and relationships. For
example, communicating effectively would assist me in sustaining and developing
satisfying relationships. This has been proven in many researches such as one
conducted by Malcolm Kahn who found a relationship between marital
satisfaction and accuracy of non-verbal communication.[2] Hence the understanding and the
management of effective communication skills is of great importance.
Effective
communication skills will also be important for my future occupation. Having
the skills to communicate effectively would give me an edge in both the
acquisition of a job and moving up the corporate ladder.[3] These skills are
especially applicable for my intended field of tourism and hospitality. In this
field, collaborations with others (different companies, departments, etc) are
frequent and the ability to communicate ideas accurately would greatly reduce
misunderstandings and lapses of information. Teamwork is also common in this
job and effective communication skills would allow me to not only be able to
clearly give instructions and assign work to my team but also through my
communication I would be able to encourage, motivate and reduce friction with
my fellow members, building an efficient and cohesive team working together
towards a common goal. Furthermore, working in this sector, perhaps more than
any others would require me to interact with people from all over the world. In
this globalized world today, where traveling has been made convenient by airplanes,
encountering individuals from different cultural background and societies has
become a commonality. For an effective interpersonal communication with
culturally different individuals, I need to be conscious of such differences,
know how cultures differ and understand how these differences would influence
communication. Hence, possession of communication skills such as cultural
sensitivity would be essential.
Upon
reflection of Thursday’s session, one of the skills that I have to refine is my
ability to “brand” myself and communicate to my employers about myself through
the resume. Personally, the difficulty that I face is in translating some of
the skills I have into words and illustrating them in a convincing manner. In
my opinion, words can sometimes have a limiting quality to it and it is not
easy to describe and conjure up words to illustrate the point that I would like
to drive across to my potential employer. In addition to this, the difficulty
also comes when I have to strike a balance between letting the employer know my
abilities and being perceived as arrogant. I would need to be tactful in how I
sell myself and I believe that the upcoming activities for the course of
ES2007S, such as the application letter and resume, would enable me to obtain
valuable feedbacks and hone my skills in this area.
All
in all, effective communication skills play an important role in all my communication
endeavours, personal or professional and therefore the acquiring of these
skills is of immense importance. This road of acquisition is not merely
confined within the classroom, but also putting what I learn into action in my everyday
life. I shall thus embark on this learning journey of endless possibilities.
[1] Mindtools. “Introduction to
Communication Skills: Why communication skills are so important” Retrieved
January 27, 2013. (http://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/CommunicationIntro.htm)
[2] Malcolm
Kahn. 1970. “Non-Verbal Communication and Marital Satisfaction” Family Process 9(4). Retrieved January
25, 2013. (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/doi/10.1111/j.1545-5300.1970.00449.x/pdf)
[3] American Management association. “Interpersonal
Communication Skills in the workplace”. Retrieved
January 25, 2013. (http://www.flexstudy.com/catalog/schpdf.cfm?coursenum=97003)
