Communication is one of the earliest sign of intelligence for human. The need to communicate stems from the need to depend on each other, the need to borrow the strength of fellow beings and the need to achieve greater heights by working together. It may seems like a simple thing. I mean we all have been communicating ever since the day we were born, it's not something new, rather, it's something we do everyday, so how hard can it get? Unfortunately, that is only true if we were like machines, void of emotions and feelings, void of forming complex perceptions and relationships. Effective communication becomes a tad harder with so many other factors to consider. However, when we are able to communicate effectively, information and ideas in our mind can become reality, improving our quality and way of life. Maybe the sci-fiction movies about robot being able to take over the world so swiftly are true afterall; they can communicate so effectively with each other.
So basic communication is a two-way thing. It comprises of both listening and speaking. Now that's gathering information and transmitting information.
Let's start with speaking. We do talk alot everyday; to your family, friends and probably even the dog on the street. And when we talk, we want someone to hear us. Not only that, we want them to hear us correctly, or at least going in the same direction. Only that way could we get them to align their thinking with us and we can achieve what we set out for. The ability to do this is important in all stages of life. Think about what you can achieve if every idea you have in your head is communicated effectively to the right person and becomes a reality?
Listening aspect would therefore be more of interpreting information coming at us. Equally as important as speaking, listening allows us to gain more knowledge and wisdom so that we can generate even more ideas and creativity. Of course, it is beyond just plain words that we hear, but more importantly, deciphering those words in the same direction as the speaker. Think about how your bosses will like you more if he/she knows that you are moving in the same direction as them.
Ultimately, in my view, getting to know effective communication, whether listening or speaking, is to establish relationships. Communication only flows if there is a relationship. So, the next step for this semester would then be to refine the listening and speaking skills, towards building relationships and finally, getting to know effective communications!
Argh, now my baby cousin is bugging me. How do I effectively let her know that I've work to do.....
After reading your post, I realized that there are different levels of communication for different platforms. Although the word communication is the same, but it should be applied differently in different environments. Like the communication between friends, bosses and customers actually requires different set of communication skills.
ReplyDeleteIts seem to be like code switching, being able to set the types of boundaries between different aspects. We can be successful in both work and life if we keep practice on the sets of communication skills.
Hey perry with the ?
ReplyDeleteAye to the fact that communication is one of the earliest sign of intelligence in humans. As mentioned in my post, crying is one of the most basic ways we learn how to communicate with our parents. This is also probably aligned to the idea you mentioned that communication is about establishing relationships with one another. This is a very interesting aspect in tackling the topic of effective communication.
However, in retrospect, perhaps the reason why robots still cannot take over the world is probably due to the fact that effective communication is related to feelings as well. This is also linked to the relationship aspect. By communicating, we are effectively transmitting our feelings over as well! So I guess until the day scientist and engineers figure out a way to create robots with feelings, I believe humans would still be the dominant species on earth. Otherwise, I dread to think of the consequences.
Cheers!