KIM WOODS

Felicia Nesslage

• Identify one or more communication skill you have mastered or is a strength.

One of my communication skills that I would probably say is my strength would be understanding. What I mean by this is that whenever I am talking with someone, they tell me good or bad things. I understand them because I truly listen to what they are saying and I get it. I have always understood others. I remember when I was in middle school and high school. My friends would come to me for advice.

• Identify at least one communication skill that you need to improve or is a weakness. How do you think this improvement will enhance your personal and professional relationships?

My communication that needs work would probably be the apprehension. I honestly can’t go up and just talk in front of people. My anxiety is pretty much under control now. Since I have done some talking in front of people, maybe doing it more often would help. If I do better this apprehension and just focus on wat needs to be communicated, I will be fine.

I know that if I work on all of my skills whether good or bad at it, I can be a better communicator. If it is verbal and non-verbal, I can make sure that I do look and act professional if it has to do with work. Also, just being a great communicator is good because then anyone can understand and talk with you. Bosses, friends and family, it doesn’t matter. Learning all of the skills needed to communicate correctly will be a great benefit to all in work or personal communication.

Christine Johnson

I feel as if one of the communication skills that I have mastered is empathy. I feel that I am pretty good at empathizing with others because I always feel that I should put myself in others’ shoes before I can try to understand what it is that they are going through. I have been through a lot myself and I learn not only from my own experiences, but sometimes from the experiences of others. I like to envision the information that they are sharing and how they felt or reacted and if I would have felt and reacted in the same manner. I would that one communication skill that I really need to work on is being clear and concise. I really stumble when I am trying to explain something to someone else and in my head, I feel that I explain it in a manner that others understand but sometimes I end up doing the complete opposite. If I take the necessary steps that Bevan and Sole have such as focusing on competence, emphasizing empathy, decreasing communication apprehension, and controlling verbal abuse and aggression, I can improve this skill drastically. Improving this skill will help me in my personal and professional life by providing clear and concise information to my receivers to help get my point across effectively.