Communication is
the foundation of a relationship.
Communication is what builds, or destroys, a relationship. How we communicate reflects if we are being
passive, aggressive, or assertive.
When we think of
communication, we usually think of talking to someone face-to-face. However, there are many other methods of
communication. We talk on the phone,
one-on-one and in conference calls. We
communicate in writing through letters, memos, email, and texts. We communicate whenever we participate in
social media!
We need to be
aware of all our communication. The
advantage of face-to-face communication is that our body language enhances and
clarifies our words. Often our facial
expressions and our body communicates more than our words do.
When we
communicate by phone, our voice inflections give cues to our true meaning. The same words can take on entirely different
meanings when they are said in seriousness and when they are said jokingly.
When we write,
including writing on social media, our “listeners” do not have any information
beyond our words. It becomes extremely
important that we choose words that accurately reflect the message we truly
want to send.
It is generally
easier to go beyond assertive and become aggressive when we write. For one thing, there is no one there to stop
us! We are not getting any immediate
feedback on how our reader is responding.
In face-to-face communication, we have cues from the listener how our
message is being received and we can tone it down as necessary.
We need to be
aware of all our communication. We need
to strive to be assertive in all forms of communication, not passive or
aggressive.
Communication can be a very tricky business. I startle myself whenever I feel assertive, and I find myself easilly apologizing when I feel that I meant what I said, just because I was assertive. For me, becoming assertive is a life long lesson that is never quite learned, but I keep reading good articles like this, and learning! Thanks Susan for what you say and do.
ReplyDeleteFaye, I think it's hard for most people to find that balance between passive and aggressive that is assertive. There have been times when I have been passive and not said anything, and still don't say anything, and still don't and then when I do I jump past assertive to aggressive! It would have been better had I just spoken up, assertively, in the first place! As long as what we say is honest, and said with respect for the other person and us, we are o.k. I think this is a life long journey for many of us! Thanks for your comment, Faye!
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