Rachel Gillen's Blog

I do believe, when communicating with people from different cultures and groups, I communicate differently. I find myself hesitant and less confidant than I may be when communicating with people from my culture or group. I think it can be hard to find strategies that would benefit both sides as what they both need from the conversation is different. I believe the following strategies could begin to help communication with different groups or cultures. Allow for open line for communication and avoid starting the conversation on a negative front to allow for open communication to be the center of the conversation. Avoid assumptions about that persons culture or group as that can lead to treating them differently.  Keep in mind that they may communicate with you differently because you are from a different culture or group. They may be working just as hard to keep the communication positive. 

I chose to watch Modern Family. What I learned from this activity is, we read a lot into facial expressions and body language and I believe we don't put so much emphasis on the words that are spoken. As I sat and watched the show in silence, I was making assumptions of feelings based on the characters body language and facial expressions. When I went back and watched the show with sound, there was definitely times where I was correct about the character's feelings but, there were many other times that I was off how they were feeling or what the situation was about. If I had been watching a show that I regularly watch, I believe my assumptions would've been less or at least correct. Watching a show that I normally watch allows me to know what the relationship is between the characters and know the characters individually. This helps avoid assumptions and allows me to understand more what might be going on even if there is no sound. Although this might seem like a positive th

I have two people in my life who I believe communicate effectively. In my personal life, I believe my Dad communicates extremely well. He has always remained very calm, spoken his feelings but also had facts to back him up, and allowed the other person or people to speak their thoughts and feelings. In my professional/work world, one of my previous supervisors was an amazing professional communicator. She always presented calm, respectful, and caring to the person she was speaking to. She rarely came off angry or hurtful and when she did need to address a serious concern regarding performance, she was able to do so without degrading the person she was speaking to.  I absolutely model some of my own communication behaviors after my Dad and my previous supervisor. I believe both have made me a better communicator. My previous supervisor to this day coaches me on proper communication techniques when supervising staff or even communicating with coworkers. Many skills I use in my personal