Thank You,

I want to thank all of my colleagues for supporting me through this course.  We were a great team as we shared knowledge and resources, and we worked together with one same goal, which was to succeed in this course.  I had my baby last week so I won’t be working with you in the next course as I am taking a few months off.  But I really hope we will stay in touch. 

Ghayna Alsafadi

Ghayna@gmail.com

Team Building and Collaboration

           From all the groups I had to leave, the high-performing ones were the hardest to say goodbye to.  The groups with clear established norms were where I felt there was a comfortable, trusting, and respectful atmosphere.  The group that was hardest to leave was the group I had with my colleagues at work.  We had regular meetings where we all knew exactly what our tasks were.  This allowed us to work fast and efficiently, with very little conflict.  The minor conflicts we had were quickly solved and all members were always satisfied with the results.  This group had no clear leader as we all worked together and equally contributed to the meetings.  There was a very trusting relationship between us because we all had one same goal: doing what was best for our students.  Leaving this group was very difficult for me because it was a place where I could share my ideas knowing that they would be discussed and not simply rejected. 

            Adjourning from the group of colleagues I have formed while working on my master’s degree in this program is going to be a difficult task for me.  Actually, I have to take a few months off and I am already worried about not being with the same colleagues in discussions when I come back.  I feel that we have formed a trusting team by working together and regularly discussing ideas. 

            Adjourning is an essential stage of teamwork because it allows us to reflect on our accomplishments.  I also believe that having a gathering to say good-bye to a team I have been working with for a long time allows the relationship to change from being a professional relationship to a more friendly and casual one. 

Conflict Resolution

            The most recent conflict I had was with my husband, and it was actually about avoiding conflict.  There was an issue I needed to deal with and I kept postponing it because I knew it would lead to a conflict, I was using escapist strategies.  I usually try to avoid conflict because I am afraid of affecting the relationships I have, although I know that escapist strategies will not lead to healthy relationships.  My husband always tells me that I need to confront people when I have a different opinion or when I do not appreciate a comment or behavior.  We discussed this issue using the principles of nonviolent communication, we used empathetic listening and observed each other’s feelings, needs and requests.  We also shared our feelings about the issue using the 3 R’s through respectful, reciprocal, and responsive interactions.  We agreed on a solution, which was for me to try to face conflict at least for important issues that would affect our lives. 

I am a rather shy person, so I usually avoid putting myself in a situation that might lead to conflict.  That is why I need to improve my communication skills to feel confident enough to face conflicts. 

Who Am I as a Communicator?

There were similarities between how I evaluated myself as a communicator and how others evaluated me.  The only difference was the evaluation of my communication anxiety; actually, others stated that I seem more anxious than I think while speaking in public. 

This week, I have learned that our self-concept is related to our perception of others (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2012).  Actually, we notice in others the attributes that we consider important and that affects our perception of them, and therefore the way we communicate with them.  Moreover, social interaction also influences our self-concept.  In fact, we get impressions from others about how they evaluate us as communicators.  These impressions can be direct (compliments) or indirect (gossip). 

I have also learned about schemas this week.  They are “mental structures that put together related bits of information” (O'Hair & Wiemann, 2012).  They make us have an idea about a person based on our own experiences and feelings.  Schemas can lead to prejudices and stereotypes. 

References

O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

Cultural Diversity

I meet people from different groups and cultures everyday; and I find myself communicating differently with each of them.  Actually, I use a different language while communicating with my neighbors than my family.  I also use different communication codes; in fact, my husband would understand what I meant to say from a simple look whereas a stranger would misunderstand me.  I also think that I avoid disagreeing with people who come from a culture where disagreeing with an older person is considered rude.

            In order to communicate more effectively with people from different groups and cultures, it is important to have knowledge about these groups’ culture and values.  We should also put any biases, stereotypes and prejudices aside while communicating with others; this will promote healthy relationships.  Another strategy we could use to communicate more effectively is using the Platinum Rule (Beebe, Beebe, & Redmond, 2011).  It allows us to treat others the way they would like to be treated; therefore we should listen to them more carefully and to consider their feelings.