Communication and Culture

When I think about the cultural diversity that I see in my neighborhood, in my workplace, and also at my child’s school, I do find that I communicate differently with different groups and cultures. I think that I have gotten to know many of the people I see each day in work, in my neighborhood and at my sons school and I have become aware of how to communicate and interact with them based on what I know about them. At work I interact and communicate differently with my staff who have been working for me longer. We are able to joke with each other a bit more because we know each other well. When I communicate with my supervisor however, I am more reserved and professional. At my sons school I often speak with one staff member about baseball because he really enjoys the sport and so do I, however, another male teacher hates sports and we often talk about current events. I also communicate differently with people based on my feelings and happenings throughout the day. In the morning I may be real friendly and say hi to many of my neighbors and at the end of the day I tend to be more reserved because I have been around people most of the day and often want to be alone with my son when I get home. This is sometimes difficult though because I have to walk by a play structure to get to my apartment and many times the children that are there want to play with my son and then the parents want to talk with me. I have noticed that I often walk by real quickly and make sure to be on the phone or try to be occupied with something. I know I may come off rude and I don’t intend to, but I prefer to have some time alone.

Communication skills

 I watched a show called Baby Daddy. It starts by showing 2 younger boys and a lady who looks annoyed on the couch, rolling her eyes. The boys face each other body language shows that they are not interested in the lady or what she is saying instead it looked as though they were checking each others breath. They leave and return and another guy is now there. The new guy jumps up and puts his finger in front of his mouth looking like he is telling them to be quiet. Then it shows the lady asleep on the couch with writing all over her face. Then the 2 boys are sitting at table and hold up their phones with both of them having a pic of the same girl. I immediately assume that they are dating or interested in the same girl. I watch as one boy speaks showing lots of expression in his eyes, smiling and throwing a lot of hand movements and gestures. The other boy looks at him and rolls his eyes and then starts talking in a heated manner as well. Soon the other guy jumps in and starts talking, it seems like the boys were fighting over the girl and he is trying to smooth things over. He is calmer and his mouth isn’t opening as wide when he talks so I assume he is talking quieter than the others were. The next scene appears to be the next day and one of the boys is sitting in front of a laptop smiling and laughing with another girl and the lady is in a robe, with a very unhappy looking face and is  pointing a spatula at them and the kids stop laughing and look as though they are in trouble. The show goes on to show each boy setting up a date with the girl in the pic.

When I watched the show with sound I realized the lady was one of the boys mother and she actually said at one point, "Kids have the way of sucking the life out of you." That was the point that I observed that the boys were not interested in her and she looked annoyed. The boys were actually heading out to go to a club and they did a check involving making sure their breath did not smell. The other guy that was there when the boys returned seemed to be one of the boys older brother. He listened as the boys talked about their night and realized they both met the same girl. The brother tried to convince the boys not to fight over the girl. The next day the boy asked his mom if she was on his computer and she said yes. They found her online dating profile and she had fibbed on her age and were laughing at her profile when she yelled at them and told them they will be old someday too.

I found it really difficult to watch the show without sound, and it wasn't much better with sound ether which is probably why I have never seen the show before.When watching the show without sound,  was able to guess pretty accurately about what was occurring by observing their actions, eyes and expressions. I also observed their age and the props they had. However, I still didn't understand it exactly and missed on some of the specifics that were important. I couldn't tell that some of them were related or one of them was a young father and so on. Watching this show without sound and then with sound makes me think about the assumptions I am guilty of making from time to time. Sometimes I assume things based on observing others interactions and behaviors and I realize that I may be right sometimes, but sometimes I could also be wrong.

Competent Communicator

When I think of someone who is a competent communicator I think of my father. My father is very intelligent and shares his knowledge with me. We are able to discuss various topics and he holds my attention because he knows so much and teaches me new things. I can also trust my dad, which to me is very important when communicating. I know the information that my father is telling me is honest and truthful and that if he is ever unsure of something he lets me know and seeks to find the answer. My father is not afraid to admit when he is wrong and to let me know when I am wrong as well. He does a great job listening to me and others. I would love to model these behaviors because I think they are examples of what great communicator’s exhibit and should strive to always model.