Evaluating My Communication

This week I evaluated myself as a communicator and allowed others to also evaluate me. To my surprise there was a few interesting but not surprising oppositions.

The results are as follows:

When it comes to Communication Anxiety Inventory, I consider myself as someone who is often very nervous communicating with someone that I really don’t know or have just met.  When it comes to speaking in public, whether a small or large group, I will say that I often suffer from public speaking anxiety.  On the other hand, those that evaluated me stated that I seemed to speak very well in public and always seem so calm.

In terms of the Listening Styles Profile, I believe that I try very hard to listen with concern and often try to put myself in their shoes.  I believe that I also try not to judge before I know all the facts. Now on the other hand, those that evaluated me actually said it quite differently.  Yes, I do listen with concern, but there are times that I take a few words and run with it.  I don’t often wait for all of the facts before I jump to conclusions.

In terms of the Verbal Aggressiveness Scale, I see myself as someone that tries to be fair and respectful when communicating. I try very hard not to offend and I am very careful not to personally attack a person’s character.  I try to only address the issues.  On the other hand, my evaluators believe that although I do not attack a person’s character, I am very aggressive in my response to something that I don’t like.  I am often looked at as being too honest and straightforward in my answers or response. There are times that I may cross the line a little which attacks a person’s position if I don’t agree with them, which can be offensive.

This experience has really caused me take a step back and take a look at the way that I communicate. I know that I need to work on improving my communication skills. I really do want to be a better listener.  I feel that as an educator, it is important to know how to listen to the full story before jumping into any conclusions.  I was also interested in the fact that they felt that I was a little to straightforward in the way I approach conversations that will require an answer or a response.  I don’t want to offend anyone; however I always want to be truthful.  I just know now that I have to be more watchful when choosing my words and to try not to be so straightforward.  I have always believed that it is not always what you say it is how you say it.