Good Essay On Discussions

1. How do the results compare to what you might have expected? What do you think the most difficult part of being an active listener is for you? When you are speaking, what do you look for to try to assess if the person you are speaking to is listening and understanding?
I need to stop myself from jumping into a conversation to present my views. Rather it would be better to let the speaker finish what they are saying first. I could also benefit from restating what the person is saying so that the person knows I am interested in the conversation. The most difficult part of being an active listener is not presenting my arguments until I have let the speaker finish. When the person I am speaking to a person, I look for non verbal cues to see if the person is listening such as eye contact and nodding.
2. Think about a time when you spoke at length with someone from a different country. What difficulties did you experience? What adjustments did you and the other person have to make so that you were better able to communicate? Perhaps you did not make any adjustments. How did that impact the conversation?
I went on vacation to Vietnam and wanted to order some food. I had to rely on using non verbal communication because I did not speak Vietnamese. For the menu, I made a gesture with my hands that looked like a book opening and I pointed at the food I wanted (it was written in English/Vietnamese). I grabbed my wallet to signal payment. The situation was embarrassing because I thought I looked a little foolish in a restaurant full of Vietnamese. The person at the counter asked for too much money and I had to write down the correct price.
3. What ways did you plan to use nonverbal communication during your persuasive speech? Discuss at least 3 types of nonverbal communication that you implemented in your speech and explain what the typical function of each is and why you think it was beneficial to include in your speech.
During my persuasive speech, I tried to use eye contact with different people in the audience. This helped me to see if people were paying attention or not. If I saw that people were distracted, I would look at them so that they became more engaged in what I was saying. I also tried to use hand movements to engage with the audience. For example if I asked a reflective question I would use open my arms and my palms. I also walked around a little bit so that I could engage certain members of the audience with eye contact.