communication

One might assume that speaking, conveying ideas, asking questions, engaging in heated debate, learning new information and all the other fascinating ways we communicate with one another would be easy and natural for most people. As a child, I always always believed this to be true.

The older I get (for those keeping count, I am currently 27) the more I realize that communication is one of the hardest things in life. Poor communication and misinterpretation can lead to disastrous consequences. Whenever I witness a failure to communicate clearly in conversation, I usually attempt to interject into the conversation to clarify. As I am writing this I feel like this may be perceived as rude instead of helpful.

As a dog owner, I can say that the power of non verbal communication is far greater than the power of the spoken word. We all understand energy and non verbal cues, facial expressions, body language and more. That's why it's never that bad when you go to another country, you can always act something out to convey meaning without speaking their language. Training and being around your dog forces you to be in touch with your non verbal cues since that is how dogs listen to you. Obviously this applies to people, too.

I am a good communicator but there is always room for improvement. I know I need to work on my tone sometimes and also being able to concisely convey my feelings in a constructive way.

My godfather, Patrick, told me a while ago that he thinks I should get a job that has something to do with "communication". I think he was onto something.