I have noticed that sometimes my weeks have themes. The theme of this past week was communication. It seemed like I kept encountering situations where I was miscommunicating with someone else – a coworker, student, family member, or friend. These situations prompted me to begin thinking about this infamous concept. How does one communicate and for what reasons?
At the moment I am particulary aware of 3 different obstacles in communication. I believe these obstacles cover all aspects of human interaction.
1) Gender~Communication between individuals is difficult in and of itself, yet when you add opposite sexes to the mix it becomes even more trying. Males and females, whether they be children, teens, or adults rarely see eye-to-eye. Men want small bits of information given at frequent intervals so they don’t have to be still for too long at any one moment; women like the stage to be set, the setting to be described, and the feelings expressed as the information is given. Men want to solve the problem; women simply want to share the problem to receive sympathy. Men communicate to live; women live to communicate. There are exceptions to every rule, I know, but this is what I have observed and encountered when it comes to male-female communication.
2) Age~When was the last time you tried to teach a middle schooler? Or what about the music you listen to versus the music your grandfather enjoys? Have you discussed IPods, IPads, or Facebook with your dad recently? These are all things that matter to the 20-somethings and younger of our society, but are very difficult to grasp for the Baby Boomer generation and beyond. We all live in the same society, though in different time zones, and we all depend on one another.
3) Interest~Back to teaching middle schoolers. Every day I battle conveying knowledge to youngsters who really could care less (for the most part). Somehow I need to cause them to want to learn material that has little to no impact on their life right now. Why should they care if a clause is dependent or independent, or if an adjective is limiting or not? Who cares about when Marco Polo did his exploring or who that dude, Hammurabi, was? Yet it is something they are required to learn. In every relationship there is someone with the greater sincerity and desire to maintain the interaction, and someone who counts on the other one to make the most effort. Do you ever feel like you’re the only one trying to communicate?
Those are the obstacles I’ve noticed and at this point I can’t say that I have all the answers. All I know is that I want to communicate better because I would like to know that people value communication with me. What are your thoughts?
weeklythoughtexchange 
I hear ya. It is also difficult when you believe you have sincerely tried to communicate clearly, sincerely, and made adjustments to suit the others involved…yet you may still come back with a “daaaaa??” Not to get spiritual …but there is always a spiritual dimension to these daily life lessons…and this one I believe is that God must go through this with His beloved humans all the time from the beginning of time! Another time when He would have us not grow weary “and through in the towel” on relationships. Get up and get going and trying again in the new day, as long as it is day. xxoo
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Communication is the most important part of my job. I don’t see many differences based on gender or interest, but maybe I’ve gotten used to the gender differences, and we probably have a common interest (their health). I applaud your continued effort to make things relevant. Good communication is part of learning how to love better – Communication with respect, patience, and hope. May we both keep learning throughout our lives.
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Yours is a valuable perspective. I suppose it does fall under interest, though, as people who seek out your care do have a reason to be as clear in their communication as possible. You have also been trained to communicate clearly with your patients. What are some techniques you use to ensure that there satisfactory communication?
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