I
decided to conduct iExamen 2 on Saturday, October 28th, and was very
eager to observe its effect on my daily communication. I was curious to see how
only saying things that are kind, useful and true would impact different forms
of communication, whether it be face-to-face conversation, social media or
texting. My assumption that this assignment would be difficult was correct.
This does not necessarily mean I am not a kind person, but I often contribute
little comments during conversation that are essential nonsense. Since all
conversation during this day had to be “useful” I had to keep these thoughts to
myself.
When I first woke up on Saturday
morning it was 11:00 am. I sat down at the dining room table with my three
roommates and we all ate breakfast. During this time, I made the first
observation of how my communication would be affected. I observed how my
roommates often mess around and tease one another, and today I could not
participate. My roommates noticed that my behavior was different, so I told
them about the assignment. We do not communicate like this to be rude to one
another, but it truly shows how close we are with one another. Through this I learned
how friendship and love can affect communication.
As the day went on I walked to the
library to do some homework. On the walk, I was much more observant of the
conversations taking place around me. I noticed a lot of negative conversation and
gossip going on between students. I thought about how people partake in this
gossip without really thinking about how it affects the individuals they are
talking about. It almost seemed that gossip has become a part of human nature. In
addition to this, I became much more cautious in what I was saying. Rather than
just blurting out the first thought that came to my mind, I really thought
about what I wanted to contribute to a conversation. I found this skill to be
extremely valuable because it lead to more deep and enlightening conversation
with my peers.
However, the biggest revelation I had
while completing this assignment was on social media. I do not actively post on
social media, but I do check it almost every day to hear the thoughts of others
and see how people are doing. As I was scrolling through my feed, I paid extra
attention to what people were saying, and what the message behind it truly was.
Through this I observed a lot of posts on social media have a negative
connotation behind it. I had not noticed this in the past, as this assignment
taught me to have a deeper look into what people are communicating.
Through practicing this
self-observation, my communication for the day was very different. I took more
time to think about what I was going to say. This shows how in our culture we
are quick to just blurt out the first thought that comes across our mind. Communicating
along these lines helps me because it allows me to partake in more valuable
conversation. Through this assignment, I learned in the future I should pause and
really think about what I want to say.
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