Interpersonal Communication And Self

When reading the Interpersonal Communication and Self excerpt, the numerous aspects that go into our identities was overwhelming: attitudes, beliefs, values, roles, subjective and objective self-awareness, symbolic self-awareness, material and social self, spiritual self, and more. With so many layers, it is no wonder we struggle to know our true identities. The Interpersonal Communication and Self (n.d.) chapter states “Your self-image and self-worth, as well as your needs, values, beliefs, and attitudes, serve as filters for your communications with others” (p. 33). There is who you really are, who you think you should be, who you show others, and how others see you. It is a very complicated system; I think the objective is to get all …show more content…
When I am bothered by something, I want to be left alone, I want silence, and I need time to work through the situation by myself. I can see this is frustrating for others, especially those close to me. It can be difficult being an introvert, where you heal by solitude; people do not always understand your process. I honestly do not know how to fix this except by forcing myself out of my comfort zones when faced with an upsetting …show more content…
When I can turn off my own brain and block out all the noise, I am great. I take great pride when a coworker comes to me to vent, seek advice, or just to bounce ideas off. I enjoy the sense of being trusted and admired. However, I allow myself to get stressed easily and that stress becomes a forcefield that can often be hard to break through. I catch myself trying to speed along conversations or not taking them as seriously as I should just so I can move along to the next thing on my list. I know I need to learn not only be less stressed but also learn to flip the stress switch off so I can concentrate on listening to the individual. One thing I’ve attempted lately to help with my listening skills is to simply walk away from all the distractions. The building I work in is partially surrounded by woods and a creek which is very calming. When individuals come to me with a situation, I take them to “my office” outside and we walk and talk or simply sit on a picnic bench by the creek. It has really helped me not only to shut off all the noise but also create a comfortable setting for the person to open up. In my personal life, getting away from the distractions is little more difficult; I can’t apply the same principle, when I walk out the door, it is my yard that has a flowerbed with weeds and a lawn that needs to be mowed. I know I need to find a way to quiet my brain when interacting with my friends and family; I