Interpersonal Communication Reflection Paper

The graded project for Interpersonal Communications instructed me to review conversations that I had with two different people, one person I enjoyed being around and the second with someone I am not comfortable being around. For the exercise, I am to analyze my nonverbal listening behavior exhibited during these conversations to determine my strengths and areas I need to improve upon. The first conversation was with my friend Dave whom I have known for 12 years and I feel very comfortable around him. The conversation took place at his house on Saturday afternoon around 3:00 p.m., and the conversation lasted approximately one hour. The second conversation occurred at work Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m. in the fabrication shop with Mr. Vic Hill,
However, I chose to have a conversation with Mr. Hill specifically for this exercise. This conversation was 20 minutes long and took place in the fabrication shop regarding a structural patch he is manufacturing and what work remained before the item will be ready for installation onto the aircraft. Shortly after the beginning of the conversation, I found I was not actively listening to his conversation, as I had taken my keys from my pocket and were flipping them in my hand and I provided very little eye contact while Mr. Hill has talking. Consequently, I put my keys away and tried to concentrate on what he was explaining to me, however, several minutes later I found that I had positioned myself at an angle to Mr. Hill and my arms crossed on my chest, and again not maintaining eye contact. Uncrossing my arms and took position directly in front of him to force myself to give Mr. Hill my fullest attention during the remaining few minutes of the discussion. After the conversation ended, I wrote down a few notes of what I observed myself doing during this exchange and found I certainly displayed poor body language and eye contact; in fact, my actions were not appropriate for this work related situation, Mr. Hill deserved my full attention, no matter how I may feel towards
In order to overcome this and become a better listener and communicator, I plan to have regular interactions with people I am not comfortable around, and record my actions during these encounters. By engaging and recording these conversations, I can constantly correct my own actions, which will increase the effectiveness of my own non-verbal behaviors. This exercise proved out to be enlightening as I discovered the areas of communication where I use my non-verbal behaviors extremely well and in those conversations where I am not as adept at listening and communicating as well as I should. Since I know which areas I need improvement, I can create exercises that will help increase the effectiveness of my non-verbal skills, and in turn increase my ability as a communicator. In order to be successful in my personal and professional life, I need to be an effective