Workplace Observation Paper

953 Words2 Pages

Working in a professional environment for the last ten years, I’ve been given the opportunity to witness how my co-workers communicate in the workplace. I’ve learned which communication patterns are used that are effective and which need to be worked on. Communication is defined as “the act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors express or exchange information or to express your ideas, thoughts, feelings etc. to someone.” Everything is taken into account when communicating this is not limited to verbal communication but non- verbal behavior as well.
In my most recent meeting, which took place on February 11, 2016 with a number of 11 attendees present I was able to identify some of the communication patterns that were exhibited. …show more content…

This was my first observation. My second observation was besides the facilitator of the meeting I was one of the only people who spoke the most. One of my co-workers from my department constantly kept interrupting the facilitator of the meeting. Of the 11 attendees I would say about 3 people didn’t speak at all. A pattern that I observed was when people engaged in conversation, they were trying to talk louder and over one another to get their point across. I didn’t feel they would wait their turn to talk. I felt the people who got taken seriously were those who waited their turn and maintained eye contact with the facilitator and communicated in a moderate tone. Those who showed respect to others were able to get their point across. Instead of two parties shouting at one another, each party should listen to, understand and not to reply; As Caproni expresses “Seek first to understand, then to be understood. ”. The communication patterns I witnessed could relate to some power dynamics for example there was a manager present from the Construction Management department who spoke as if anytime he said something it must be acknowledged and that everyone should be in agreement with …show more content…

Caproni defines an active listener as “ one who refers to listening to understand another person’s point of view without evaluating or judging the person or his or her views. It requires empathy, which is both a perception and a behavioral skill.” In our meeting everyone had different points of views and based on how they spoke to one another each person felt their point mattered most. As an active listener, one must try to understand the other person’s point of view. We are all unique and present different perspectives on matters. The importance in communicating is being able to convey these views to one another. As a listener one should direct all of their attention to the speaker. This means making eye contact with the speaker, and not interrupting. There were instances during the meeting where my colleagues didn’t let the other person speak. I recommend practicing some active listening techniques that Caproni discusses in Chapter 4 “ Communicating effectively” one concept is Listening with intensity. During the meeting many of my colleagues were not paying attention they were texting or trying to have a side conversation. Listening with intensity means giving the speaker your full attention. This means not interrupting or finishing people’s sentences for them. Another concept is listening with empathy: trying to understand the message from the speaker’s point of

More about Workplace Observation Paper

Open Document