Communication skills are words I often listen
to when I learn English. Teachers sometimes require students to improve these
skills to have conversations with as many people as possible and to communicate
with them better. Some students also say that they have to have communication
skills to study a second language and to make them understood in the language. I
wondered what I should do to obtain the abilities, and I noticed there were two
valuable ways to improve these skills after working at a home for the elderly
and studying in the spring section at MFWI.
The
first thing that I have to do to develop communication skills is to listen to
others carefully. As a volunteer and worker, I learned how important it is at the
home for the elderly during the summer vacation. This is because there are a
lot of people who like to talk with and listen to them in the house. Additionally,
they want to talk about their past to share it. As I listen to them, all I have
to do is to nod to show agreement and to be a good listener. For example, one
person who lives there speaks to me when I am there and tells me about what she
did in the past. She repeats the same stories, but I can never say to her that
I already heard it many times. I just have to listen to her very carefully not
to miss her words and nod smiling. She feels satisfied and often says thank you.
In addition, some feel so lonely that they really want to talk about something
which is not important. When they say something, it is my work to hear it. As I
listen to them, they can relax and often eat and drink and their physical and
mental condition becomes well. I find that listening is very important to make
the elderly keep healthy. Additionally, when I see them smile and enjoy talking
with me, I am so glad. I think it is better to be a good listener to
communicate with them.
The
second thing that I have to do is to talk actively, and I have learned it from
experiences at MFWI. Compared to working at the home for the elderly, I am
required to talk in every class often. For example, in the spring semester, there
were a few discussions a week and in every discussion, I needed to say
something and had to express myself to other students. Listening to others was
also an important thing, but if there was silence during the discussions,
teachers often told me that I had to give my opinions as quickly as possible.
Additionally, in the reading class I had many opportunities to share
information and opinions about the books I read with other students. After
reading the books, I wrote some compliments and complaints about them and
needed to tell them to teachers and group mates in class. Furthermore, when I
gave a presentation at the leadership conference and in front of a lot of
people I was able to express myself. The people who talked a lot were me and my
partner. Looking back to life at MFWI, in order to improve my communication
skills I talked a lot to others and it led me to be a better speaker.
Since
I found two useful ways to develop my communication skills of listening
carefully and talking positively, I have felt that these abilities are getting
better. Using these strategies from experiences at the home for the elderly and
at MFWI, I have learned how to express myself appropriately depending on time,
place, and occasion. If you want to improve your ability to communicate with as
many people as possible, I think you should practice listening, paying attention,
and talking actively, for communication skills consist of listening and
speaking.