Strengths and Weaknesses with Communication

This is a picture of me and my grandmother.

For this exercise I interviewed my friend Meaghan who I have known since freshman year in High School. She is one of my closest friends and is always completely honest with me so I knew if someone was going to tell me the truth then it would be her. I also interviewed my grandmother Peggy. I interviewed her because we have a really good relationship but do not always see eye to eye with each other.

My Strengths: My friend Meaghan said that I was very outgoing and not afraid to ask hard questions or afraid of any topic. She also said that I was not afraid to debate a topic with someone and to stick up for my beliefs and then being able to back up my points with actual thoughts. Meaghan also said that I am very well spoken and am usually knowledgeable about something if I bring it up. My grandmother also thought that I was very good about getting a point across. She said that when I have a point to make I don’t talk in circles, this is something my mother does and it drives her nuts. She also commented on my facial expressions saying that I am always sincere when talking with her and I smile a lot.

My Weaknesses: Meaghan said that when talking I can get sidetracked off topic easily and start talking about something else entirely. She also said that sometimes when talking to others I can lack tact and may say things a little too bluntly at times. My grandmother said that when people give me criticism or advice that I do not like or agree with then I can get upset about it or I will ignore what they are saying.

What I should work on: Overall I think that I need to work on taking criticism better. When ever someone gives me criticism about myself as a person I feel like they are being mean or hurtful while in reality they are just trying to give me advice. I should also work on having more tact when speaking to people. This is something I have been working on for years and feel like most of the time I use tact except for when I’m upset or completely disagree with someone. I don’t think I get sidetracked when I talk about the important things, I feel like this is something I only do when talking to my friends, which still doesn’t make it right.

3 Blogs

http://barack-obama-for-prezident.blogspot.com/
I found this site interesting because this person has recorded everything the know about our new President. This is interesting to me because I followed the campaign closely and voted for him as well.


http://alteredcelticgypsy-cathy.blogspot.com/
This is a blog I found and thought it was very interesting. There are lots of pictures that sort of remind me of stamps even though that is not their intention. She explains what all of these pictures are in how they were made or where they came from.


http://www.styrocity.blogspot.com/
This third blog is actually my sister's. It talks all about an art project she did for school last year. She was trying to promote the use of alternative materials or containers for coffee that are better for the environment because styrofoam takes too long to break down. I thought this was a very cool project of hers and she included pictures in her blog. She built this giant model city out of styrofoam cups and was moved all around our house sevral times before ending up in our garage.

Hopes for Vienna

While we are in Vienna I hope that we learn a lot about the culture and get to experience it first hand. I hope that the other students and I will become close and that we all have a great time. Hopefully we will be able to go to most of the museums in Vienna and see the most historical places over there.

My hopes for the faculty while we are there is that they have fun as well. I hope they are able to teach us as much as they know about where we are going. Hopefully they show us everything they are able to and have a great experience.

I am really looking forward to being in another country. I have always wanted to see other parts of the world. I hope I will be able to see us much history as possible while I am over there. I want to experience as much as possible and am really looking forward to living in another country for three months. Hopefully I will grow as a person and learn a lot about myself.

I am nervous about a few things before we go the biggest one being the language. Since break started I have been trying to learn some German. My mom used to live in Germany so she could tell me how to say things properly but I have a very American accent and don’t pick up on other languages easy. I am also nervous about packing which I haven’t started to do yet. I hope I can bring everything I think I’m going to need while still only having two 50 pound bags. I’m also really nervous about flying I have never been on a plane before, but it’s a new experience and I’m all about experiencing new things so it should be fun, I hope.