Nonverbal Cues Communication
Through close focus to myself and comments from my friends, I have deciphered numerous nonverbal cues that people observe either while I’m taking or silent. For instance, if I were to engage in a serious discussion, I assume a smiley face, constant head nodding, and persistent eye contact. Most interprets my smile as a gesture of interest on the topic and nodding as conformity to their ideas and suggestions. Unfortunately, their interpretations are incorrect. The smile and persistent eye contact serve as relief from tension and anxiety to emphasize on my contribution. Consistent head-nodding indicates my loss of interest in the topic rather than the apparent assumption of agreeing with the other person.
The nonverbal cues that I employ dramatically influence my mind. The persistent eye contact helps me to critically and deeply evaluate the thoughts of the other person and deliver an idea that best articulate to their personality. That is, it helps me bind with them, consequently easing how I provide my thoughts.
Nonverbal cues such as tone (voice inflection and volume) sometimes conflict with the words said, resulting in instances of misunderstandings (Hall et al.,2019). Recently, I perceived a wrong message different from what was intended. For example, during my last visit to my friend Salsa, I had gone with a tray of eggs as gifts only to realize that she doesn’t take eggs. Prior to the subsequent visit, I informed her, she happily said, “even today, don’t forget to come with eggs as gifts.” The misunderstanding arose from my incorrect inflection on “don’t forget” instead of “even today,” which would remind had reminded me of the last mistake. Due to confusion in the statement, I obtained clarification that I shouldn’t buy eggs.
Reference
Hall, J. A., Horgan, T. G., & Murphy, N. A. (Hall et al.,2019). Nonverbal communication. Annual review of psychology, 70, 271-294.