Aftermath

Each of us communicates every day. And you know what? We are pretty good at it. If I want an extra piece of toast, I know how to make that known. If any of us are ready to go to bed early, then we are fully capable of making that known as well. The point is: day-in-, day-out, we all communicate our wishes with success with great consistency. As a result, on that level, communication is as straight- forward and easy as most anything we can name. The challenge that comes with it is two-fold: how we communicate what we seek to communicate and the aftermath of whatever "style" we might utilize to communicate our initial message. Let's look at those two points. To begin, it is important to remember that the two are linked. One impacts the other. The "how" of any communication effort is very important. For example, if I communicate that I want that extra toast with a scream or by throwing my plate against the wall while making my request, then without question that is sending multiple signals that go far beyond a simple piece of toast. People around me will no doubt recoil from my outburst. If the person wishing to go to bed early does so by kickng over the coffee table and stormiung out of the room, then what they are communicating to others goes far beyond their wanting to hit the hay. This leads us to the aftermath. How we communicate directly affects how others perceive us and how they feel about us. This influence whether folks want to maintain some type of connectionw with us. Who would want to have breakfast with me if I throw my plate over a piece of extra toast? No one. This points to the notion that when we choose to communicate a message in a particular way, then part of our thinking should include the aftermath. What result do we want beyond the immediate message? How important is that to us? Our answer to those basic questions, ideally, should drive the "how" of our communicating. This is what helps make the act of communication so complex.