I am an introvert and I usually will not divulge too much of myself unless a person asks.This leads me to have some challenges in communicating with other people as they often feel that I am building a wall around myself and it is hard to feel close to me.This is especially so when meeting strangers for the first time, I do feel awkward and would keep silent.It used to be a big problem during my secondary school days. However, I have since tried to be more courageous and be the one who engages in the first conversation to overcome the problem.
However, if I feel the person is someone who I can trust and relate to, I will be super talkative and always initiate conversation and I treat my friend with sincerity and will help in whatever way I can. I will give my honest opinion even though I know they will not be happy to listen to it.
My strength in communication is that I am tactful when giving feedback and this trait works well in giving comments that are not nice as I will approach in a roundabout way so that the person will not feel so hurt and embarrassed as sometimes being too direct can harm relationships. I am also an active listener and I usually remember what they had said.It is maybe why a lot of my friends come to me when they have concerns and need just someone to listen to. One instance is when I have to decline helping some colleague as I was also busy with my own work, so I said in a roundabout way that I cannot give you a definite answer as I still have yet to finish my work, but it is highy that I cannot finish the work by today etc…
Blogs commented:
Meiying
Rati
Jiasheng
daptan 
That’s a great strength to possess, Daphne!
How do you typically deal with the awkward silence when you meet someone new?
Could you let me know of certain ideas as to how to initiate a conversation as i struggle with that.
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Hi Rati, a good ice breaker would be to ask which school the person is from and their course to deduce their interest so the contents of your next question is interesting! If both of you are from the same school, there surely will have some connection!! It will be good to try it^^
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For one to initiate a conversation with a stranger definitely require courage. Imagine having to sit beside someone who is exactly like you that remained silence towards a stranger, wouldn’t the awkwardness be unbearable? I believe learning to break the ice by making short chat is a good method to ease the tension and also understand him/her a little better.
A combination of tactfulness and a good listening ears makes you a good talking buddy! If you work on your introvert side, you would be able to give a helping hand to someone in the public (i.e crying student,etc). I sincerely believe that everyone needs a friend like you!
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Hi JS, I also feel that in a circle of friends, there bound to be clash of personalities so we will need someone who is observant and is tactful to remind others of what they are not aware:)
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Hi Daphne,
The strength that you have is really good!.
In trying to start a conversation with a stranger, I do believe there will be a need to look at the environment of the surrounding. If it is an informal meeting, like example a party, I do believe that it is to just casually say hi and talk about random thing. Maybe you and the stranger can start playing games on your phone to lighten the mood up! I do believe that opening up takes time but overall, playing games with people will help to improve your communication with people!
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Hi Meiying, thats defintely a good way to become close with stranger as playing game will naturally make people feel bonded and no words exchange is needed. People who are bad with words can defintely find it to be a good method!
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Thank you, Daphne, for this initial post. You clearly explain a strength and weakness, as prescribed by the task. I really appreciate your honesty and self disclosure. As for the weakness, being shy is not a fault, of course, and “coming out of one’s shell” is something that a university education usually helps a person with. You seem bolder now, if our classroom is any indicator.
As for your strength, “tact” is often underplayed as a useful trait, but as you have found, it is highly sought after when people look for a friend. Good for you!
What might make this post more substantial is if you can connect your experiences / traits to what we have been discussing in class and reading about.
Here are a few more comments related to language use:
1) unless the person asks >>> unless a person asks
2) This leads to me to have some challenges in communicating with other people as people felt that I am building a wall around myself and it is hard to feel close to me. >>>
This leads me to have some challenges in communicating with other people as they often feel that I am building a wall around myself and it is hard to feel close to me.
3) It used to be a big problem during my secondary school days however I have since tried to be more courageous and try to be the one who engage the first conversation to overcome the problem. (run on sentence) >>>
It used to be a big problem during my secondary school days. However, I have since tried to be more courageous and be the one who engages in the first conversation to overcome the problem.
See https://owl.english.purdue.edu/exercises/5/26/5 for more info on run on sentences…
4) …even though I know they will not be happy to listen to. >>>
even though I know they will not be happy to listen to it.
5) I am also an active listener and I usually remembered what they had said. >>>
I am also an active listener and I usually remember what they had said. (verb tense error)
6) Its maybe why a lot of my friend would always goes to me when they have concerns and need just someone to listen to. >>>
It is maybe why a lot of my friends come to me when they have concerns and need just someone to listen to.
I appreciate your effort!
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Hi Brad, I have edited the post to remove all the run in sentences problems. The reason why I did not include any example is because of the word limit of 250. Like you have said,I also feels that being shy is a nature and you cannot help but to embrace it. The only way to overcome this problem is to become bolder. I”m very sorry that I took so long to edit and reply as I think this is the first time that we could go back and edit our assignments so we sort of forgot about that this module is about communication and went on to focus on outstanding tasks.
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Thank you for the explanation! Better late than never! Now could you just write “edited” on the post?
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Also, Daphne, could you disable the moderation function on your blog, pls?
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