Question

Reflect on a time when you thought your message was being received exactly as you intended, but you later found out that this was not the case. Ask yourself:

What were the consequences of the miscommunication?

How was it resolved?

What do you perceive as the basis for the communication breakdown
(i.e., verbal, nonverbal, cultural, listening)?

How could you have delivered your intended message with greater clarity?

Answer 1

A personal example of when I thought my message was being received exactly as my intended, but later found out that this was not the case was when I tried to encourage my friend to study harder for her exams. My intention was to motivate her by reminding her to study a few times, but my attempts were misinterpreted as me trying to be bossy and controlling. As a result, she began to avoid my calls and for a considerable amount of time, I had no idea why she was doing that.
Later, when I confronted her, she told me her reason for doing so and we were almost immediately able to resolve our differences. However, I was still perplexed as to how my motivations could be misinterpreted in this manner. Perhaps it had more to do with non-verbal communication as my friend later informed me that she found my tone to be condescending at times. I realized later, that the next time I try doing something like this, I will be much more subtle than direct. I will also communicate my message just once and not repeat it several times unless it is asked of.