We all know that in any type of
relationship, communication is key; we express ourselves through verbal and
non-verbal communication. When there is
a misunderstanding – or miscommunication – it can lead to confusion, hurt
feelings or worse, a break in the friendship.
I recently had an experience
where something I said was not understood the way I
intended, and thus, I had to clarify. I
was puzzled about how the other person took my words, but it made me look at
how I communicate. This experience also
made me think about the many daily interactions we have with our friends, and
how easy it is to miscommunicate.
Think about it – someone takes
what you say, and perceives it as totally opposite from what you meant. Both of you then leave the conversation
with two separate understandings. What
we say, how we say it, and how it is perceived by the other person are all
things we’re not always aware of when talking with our best friend. We become so comfortable with each other that
we forget this happens – plus, our best friend should know what we meant,
right?! Not always. Thus, when there is miscommunication or a misunderstanding, we’re
reminded how easy it is for these things to happen.
Sometimes there are certain
situations in which we’re too timid to clarify – maybe we’re just getting to
know someone and fear being seen as “stupid” or we’re afraid to clarify because
we feel we should know what our
friend is talking about. Again, that
word: Fear (which I discuss in the book).
Have you experienced this with a
friend? Which role did you play in the
miscommunication/misunderstanding? Was it resolved? If so, how?
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