Family Communication

This last week in Family Relations we learned about family communication. We learned of the importance of it, how it works, some of the consequences that can come about when proper and effective communication is not executed, and techniques to improve family communication. The process of communication includes thoughts and feelings being created, encoded, transferred through some form of media, decoded, and developed into thoughts and feelings in another person. Communication between people, and specifically between family members in this case, is not always necessarily verbal. According to the statistics, non-verbal communication accounts for eighty percent of our daily communication. And even when the communication taking place does contain words, the tone rather than the content of what is spoken makes a stronger impact. Many divorces in our world occur due to lack of or improper communication between spouses. We should take communication very seriously and handle challenging situations with care. A few tips for effective communication include focusing on only the present issue at hand, being honest, open and sincere, listening, refraining from sarcasm, being cautious with word choice, etc. It would be wise to remember a statement made by Brother Williams, "When you make a decision, the impact of how you made the decision is more important than the decision itself." It would also do us good to keep in mind that when we are angry we disqualify ourselves from the presence of the spirit and the revelation, inspiration, and guidance that its company offers. Because of this we can conclude that positive, uplifting communication allows for greater insight and is therefore, far more effective.