Communicating effectively is an extremely important skill to possess. Without communication, we are less efficient at completing tasks or working together to accomplish a common goal. This class has helped me be a better communicator and leader by understanding different social norms in various cultures, understanding nonverbal communication; learning my Intercultural Conflict Style; how to manage conflict by using the S-TLC system as well as I-Statements; recognizing and understanding my conflict style; learning and understanding the powerful effects of apologizing, forgiving and reconciliation; understanding structures of power and recognizing my power style; and finally how to negotiate effectively.

I initially took this class to help me become better at resolving conflicts. What ended up happening is I learned more than just that. Throughout the semester, I have learned not only how to handle conflicts, but how to be a better leader in general. I was even able to see my skills in this area improve in my family life, social life, and professional life. My peers and colleagues noticed a tremendous difference in my overall behavior and the interactions I had with them.

This course also allowed me to practice the skills I learned in a group project. This was a really good learning experience because we had to overcome quite a few obstacles to complete our project. One of the hardest aspects of the group project was finding times to meet with each other. This was especially hard because this class was an online class and our availability times were not synced up at all. One of our group members had to work graveyards and could only meet in the evenings. The other hard aspect of completing this assignment was deciding what to put in our project, and how to format and structure it. At the end of the project, I was very surprised just how well we were able to work together and complete our project given the circumstances. I am very pleased with how it turned out and had a lot of fun working with my group. I learned a lot about project management, problem solving, and working with other’s diverse scheduling and other conflicts.

I am very glad I took this course, I feel that it has given me the skills necessary towards my end career goal. I have already started applying the skills and principles I learned from this course, and I plan to continue implanting those skills and principles in my life and career. I would strongly recommend this course to anyone. Even if you don’t plan on going into a business type profession, it is still important to learn how to interact and communicate with everyone as it builds and creates relationships as well as making you a more efficient worker.