Error

One of my first jobs was at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. I worked in a fast food restaurant place called “Board Wok”. During one of my shifts a huge rush came in and after that rush calmed I came up with this creative idea. The idea was instead of scooping rice into a bowl when the order arrived I would prepare the bowls with rice and leave in the cooker. When the rush came in I would have one less thing to do. This was creative because I took a novel idea and acted upon it. I could have kept with the method that I was taught thus not being creative. This fit quite perfectly to the chapter about creativity. I discovered an issue that I believe my new inventive idea could solve and that is exactly what happened. Funny thing is the bowls were made of Styrofoam so if I left the bowl in the rice cooker/warmer for too long it would melt. Trial and error.

Media Richness Theory

The concept that is very intriguing that we have not already discussed this week is Media Richness theory. I think that this topic is very interesting because this theory provides the framework for analyzing what forms of Communication processes are more effective in certain areas. In order to get a double-loop understanding of this topic one also has to know about learner media. Learner media is the title that is given to all media forms that do not carry all types of information simultaneously. Some popular forms of learner media are text only chats and videoconferencing. Media richness theory is best when used as a tool to determine what forms of media are best in conveyance of complex messages. Messages are complex when people talk about a range topics usually involving emotional feelings and communication that might be better understood with eye contact and verbal cues. Synchronous communication occurs when visual, verbal, or non-verbal stimulation happens at the same time and would not be a form of learner media.

anonymity, group size, and proximity influence participation in CMC groups. The book states that in CMC groups members feel more anonymity towards participation (Harris, 261). This is because when you say something you do not have to think, what are my group members going to think of me now, am I going to step on any toes? Low status member contribute more often as well. This is interesting to me because how does one get to be a low status member? Most likely because they interpret their position relative to other members, if you are in a F2F group I see this happening more often than in a CMC group with people that have never actually seen

your face. As we already know, group size is helpful is the problem solving arena with a diverse range of perspectives. Groups in CMC participate in a less arguementational manner but also take longer to come to agreements than in F2F groups. proximity can influence the CMC groups because when people come from greater distance they can have less in common.

CMC vs. F2F

            There are many ways that Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) differs from Face to Face Communication (F2F). First, let’s discuss non-verbal communication and how different communication mediums changes the way in which communicators read non-verbal communication. Examples of CMC can be text-chat, video-conferencing, and also youtube and facebook. Any time that a person is using a text only chat their communication process is being hindered. Joking and sarcasm can almost be completely thrown out and not be used because it is hard to tell on text only CMC what one is really trying to convey. During a F2F conversation non-verbal cues can assist in the recognizing of sarcasm and joking. In F2F communication a person can easily have feelings of reclusiveness in their communication. This can occur because of other members’ responses to the individual. There are CMC devices that can essentially free a person to contribute more to a group and feel positive about their openness. Secondlife is a place where one might have an easier time being more open participating to a group.

Active Listening

The concept that I thought was more important that we have not already discussed is that of active listening. Active listening occurs when one is present in the conversation, overcomes all internal and external noises and responds to the person that is in the conversation. I try to tell myself to, “be present” when I have speak with guests at my bar and I have what seems like a million other thing racing through my head. When I am not practicing active listening I tend to forget what I was just told and it looks like I am a scrub or unprofessional. Some of the barriers to active listening are pretty ridiculous. Lack of interest and faking attention just seem like excuse and not barriers. If one actually attempts at active listening these should be overcome and if active listening with the person means anything to you than you should be interested. Barriers that to me are reasonable are noise and distracting delivery.

Hearing/Sensing the Message

The last time I had selective attention was probably a very long time ago. Or I just cannot recall because something came up more important. My girlfriend said I had selective attention ten minutes ago when SDSU was playing UCONN and she was trying to ask me for a ride and I said yes even though I do not want to drive across town, I was just rooting for SDSU and they lost today. So did I because I agreed to something I did not want to do. I think this occurred because I was more in tuned with the game, I set aside time to watch and she could not wait for a commercial to ask. The way to fix the issue in my story is that she could have waited until I was not fully enthralled with the game. In other situations, the way to overcome this is to be present in the conversation by practicing active listening.

It's Noisey in Here!

The most recent situation that I found listening difficult was earlier today at my work. I asked one of my guests if they needed any change, while holding their tab. The person’s response was no, so I went on with my business. What ended up occurring is the person sat there for about ten more minutes awkwardly then asked if he could get the receipt because he said he paid with a twenty, I immediately knew what the issue was and I had to figure out how much change he needed. One of the problems is in the first phase with sensing or hearing the message. Either I did not ask the question or asked it not clear enough. Noise could have been the issue. There was external noise coming from our speakers that could have been too loud for either of us to make the right decision on what the other was saying. It could have been overcome by me being clearer with my questions and not allowing external noises to interfere, if they are avoidable.