Post Lesson 1 Work

Main Post: President Monson's talk on how to communicate effectively. 

President Monson took a great deal of time and energy to present in the topic of communication because he wanted to make sure that he conveyed what he and the Lord felt were necessary messages. Both time and communication are very valuable commodities that are needed to survive mortality, but they are two of the most troublesome things to man simply because they are not always used in an effective manner. It may simply be a matter of not knowing how to communicate effectively and that might be why conflict happens, so instead of continuing to foster conflict, people need to learn how to communicate effectively in order to prevent or stop an active conflict from growing. There are many types of communication and not all of the types are always used properly simply because people don't know how to use them. Many academic and non-academic courses are available to teach people how to communicate properly, but people often fear learning new things because it means that they will need to step out of their comfort zone and use a little faith. Faith is not always an easy thing to exercise. 

 

As far as writing goes, it is a very expressive type of communication and great detail can be used to make a point, but at the same time, one has to know what points are pertinent to include in writing and what points will prove ineffective to the written word. Even if people are shaky with their verbal communication, they can still express themselves through writing and communicate effectively using that medium so long as they understand the finer points of writing. If one does not understand how to write, it is very possible to learn as long as one is willing to take the time and energy to learn. President Monson is good at both verbal and written communication not only because he understands the finer points of both communication mediums and practices them, he also continually works to have the Spirit with him and all things are possible through the Spirit of God even if we do not see it as being possible. The Spirit of God has the ability to help us be strong even in our weaknesses.

 

Knowing about proper communication helps us to have the confidence to use it to not only get to know others around us, but to also foster a sense of unity with others by creating open relationships. Creating such unity is a gesture of love and charity is the pure love of Christ put into action. When we have enough confidence in ourselves to use communication to build unity with others, positive feelings such as friendship and love eventually develop and when we are harboring and expressing love, that invites the Spirit of God to be with us. When we have the Spirit of God with us, we are more likely to receive personal revelation and when we receive revelation, we need to record it either on paper so we can reflect upon what we are taught or we need to record it in our hearts. Writing down things that we are taught through God's Spirit tells God that we are listening to what he has to tell us and that we are open to future revelations. Even if we never share what we write with anyone else when it comes to revelation, we need to write our personal revelations down so we can show God that we have heard him and actually care about what He has to tell us. When we actively show God that we care about what He has to say, He will often give us more revelation. We keep the Spirit with us by recording revelation and showing God that we care about learning as much as He cares about teaching us.

Reply # 1: When you look at another writer's work and then take away all the descriptive terms and simplify things, it makes what might be a compelling passage seem rather boring. Detail is what illuminates a plain passage and it is what attracts readers, as readers often enjoy reading detailed writing because it allows them to create an image of what they are reading in their minds and allows to sort of be part of what they are reading as if they were there. The idea of 'living through reading' is why people often choose to read books, as it will give them vicarious experiences that they might never have outside of reading. Reading seems to allow people to forget the barriers they have in life. Reading allows people to live out fantasies in their minds.

Reply # 2: We have to communicate in order to let others know what we want or need, as people are generally not mind-readers and cannot be of help to another if they don't know their needs. Even if another's verbal communication is not easy to understand or non-existent, there is a beauty and saving grace in being able to use writing or signals to make needs or wants known. If our actions are clear enough to convey a point, maybe words are not always necessary. There were no words to describe the Atonement, yet the purpose of the Atonement was clearly communicated through Christ's actions. Christ so willingly put Himself through such agony and didn't save Himself from it despite knowing how to and having the power to stop his suffering whenever He wanted to, which is what we read in the scriptures. Words are often just words and it takes showing how we feel or what we mean in order to appear legitimate in our communication.