Communication and Conflict Management Reflection

For the final reflection assignment in my Communication and Conflict Management course, we have been asked to identify 3 lessons that stood out to us and held meaning in our lives. The first lesson that stood out to me was from our Module 2 discussion board. In this assignment, we looked at different scenarios and had to think about how they would be viewed if they happened to us versus someone we didn’t like. We looked at examples such as falling asleep in class and cutting someone off on the highway. As this was one of our first assignments in the course, I found that it really started me off on the path of thinking differently. This assignment allowed me to put myself into someone else's shoes which really changed my perspective. 

The second lesson that stood out to me was the Module 6 discussion board. This asked us to use the X-Y-Z method in different scenarios that had been discussed in the notes. For this exercise, I preferred the second option of the method which is: When you do X in this specific situation, I feel Y, what I want instead is Z. This gave a clear example of the expected change rather than just stating a feeling which made it the stronger option to me. I found this one to be important because I ended up using it in later lessons to help out once again. Knowing how to clearly express your feelings like the X-Y-Z method has you do, is incredibly important when put into practice in life. I found that this assignment was able to help me better understand and explain my feelings during difficult situations. 

The third lesson that stood out to me is actually our most recent discussion board in Module 11. The focus of this assignment was to improve upon the given weak apologies to better include all the expectations for a good apology. Some of the qualities of a good apology are acknowledging the harm caused, accepting fault, sincere expression of regret, offering compensation for harm, and assuring it won’t happen again. I found this assignment to be valuable because I had never gotten the opportunity to see what should be included in a good apology before. I believe that this will benefit me in the future, when taking full responsibility for harm I caused and will help me give better apologies. 

The final portion of this reflection is to understand which ideas will be most useful in my professional experience, especially as I am graduating this semester. I found that a lot of the assignments we did had a small focus on conflict within the professional world and that was able to greatly benefit me. I was able to practice crafting ways to address issues with a boss if issues were occurring and how to defend coworkers in bullying situations. The Module 2 assignment will help me in my professional experience to remember that different things can impact people's lives and to give everyone grace. The Module 6 assignment will be very beneficial in my professional experience to know how to identify what I am feeling if issues arise and how to explain and solve these issues with others. Finally, the Module 11 assignment will help if there is ever a scenario where an apology is needed whether in the workplace or in day to day life. Overall, I found this course to have many meaningful lessons that will help me in the future.