Communication and Family Counsels

Many people think they are good at communicating effectively but in reality, we are all terrible at it. Communicating is not just an exchange of word between people. It includes the nonverbal actions, the tone of your voice and of course what is being said. Because, there are so many elements of communication it makes it difficult to relay what you really want to say and really mean. The other reason there is miscommunication is because there are six steps in which thoughts are communicated to another person. This leaves room for lots of mistakes to take place. The sender has a thought or a feeling which is then encoded. While encoding it the sender decides what medium they will use to send the thought (words used, nonverbal, tone, in person, though text ect.). Once it is passed through the medium there can be some static, which are distractions, experiences or the environment that can influence the meaning of the thought. The message must be decoded by the receiver and then acted upon. To ensure that the receiver understands correctly they should relay their interpretation of the thought back to the sender in the same matter. This will help to eliminate hard feelings from miscommunication. Another way to eliminate miscommunication is by being transparent with the person you are speaking to. Do not have a hidden agenda with in your conversation, be straight forward and look for the good in the other person. This will help to strengthen communication making you a better family member, coworker and friend.  

I feel that the communication that is most misunderstood is the way we try and correct behaviors or actions. It is important to scold or correct a person with kindness. This correction should be done at an appropriate time when the person receiving the correction can handle it and make changes. After the correction is discussed there should be love shown by the person doing the correcting. If these steps are taken and there is transparency within the conversation, then there is a better chance of not misunderstanding one another. Ephesians 4:26-27, 29-32 explains clearly the need for communication with in a marriage. Paul explains here that there should be no anger toward one another. It is interesting because science has found that 1/3 of the brain that is responsible for reasoning and communication shuts of when a person is anger, this means we do things we normally wouldn’t do if we were not angry. Paul also teaches that there should be no corrupt communication within a relationship. Some forms of corrupt communication are but not limited to, gossip, passive aggressive behavior, profanity, sarcasm and aggression. He ends by teaching that our communication needs to be with the purpose of uplifting others.

I would like to end by talking about the importance of family counsels. Everyday there are important decisions to be made within the family. It is even more important that every member has the opportunity to voice their opinion on the matter. The purpose of a family counsel is to set aside a specific time and place where the family will sit down to discuss the decisions that need to be made. The whole family should know before had what will be discussed so that they can ponder and gather their feelings on the topic before the counsel. The family should then come together a couple of minutes before the meeting to talk about how the day is going and show love toward one another. The meeting should make each member feel their opinion matters.

Family Counsel outline

1. Start with a prayer to invite the spirit and to do Heavenly Father will
2. Discuss the topic to consensus
• Not until someone compromises but to the agreement that it is what Heavenly Father would want.
3. Each Person has a specific opportunity to speak
4. Close with a prayer to dedicate what was discussed to the Lord
5. Share a treat and enjoy some time as a family.  

By holding regular family counsels it will be easier to make important decisions together. They will also strengthen family bond because everyone will feel comfortable with the decisions that were made and like their opinion matters to the rest of the family.