610 wk5 db1 res1

Respond to… 

I believe that nonverbal feedback has the capacity of giving a more powerful message than verbal. In face to face communication, body language gives away how someone is feeling and possibly what they may be thinking. In written communication, we create emphasis by using bolded words, underlining, italicizing, or using all capital letters.
I am guilty of giving negative nonverbal feedback when I don’t mean to. Once during a performance review as I was listening to my supervisor, I did not look at them. They asked me a few times during the review if I was following along or agreed with what was being said. I had to assure them that the best way for me to listen was to not directly look at the speaker. I remember how they told me that it seemed rude of me. Over time and after many conversations of how I listen, they learned that I may not be looking at them, but I would give away other cues such as tilting my head that showed I was being attentive. I also had to learn to give some verbal and nonverbal feedback such as nodding my head and saying things like “okay” and “alright” to them know I was listening. I understand the nonverbal feedback other people give me, however, the feedback I give don’t really fall in line with American nonverbal norms and I have to keep this in mind because there are many times where my body language and nonverbal cues are misinterpreted. This has resulted in my having to explain myself a little more than necessary.