Jason Martinez #1 Blog

Refreshing my brain on all the presentations we had for interculture communication for a second round made me realize how more enjoyable and informative it was originally. Usually, people tend to clock out after their presentations is over since all the pressure and anxiety is lifted from them. Typically, presentations tend to be boring due to boring slides and awkward pauses however this class is different in many ways due to its online format. Its online format allowed people to have more of a voice and have less awkward pauses since you didn't have to present physically and be scared to look into other people's face, allowing them to enter their own flow when presenting. Personally, I loved working in my group (group one) and enjoyed listening to the other group due to the many relatable topics to everyday life. The presentations weren't simply about memorizing information for a grade, it focused on communication, navigating in a team-based setting and understanding people better, which are all essential skills beyond the classroom. 

During the lead up to the actual presentation for our group, we were all communicating and asking each other for help and actively helping each other out. If something needed to be fixed, it'd get fixed with no issue and be resolved with a quick message. Having support and feedback along the way helped us perfect our presentation further. During the actual presentation, the workload was split evenly in a way that was fair and that allowed everything to smoothly flow. Samuel opened us up for an introduction like how he did for the rest of the groups, providing them a little context on our section of interculture communication. After our presentation was done and I had heard all of my teams' slides, it made me realize how broad interculture communication really is. Before this class I used to think it only meant communicating with people from different countries, but our presentation showed me that it goes deeper than this. Things like time perception, social norms and even how someone directly speaks can vary a lot. It showed how misunderstandings can arise just because people assume everyone communicates the same way.

The next group that presented after ours was group two who had chapter 9 "Communicating In Groups". This presentation was very enjoyable for me since the topic itself is something that every person has to deal with constantly, communicating. Whether it's working in group projects, working in a job or even being a part of different social circles, communicating is basically unavoidable. What made their presentation even better than their topic was how clear and organized their presentation was. Their visuals were simple and effective; it made it easier to follow along without getting confused or lost in too much text.

I loved their breakdown of the nature and types of groups. They explained how families, social groups and support groups in a way that made them feel very real and relatable instead of textbook definitions.  They described the hierarchy of the groups with families being the most important group. It showed how much influence family has on the way we communicate and interacts with other people later in life. The habits, values and even communication style people learn at home carry over into everything else they do in life. After families it was social groups which basically referred to friends and people who you interact with regularly. Everyone has experienced it in some form since social groups are where you learn how to communicate outside of family. Support groups were also interesting because they showed a different side of communication. Instead of just being about hanging out or working together, support groups isn't always about productivity or socializing, it can be about emotional support and helping people get through difficult situations.

Another part that stood out to me was when they spoke about interest groups, service groups and work groups. Interest groups are built around shared hobbies or passion like clubs. Service groups focus on helping people other through things like volunteering. Work groups and teams are probably the most relatable because they directly connect to school group projects. This section made me reflect how different groups serve different purposes, even though they all rely on communication. 

The last group to present was group three who was tasked with chapter 10 on "Group Leadership and Problem Solving". This one felt more focused on how groups actually function when it comes to leadership and decision making. One of the biggest things I took away from it was the difference between formal and informal leadership. Previously I assumed a leader had to be the person officially in charge. However, with this presentation it revealed that leadership can come from people who naturally step up and guide the group even if they don't have a title. 

Group three also spoke about shared leadership, which honestly makes sense. Instead of one person doing everything, different people in the group take on different roles based on their strength and weakness. That idea connected a lot with task roles like givers, seekers and analyzers. Givers contribute ideas, seekers ask questions and gather information and analyzers help evaluate decisions. These roles showed why some groups feel organized while others feel disorganized and chaotic, it usually depends on whether people naturally step into these roles or not.

One of the final takeaways from group 3 was the importance of good meeting leadership. Things like preparing agendas, making sure everyone participates, and keeping the group focused might sound simple but they actually make a massive difference in how productive a group is.

Overall, my takeaways from both group 2 and group 3's presentation is that communication is way more complex than it seems at the surface level. It's not simply talking clearly or sharing ideas, it's about understanding roles, responsibilities and different ways people think. Group two showed me how groups function and what makes them successful or not, while group 3 showed me how leadership and decision making actually guide those groups.