Reflection #1- Fernanda Roman

 Communication, Culture & Leadership: What These Presentations Taught Me.

May 2025-Fernanda Roman

More than Just Class Presentation

    There are few times in which you can actually relate directly to the presentations in a class, this was one of them.  The presentation were about Intercultural Communication, Communicating in Groups, and Leadership. This are topics that are not talked about enough, however, they resonate greatly with the life of a student. Every student, even myself, has found themselves having to do group projects in which each of the topics discussed ties directly to the whole experience of working in a team. This post is a reflection about how I learned how to properly connect with people, and how that changes how to work with them.

Culture and Behavior

Understanding the cultural aspects behind conducts.

This lecture made me understand the complex but powerful impact of culture on how we communicate. I understood that cultures influence behavior previously, but I never knew just how deep an impact that was—on everything from eye contact and perception of time to things like gender roles and power distance.

 

    I liked how they emphasized different aspects of cultures to completely understand the diversity of them .  They explained how there are cultures that are short term, which value a more instant reward, while there are long term cultures, that value a slower developed reward. There is also a power distance factor that determines how power is distributed in a group, this for example helps understand the mentality of a person in a working environment, a person might not give feedback to a project that was done by their boss not because they are lazy or not interested in the project but because they might actually come from a high power distance culture in which is common for a boss to make all decisions without consulting with others.

 

        What struck me most? The understanding that communicating effectively across cultures isn't merely about "being polite “it’s being intentional, understanding, and adaptable. You must be open-minded to develop good communication skills.

Creating a "Teamwork" environment

Communicating effectively to work together.

     How many times have you been stuck in a group where you did most of the work? If you are like me, it’s probably more than you can remember.  Well for your knowledge, and mine, you were part of an unhealthy group.

     The presentation started reflecting on the different types of groups, it went from families to working groups. After identifying the groups, it was explained to us that there are some specific characteristics to identify a healthy and unhealthy group. In a healthy group there is a supportive, positive and respectful environment in which everybody works together.  There are some basic problems which are: no communication, lack of accountability, and more. However, the groups work through them with their adhered values. If you have been part of a group where you were stuck with most of the work, sorry to break it to you but it was an unhealthy group. Next will be explaining how to develop healthy group conduct.

     To understand the development of healthy groups, we first must establish the development stages of a group, and the common behavior associated with them. From the “forming stage” to the “adjourning and transforming stage” I was able to relate everything discussed to actual situations I have experienced. I was in a group were at first everyone acted politely, “forming stage”, then as we have to actually start making decisions our perspective started to crush with each other, “storming phase”, so to bring order we started with the “norming stage”, where we set what everybody was going to be doing, at last we passed to “performing” ,as the name describes it, and lastly “adjourning and transforming” which was the last stage in which it was time to say goodbye and recognize everybody’s effort. If every stage is done properly, you can develop a healthy group where work is distributed equally and there is an ambience of teamwork.

     For the next time you are in a group project, now you know how to not be stuck with all the work.

 

What Leadership actually means

What makes a person a leader.

 

    The presentation made me approach the term leader differently. I had previously assumed it was the person who has the ¨biggest tittle¨ the one who makes all the decisions. But now I have come to realize that anybody in a group can lead, in some form or another, depending on the situation.

     When we think about a leader, we often associate it with a specific person. But leadership can be defined as “as a set of communication functions performed by any group member at various times based on their unique strengths and expertise.” If you are like me, it would have never even crossed your mind to relate leadership to this definition. However, it makes total sense. A leader is a person that knows how to guide a team, and the only way you can do that is by effectively communicating the steps and encouraging each other to achieve them.

    I especially enjoyed most the topic of the five leadership styles: autocratic, democratic, laissez-faire, transformational, and servant leadership. I drew to the democratic style personally, I like to work in a group where everybody is part of the decision process, but I could also see where some of the other styles would work depending on the group or project.

    The task, maintenance, and procedural roles sections I believe are crucial . I learned that by simply encouraging others, reminding people of what they need to do, or helping behind the scenes, I've already been leading without realizing it. How many times have you encouraged your colleagues to achieve their goals? Well guess what, you have been a leader too.

My Takeaway

    What made these presentations work wasn’t just the slides or the definitions—it was the real-world relevance. They were practical, thoughtful, and sometimes even funny. And they all connected.

• Intercultural Communication reminded me why empathy matters.
• Group Communication showed me the value of structure and listening.
• Leadership helped me recognize the leader in all of us.

    Finally, this is what I really learned: good communication is not a skill—it's an attitude. An attitude of respect, clarity, flexibility, and openness to evolve with others.