When I was given this assignment, I felt joy. This gave me an opportunity to exercise my communication skills with someone that I am not accustomed to spending time with.
I decided to complete the assignment by going to dinner by myself. As I walked into the upstairs section of Kutztown University’s South Dining Hall, I saw a girl that was eating by herself. I walked towards her timidly and said hello my name is Brandon. She told me her name was Isha. I asked her was she sitting with anyone? She said no, so I politely asked might I eat with you? She graciously said yes, so I proceeded to get my food and sit with her. I have never seen her on campus so I asked her was she a freshman or a transfer? She said that she was a freshman and asked what year am I? I told her that I am a junior. I noticed that she spoke with an accent and I asked her what is your ethnicity? She said she is Dominican and that she lived there for most of her life. She told me that she moved to Philadelphia when she was 10 years old. I told her that I currently live in Philadelphia as well. I asked her, what is your major? She told me anthropology. I told her I was majoring in Speech Communication with a minor in Electronic Media. As the conversation continued I learned that we are both family orientated and are the same zodiac sign. Goffman would have said that Isha saw my front stage behavior. He would have said that by us meeting face to face, she did not see my true self. He would have also said the same thing about her. Since I was not using my cell phone during our conversation, Isha seemed more interested in the conversation because she believed that I was genuinely interested in her.
I was nervous in the beginning of the conversation but the nerves quickly went away during the conversation. Good communication skills are essential do the human beings existence and should not be taken for granted. This assignment was a well-needed experience
