Choose Your Character | The COMMUNICATES Game
Let’s Play COMMUNICATES (Choosing Your Character)
It’s very likely you’ve played a variety of games and sports growing up.
At times you might feel that you are playing a much larger game called ‘The Game of Life’.
In this game of life, you’ve experienced some wins and some losses. Sometimes it was easy, and sometimes you faced some challenging obstacles that you worked hard to overcome.
There were moments you were bored and some moments where you had great adventures that you can now cherish as memories. You might’ve learned and found that playing the game of life is all about trying to have fun, and not to take things too seriously at times.
However, in some games there is a game within a game.
Within a game of life there is a game that I call ‘COMMUNICATES: Becoming A Communication Warrior’ (or COMMUNICATES for short).
In COMMUNICATES there are 12 different components and objectives that you go through.
So, each month I will share each of the components and objectives to becoming a communication warrior.
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Setting up the Game In COMMUNICATES
First, to start any game we need to know the characters.
C: Choose Your Character
When playing a game, you generally choose a character or game piece you want to play. Sometimes the character or game piece is chosen for you.
In this communication game you are the character, and you can choose how you want to play your character.
Sometimes due to the communication situation or the person you are speaking with, the character is chosen for you.
For example, perhaps you have in mind that you would like to be the confident speaker, but due to the conversation topic, situation or who you’re talking to, you have been put in the role of the timid character.
Depending on the communication situation and the other characters you interact with you can choose to be the peacemaker, negotiator, educator, the confident speaker, timid and shy, aggressor, and the list goes on.
And your specific role is chosen for you.
Just like in any game with pieces, there are no good or bad game pieces.
Therefore in the COMMUNICATES game there is no good or bad character.
All the characters are necessary and play an important part in communication. However, if you feel stuck playing a communication character that you don’t want to be, know that you can learn to shift out of that role.
For example, if you are usually shy and timid, feel stuck being shy and timid and would instead like to be a confident speaker, and don’t think you can or know how, know that you can shift out of the shy and timid communicator and be the confident speaker that you wish to be by being open-minded and be willing to have a growth mindset.
The first place to start is to think of a confident speaker you admire and start to mimic various gestures, words, and tonality that the speaker uses.
You are not going to copy the speaker you admire, but you can certainly borrow their gestures, words, and tone making them your own to help build your confidence.
If you’re not good at negotiating and would like to become a better negotiator, then you can follow some people who are good at negotiating or read books about it so you can start to emulate some of the words and actions to make them your own so you can then start becoming a better negotiator.
The point is that some people may have been born being able to speak confidently or be great negotiators, peacemakers or storytellers. Others became better at speaking confidently, negotiating, peacemaking, storytelling, etc. through coaching, practice, following some of the people they admire and borrowing from what they saw and learned.
The Communication Warrior did not happen overnight, but it did happen over time.
Whether you specifically chose the communication character or not, you can choose how you want to portray said character in your communication.
The Objective of the Game
The ‘winning’ objective is that you portray who you want to portray and you’re happy with the outcome.
In other words, if you are in a meeting and you want to portray a confident speaker who speaks up for your opinions, ideas, and confidently shares your thoughts with others in the room without worrying what they think, you can. If you feel you have succeeded in what you wanted to accomplish, then that is a win.
If you held back and wished you might have done some things differently, but overall felt good about it then it’s still a win.
If you totally held back, lost your nerve, and kept your opinions and ideas to yourself even though you wanted to share but were too afraid to, well guess what?
You learned without losing.
I should point out that in the communication game there’s winning and there’s learning (no losing in this game).
Learning points in this example might be why did you hold back? What are your fears? Why do have these fears? What can you do next time? What can you change?
You earn bonus points when you’re bold and step into the authenticity of the character you want to portray in your communication.
This is the Communication Warrior.
In the early part of the objective, you might have been timid and shy and wanted to change so you made a decision to stand up tall and straight, then you started to climb up the mountain by studying and practicing and you finally reached the mountain to become the Communication Warrior. The Communication Warrior communicates authentically their thoughts, feelings, and desires without feeling overwhelmed, overshadowed and overlooked.
You know your character…
Now Go Play and Have Fun Communicating!
If you’re an introverted, sensitive, conflict-phobic person who would love to become and feel like a communication warrior then click below to book your free Communication Breakthrough Session where we will discover 5 obstacles that is stopping your from becoming a communication warrior.
Warm regards,
Grace CW Liu
Communication Navigator
W: GraceSOULutions.com
New Year, New Series – My 2023 Video Series Trailer
Hi, Grace here!
This is an introductory video I’m planning and creating for my 2023 video series. I’ve always felt that life was like a game. With ups and downs, twists and turns and challenges to overcome that will lead you towards your goal or goals. Feels like riding a roller coaster! And communication can feel that way as well.
So, I decided to create a video series for 2023 called COMMUNICATES: A Game For Becoming A Communication Warrior. (Just as a side note, I will be referencing this COMMUNICATES as just COMMUNICATES video series or COMMUNICATES Game, just so that it’s not such a big mouthful.) And so my hope is that you will feel more confident in communicating your thoughts, feelings and desires by viewing communication as a game, rather than as a daunting task that everyone must do.
You’ll have fun and feel like a communication warrior, no matter the situation, or the person you are speaking with. In the COMMUNICATES video series for 2023, there are 12 videos, one for each month, that will focus and talk about each of the components in the communication game. So for example, January will focus and talk about characters, February will be about obstacles, March will be about movements, and so on and so forth. And I will also use the tips that were shared and discussed in the Sensitive Communication Tips video series as the foundation for the communication game. My intention for creating COMMUNICATES the video series for 2023 is that you find it helpful and valuable to help guide you on your journey to become a communication warrior.
Be sure to keep your eyes out for COMMUNICATES: A Game For Becoming A Communication Warrior coming out in January 2023. In the meantime, if you would like to know more about me or if you’re interested in booking a free communication breakthrough session, please visit my website at GraceSOULutions.com that’s GraceSOULutions.com. Until next time, have a happy 2023.
Take care and have fun communicating!
If you are driven to communicate with confidence, have your messages, be heard and understood, and repair any communication breakdown in your personal communication relationship, then you should take a look at my ebook 5 Strategies For Effective Companion Communication! Grab your free copy by signing up below:
Warm regards,
Grace CW Liu
Communication Navigator
W: GraceSOULutions.com
ABOUT GRACE
Grace CW Liu believes there is a solution to every problem including communication and conversation problems. Everyone can find the solution they seek by using the guidance of grace that is in you, with the grace of spiritual support, and Grace –me– as your Communication Navigator and support system.
My passion is to help sensitive, conflict-phobic, and introverted women have effective communication so they feel valued and heard in any conversation.
Through studying and observations, I’ve realized why communication breakdown occurs and the solutions to solving those problems. I’ve presented these solutions so that communicative partners can achieve effective communication!
Deep Dive on Style | Sensitive Communication Tips
Hi there, this is Grace, and welcome to Sensitive Communication Tips.
So in the previous video, I went through the acronym COMMUNICATES. So all the necessary components in the word communicates what each of those letters represent in the word communicates all the components that is necessary to have an effortless and effective communication. So be sure to check that out.
All right, now we’re going to do a Deep Dive on the four communication styles. And again, the four communication styles are auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and auditory digital. So my question to you is, do you know your communication style?
So I’m going to just choose one. So for example, let’s say you are an auditory communicator. And so you might use words such as hear, listen, or the phrase “I hear you, I’m listening to what you’re saying.” Now, if you’re speaking to another auditory person– communicator– you’re going to use the same words, so there’s not going to be any feeling of disconnect. However, what if you are speaking to a visual or a kinesthetic or auditory digital communicator? Now you’re going to maybe feel there’s some disconnect, because you are not using the words that an visual, kinesthetic, or auditory digital communicator might use.
So I like to use this analogy: Here in America, we all speak English. So it’s kind of like we’re all say, auditory communicators in this case, because we’re all using the same words, the same language, no problem. Now, let’s say you go to visit a foreign country, say Spain, France, Germany, wherever it may be. Now they speak a different language. So think of say, the Spanish are the visuals. The French are the kinesthetic, and the Germans are the auditory digital. So if you were going to visit those countries, it would be easier for you to get around, if you spoke of some of the language of those native speakers. So if you’re going to visit Spain, it will be easier for you to get around if you spoke Spanish. If you went to visit France, it’ll be easier for you to get around if you spoke French. And if you visit Germany, it might be easier for you to get around if you spoke German. Now, of course, they might all speak English, however, you might have more of a connection. And it might be a little bit easier for you to get around if you happen to know the country’s native language.
And is the same way with the visuals and the kinesthetic and the auditory digital. If you use the words of what the visual would use– So let’s say, you know, if you use the visuals, vocabulary, such as “Oh, I imagine that this is what you’re speaking about,”or “I can see your point of view,” then you’re going to have more of a connection there rather than a disconnect. And likewise, with the kinesthetic you know, you might, even you as an auditory communicator tend to use words like hear and listen. But if you’re speaking to someone who is more of a kinesthetic communicator, then you might want to change your words to “oh, I sense that this is what you’re telling me” or “I feel like this is what all you’re trying to get at.” And then with the auditory digital, you might use words such as “I think you’re correct on this,” or “let’s analyze the data then.” So by using the words or the phrases of the other communicators that you’re talking to, now you’re going to create more of a connection, rather than a disconnect. And it’s also important, likewise, the people that you communicate with, if they happen to know your communication style, so that way they are using the words that you tend to use. So again, we’re trying to create more of a connection, rather than having that disconnection.
So knowing your communication style, and the people that you’re speaking with, their communication style, is going to help to create more of that effective and effortless communication in your personal communication.
So I hope you found the four communication styles to be helpful and how you can figure out your communication styles as well as the person you’re communicating with, so you have more of that connection. And if you would like to know more about how you can have that effortless and effective communication, then please visit my website GraceSOULutions.com that’s GraceSOULutions.com to see how you can book a free communication breakthrough session with me.
Thank you for being here. Take care. Bye for now!
Style | Sensitive Communication Tips
Hi there, this is Grace, and welcome to Sensitive Communication Tips.
So before I jump into today’s topic, I want to do a quick review of all the letters in the word COMMUNICATES.
So I use the acronym COMMUNICATES, and took apart each of the letters to represent what is needed– all the components that is needed to have an effective communication. So let’s start with the letter C, and the word communicates.
The letter C stands for confidence. The letter O stands for opinion, the first M in the word communicates, stands for messages, and in this case, hidden messages. The second M in the word communicates, stands for monitor feelings. The letter U stands for understanding, and in this case, uncover misunderstanding. The letter N in the word communicates stands for nurture feelings. The letter I stands for ideas. The letter C in the word communicates stands for cherish relationship. The letter A stands for attention. The letter T stands for tone of voice. The letter E in the word communicates stands for express yourself. And in this case, express yourself in nonverbal communication. And the letter S in the word communicates stands for style.
So usually when we think about style, we’re thinking about fashion, right? Like what do people usually like to wear such as business casual, Boho, jeans and T shirt. But there’s also styles to communication.
Now there are four very common styles of communication, there might be more. So feel free to do your research. However, of the four common basic communication styles are the auditory, visual, kinesthetic and auditory digital.
So auditory communicators tend to hear the words so they might just use words such as hear and listen, where the visual communicator tends to maybe see images. So as you’re talking to a visual communicator, they might start to see images. So they tend to use words such as see picture and image. The kinesthetic is all about touch and feel. So they are going to use words such as touch, feel, and sense. And then the auditory digital tends to be the thinkers. So they will tend to use words such as think, logic, analyze. So those are the four common communication styles, again, auditory visual, kinesthetic, and auditory digital.
And the next video we’re going to do a deep dive of now what are you going to do now that you know these communication styles. So I’ll go more into that in the next video.
So I hope you found this to be helpful. If you would like to create more of an effective and effortless communication in your personal communication, then please visit my website. GraceSOULutions.com. That’s GRACESOULUTIONS.com to see how you can book a free communication session with me. Thank you for being here. I look forward to seeing you here again next time.
Take care, bye for now!
GraceSOULutions COMMUNICATES… STYLE of Communication
Do you know your style of communication?
What is your preferred style of communication?
What is the style of communication of the person or people you communicate with?
Are you able to communicate with people with all different communication styles or do you have difficulty with communicating with people with certain communication styles? Why or why not?
Usually when we talk about style we generally think about clothes.
There are numerous different styles of clothing and generally we tend to pick the styles that goes with our personality or make us feel most comfortable.
There are also communication styles and you’re likely to lean towards a communication style that fits your personality and one that you’re most comfortable with.
Generally speaking, there are four types of communication styles.
There is the auditory, visual, kinesthetic and auditory digital.
The auditory uses words such as listen and hear.
The visual uses words such as see and picture.
The kinesthetic uses words such as touch and feel.
The auditory digital uses words such as think and analyze.
Depending upon your background, culture, your communication teachers (parents, grandparents, family), and so forth there are other factors that may also potentially influence your communication style.
There are too many factors to include in this blog article that might create greater confusion.
So, for now we’re just going to focus on the four communication styles.
Why is it important to know the four communication styles?
Sometimes by using the same words in a communication style as the person you are speaking with may help to establish a better rapport and connection.
By speaking the same words and using the same communication style you might feel like you and the other person are speaking the same language rather than speaking a different language.
By speaking the same language or in this case communication style you can also help reduce or eliminate communication breakdown.
Wouldn’t you like to feel more connected with the person if the person spoke the same words or language as you did rather than his or her own words or language?
Here are four styles of communication:
Style #1 Auditory
Prefers to listen and likes to use words such as hear and listen in communication.
Style #2 Visual
Prefers to read or see images and likes to use words such as see and picture in communication.
Style #3 Kinesthetic
Prefers physical movements and likes to use words such as touch and feel in communication.
Style #4 Auditory Digital
Prefers logic and likes to use words such as think and analyze in communication.
The next time you are in a communication situation, and you want to know the communication style of the person you are communicating with, just remember AVKA .
Auditory
Visual
Kinesthetic
Auditory Digital
If you are driven to communicate with confidence, have your messages, be heard and understood, and repair any communication breakdown in your personal communication relationship, then you should take a look at my ebook 5 Strategies For Effective Companion Communication! Grab your free copy by signing up below:
Warm regards,
Grace CW Liu
Communication Navigator
W: GraceSOULutions.com
ABOUT GRACE
Grace CW Liu believes there is a solution to every problem including communication and conversation problems. Everyone can find the solution they seek by using the guidance of grace that is in you, with the grace of spiritual support, and Grace –me– as your Communication Navigator and support system.
My passion is to help sensitive, conflict-phobic, and introverted women have effective communication so they feel valued and heard in any conversation.
Through studying and observations, I’ve realized why communication breakdown occurs and the solutions to solving those problems. I’ve presented these solutions so that communicative partners can achieve effective communication!
Deep Dive on Expressing Yourself | Sensitive Communication Tips
Hi there, this is Grace, and welcome to Sensitive Communication Tips.
So today we’re going to do a Deep Dive on Expressing Yourself. And again, expressing yourself. And this case is about nonverbal communication. And with nonverbal communication, we’re talking about facial expression, and body language.
So facial expression is all about the face. So the common ones are when we see someone smile, or when you’re smiling, usually it means that you’re happy, or you’re just in a pleasant mood. When you see someone frowning, or when you’re frowning, it could be either that you’re sad, or perhaps you’re really angry, they’re really scrunching up the face. And then you know, the eyes, right, when your like, eyes are popped out, like if you’re in a surprise. So those are some of the common ones. There are many different facial expressions that one can show and as well as the body language.
And with the body language, it’s all about the hands, the tension of the muscles from the neck, down. It’s about the body positioning, posture, as well as feet positioning. And because I’m on video, you can only see me pretty much from chest up. So you really can’t see how my feet is planted or and what direction they are facing. But usually, if you know you’re talking to someone and their feet or one of their foot is planted, facing the door, usually now might be a subtle hint that that person wants to start walking away from that conversation. You might see some people in a lot of cases, crossing their arms or putting their hands or arms in front of their body. So almost like they’re protecting themselves. So it’s like a wall. And then you have some people who like to talk with their hands. And in this case, someone like me, who likes to talk with their hands, especially maybe for emphasis, or for– to help to get the thoughts flowing, of what they want to talk about. And again, with hand gestures, we need to be careful because a hand gesture might be okay for one country. But it might have a different meaning in a different country.
So just be aware of that as well as like eye contact. Again, the facial part and sometimes the subtlety is that sometimes some people might look off to the side, depending upon which side it could either be that they’re trying to make up a story. Or they’re trying to recall, some memory to share. And I know there’s a lot of experts out there all about body language that’s all they really do is they study all these different body language to understand these little subtleties of the shifting of the eye or the shifting of the body. So, I’m only just giving a very brief overview of the different possibilities.
However, if you would like to know more about body language, I suggest that you go and do some research on your own, look at some YouTube videos or read on some books because there’s a lot of components to the body language. But generally we can see the person’s expression just based on an overall general vibe. And that would be just the facial expression itself, you know, a smile or frown. As well as the body of you know, usually we can understand that in general. Also might cross their arm, they’re in defense or putting up a wall. These type of general body language we might, understanding, use our selves when we’re talking to someone. However, again, if you truly want to understand about how the person is reacting or responding to you in a conversation, and you want to really understand it, by looking at the subtleties, then I suggest you do more research because there’s a lot out there and a lot of components, a lot of subtle gestures that you might miss unless you really look at it carefully and closely.
So I hope you found this to be helpful. Well, if you would like to know more about how you can have more of a effective and effortless communication in your own personal communication, then please visit my website GraceSOULutions.com that’s GRACESOULUTIONS.com to see how you can book a FREE communication session with me. I look forward to seeing you here again next time.
Take care. Bye for now!
Express Yourself | Sensitive Communication Tips
Hi there, this is Grace and welcome to Sensitive Communication Tips. So today we’re going to talk about Express Yourself. Now in communication, it’s not just about the words or, you know, the tone of voice, and all that. Part of communication is also nonverbal communication. And so with nonverbal communication, how one can express themselves is through Facial Expression, and Body Language. So those are two ways that one can express themselves through nonverbal communication that, again, is one Facial Expression, and two Body Language. Of course, there’s other ways to express yourselves, you know, through dance, music, art, whatever it may be on the creative side. However, with communication, we’re talking about nonverbal communication, and that would be using facial expression and body language to express yourself. So that’s a quick short overview of expressing yourself through nonverbal communication. On the next video, I’m going to do more of a deep dive on expressing yourself through nonverbal communication. So I hope you found this to be helpful. And I look forward to seeing here again next time when I do more of a deep dive. If you would like to know more about how you can work with me to create a more effective and effortless communication in your personal communication, then visit my website, GraceSOULutions.com. That’s GraceSOULutions.com to see how you can book a FREE communication breakthrough session with me. Thank you for being here. I look forward to seeing you here again next time. Take care. Bye for now!
GraceSOULutions Communicates… EXPRESS Yourself
What ways do you express yourself?
What does your body language say about your communication in the presence of others?
How aware are you when it comes to reading another person’s facial expression and body language in your communication?
Communication isn’t all about words and feelings, there’s another part: facial expression and body language.
The nonverbal part of communication is just as important.
You might say one thing, but your facial expression and body language can show the other person that you mean something else.
You might lie and tell the person you are happy to see them, but your body language might say something completely different. Especially if your body and feet are moving away from them.
You might have a smile on your face because you are in a crowd with other people, but under that smile of yours you might be doing something like telling your husband off.
I have done this so many times that no one can tell that I am mad at my husband unless they see my eyes because I haven’t quite learned how not to glare when I’m upset with him.
What do you do when you’re upset with someone and don’t want others to know?
You might be one of those people that crosses your arms. I certainly do and I have come to learn that when I do that it generally means I am not comfortable, especially in a room of strangers.
What about you? Why do you cross your arms?
I have learned that when I am frustrated or overwhelmed my face goes flat, eyes glaze over, and I have mentally checked out.
When I see my mom furrows her eyebrows that generally means that she is frustrated and overwhelmed. I can generally tell how frustrated and overwhelmed she is feeling by how hard she furrows her eyebrows.
What about you? What facial expression do you have when you are frustrated or overwhelmed?
Here are two nonverbal expressions that might give away how you feel without you realizing it:
Nonverbal #1 Facial expression
Your face sometimes says it all.
Nonverbal #2 Body language
Your body language may communicate how you really feel.
The next time you are in a communication situation, and you want to express yourself or understand the nonverbal communication with someone you are communicating with, just remember to watch face and body.
Nonverbal #1 Facial expression
Nonverbal #2 Body language
If you are driven to communicate with confidence, have your messages, be heard and understood, and repair any communication breakdown in your personal communication relationship, then you should take a look at my ebook 5 Strategies For Effective Companion Communication! Grab your free copy by signing up below:
Warm regards,
Grace CW Liu
Communication Navigator
W: GraceSOULutions.com
ABOUT GRACE
Grace CW Liu believes there is a solution to every problem including communication and conversation problems. Everyone can find the solution they seek by using the guidance of grace that is in you, with the grace of spiritual support, and Grace –me– as your Communication Navigator and support system.
My passion is to help sensitive, conflict-phobic, and introverted women have effective communication so they feel valued and heard in any conversation.
Through studying and observations, I’ve realized why communication breakdown occurs and the solutions to solving those problems. I’ve presented these solutions so that communicative partners can achieve effective communication!