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Heidi Brandt
Reflective Essay Assignment
Introduction to Communication
Section #81
Dr. Siddens

In the future, I would like to do something that will have a lasting impression on people.
I want to have a career where I can be intentional and relational with people and impact them for
the better.
Growing up, I always wanted to be a teacher. I thought that that was the best way for me
to have an impact on peoples' lives. After my first year at the University of Northern Iowa, I
learned that teaching wasn't for me. I changed my major to Communications at the beginning of
my sophomore year. My hope is that, through studying Communications, I'll become, in general,
a better communicator. By becoming a better communicator, I hope to pursue a career that helps
me have an impact on peoples' lives. I want to do something that is going to help others improve
their quality of life.
I don't know exactly what career I would like to pursue after college. I know that I want
to be doing something that involves interaction with people regularly. I don't want to sit behind
a desk every day. In order to have a career that involves a lot of human interaction, I need to
become a better communicator. This doesn't just involve speaking. It also involves listening,
thinking critically, nonverbal, and verbal skills (Uni.edu, 2013). Being a better listener helps
people feel safer and more comfortable around you (Robinson, Segal, Segal, 2014). I want
people to be able to feel comfortable around me so that they can open up and talk to me about
their lives, and I can talk to them about life. Ideally, I'd like to be able to build strong enough
relationships with people that I can share the gospel with them. In order to build these kinds of
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relationships, I need to be able to ask others questions to get to know them better and ask for
clarification when I don't understand what they mean (DeMers, 2014).
I don't know what I officially want to do as a career, but I want to do something with
people. I have a passion for people and I want to do all I can to improve everyone's lives as
much as I can. I want to leave my mark on the world by leaving a mark for Christ. I could be
the only way some people ever get a glimpse of Jesus so I want to impact people for Him in
every possible way. Even if I don't hold a position in a church, I want people to see Christ when
they look at me and when they are interacting with me because that's what Christians are called
to be. Matthew 5:14-16 says, "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be
hidden. Neither do light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it
gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they
may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven" (NIV).
In order for me to get to a point in my life where I'm ready to do this, I need to find a way
to break out of my shell a little bit. It's hard for me to have conversations with people that I don't
know very well and I need to learn how to have conversations with anyone and at any time. I
also need to be willing to open myself up and let people see me be vulnerable so that they are
comfortable enough to do the same. I also think that it's necessary for me to continue growing in
my relationship with Christ so that I can be confident that He'll give me the words to say to
people in any conversations to help glorify him.
I'm not entirely sure of what career I would like to pursue after college. I know that I
want to do something where I don't sit behind a desk every day, but I get to be interacting with
people . Studying Communications at UNI will help me improve my communication skills so
that I am able to efficiently do what I want to do. I need to be more than just good at talking to
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people. I need to be good at speaking, listening, thinking critically, and nonverbal skills. I want
to impact the world for Christ, whether that be working in a church or elsewhere.

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References:
Communication Studies. (2013). Retrieved October 8, 2014, from uni.edu/commstudies.
Jayson, D. (2014, May 29). 7 Things Good Communicators Always Do. Retrieved October 9,
2014,
from http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2014/05/29/7-things-good-
communicators-
always-do/.

Life Application Study Bible, NIV. (2011). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Robinson, L., Segal, J., & Segal, R. (2014, September 1). Effective Communication. Retrieved
October 9, 2014, from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/relationships/effective-
communication.htm.