Why is awareness so important for the 21st century individual, executive or business owner? As we reflect back on human progress, awareness appears to be a critical part of every day life from avoiding the elements of Mother Nature to keeping your possessions safe from unregulated institutions or nefarious individuals. In today's world, our awareness has been heightened through the continual advancement of technology from cell phones to E-mail. The capacity of awareness is even more important today than 100 or even 1000 years ago. In the 1960's, a professor by the name of Albert Mehrabian, Ph.D., of the University of California, L.A. along with his colleagues established the 55 38 7 Rule of Communication. Although this rule has been challenged, the premise is still worth understanding. From his research, Dr. Mehrabian suggested that 93% of all communication is non-verbal (55% non-verbal and 38% para-verbal such as syntax, speed, loudness or softness) and that only 7% of communication is verbal from the perspective of the receiver. Even if his percentages are off, what we see as the receiver is almost always "heard" first over what is actually said. This is the critical piece of awareness from this research. An aware individual can leverage this knowledge to her or his advantage. Through active listening, anyone can become aware to the nuances within the communication process. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) is a direct result of the capacity of awareness. Mark Twain, among many others, is cited as saying: If the good Lord wanted us to speak more than listen, he would have given us two mouths and only one ear. By becoming more aware of others through their body language and their speech nuances from word selection to speed, we are able to connect with our intuitive self and validate what we unconsciously believe based upon our life experiences. The capacity of awareness builds a bridge between our past experiences and knowledge to our current experiences. Communication is just one means to O.P.E.N. awareness to our selves through new Opportunities that excite our Potential, Engage our senses to New ideas. |
