Effective interpersonal communications are dependant on many factors, including the willingness of people to share information and talk about their fears, wants and desires, and the skills people have or do not have when it comes to relaying information to others. Interpersonal communications can be defined many ways, but most effectively it involves the interactions and communications that occur between people that work, live or associate with each other (Trenholm, 1995). These people typically include the communications one has with people they are familiar with or know well, or may see on a daily basis (Trenholm, 1995).
             Effective communications occur first and most importantly when one person, the person that receives communication from another, listens actively (Trenhom, 1995). I feel it is critical that people listen carefully to others when they are trying to communicate. I also feel one of the greatest reasons misunderstandings occur when people communicate is that one person is already trying to talk back or formulating their ideas in their head while someone is trying to communicate with them.
             This results in ineffective communication because the person speaking does not get a chance to really say what they want to say. Even if they do finish speaking, the person they spoke too probably won't understand or internalize their communication because they were not actively listening. Active listening means having to put aside one's own thoughts and feelings about a topic for a moment to allow another person to express themselves wholly. After this, the person that wants to speak next should take a moment to paraphrase what the other person has said, so the other person is confident they understand the point of their communication. If this is the case, only then can the listener begin communicating with the other person in a way that is beneficial for both parties.
             Paraphrasing is a wonderful tool that is used ...