For me, the basis of effective communications is to maintain and construct a more extensive and improved social network. Effective communications is the indispensable way to clearly convey a message, regardless whether it is formal or informal. Hence, communicating effectively, which includes active listening, plays an important in putting a message across resourcefully which develops good social network and enhance the interactions between these social networks.

To me, not having effective communication will cause misunderstandings and will definitely strain my relationships with my family, friends and schoolmates. For example, having a biased opinion or being too emotional often results in misunderstandings. When communication becomes ineffective and relationships weaken, our informal social circle will be affected most significantly, as we habitually cannot hold back our emotions towards our family and friends. Without effective communication skills, I will not be able to maintain good relationships with my family and friends.

We are usually more cautious about the things we say or do when we interact with our formal social network; hence we are less affected by our emotions. However, developing effective communication skills is nevertheless important. In school, communicating effectively helps me to express myself clearly and also understand others better. Thus, developing effective communication skills is important as it aids us in establishing good relationship with everyone, which will develop our social network.

To build an extensive social network, we must make use of different channels of communication. With the advance in technology, new modes of communication emerged, such as Facebook, which are more appealing to most people, especially those who do not have ample time to have face-to-face communication with their social networks. With these new communication channels, I am also able to communicate with family or friends who are overseas.

-edited on 27 Aug