During my time at CSUSM, I have learned that there is one action we all perform which serves as our most important humanizing connection: communication.

Communication is at the heart of everything we do and it might well be the one universal thing that we can all agree upon. Therefore, it is my assertion that communication is the most undervalued, but most essential aspect of being human.

Think about the most infuriating parts of life; I would be willing to argue that those things could be better with better communication.

Bureaucracy is one of these infuriating societal structures that seems designed to test the patience of its patrons. In place of interpersonal communication, bureaucracies develop a system of gathering information that caters to standardization when humans are anything but standard.

Now think about a time when you had the worst day. Work has been a mess, school is a mixed bag or your personal relationships are dicey.

In my experience, all of these problems stem from an inability to communicate something. Managers make decisions but do not listen to their employees, teachers often do the same and similar problems can exist in relationships. Ultimately, these situations are caused by a failure to communicate effectively and can usually be solved by talking about the issue at hand..

Jürgen Habermas, a celebrated scholar in the field of Communication and one of the world’s leading intellectuals, sought solutions to structural ailments plaguing society. By examining speech act theory and doing various other research Habermas has found that people can achieve freedom from society’s ails, like the prison of bureaucracy, through communicative rationality.

Communicative rationality is rationality derived from mutual understanding through effective communicative. It is an idea that sees a world in which we all understand each other.

Imagine a world where going to the DMV is pleasant. I guarantee that one of the reasons it would be pleasant is that a government worker would takes the time to get to know you and connect with you. Now imagine a dream workplace and I guarantee the same. It is through communication that we can solve the world’s problems.

My thoughts may seem like common sense, but the thing about common sense is that it is not so common.
During my time as a student of the Communication field, I have found that people often question the relevance of a degree in communication. Communication is the key to understanding one another and I challenge people to communicate more in their lives.