Talk by Mary Steel on

Tue, Oct 31st 2017 at 6:15 pm - 7:50 pm

Talk by Mary Steel on "Communication"


The contention that all communication is capable of being flawed was amply demonstrated in a humorously illuminating talk by guest speaker Mary Steel at an open meeting at Faenol Fawr. Introduced by President Keith Roberts, Mrs Steel, former Head of Howell’s School, Denbigh, produced dozens of examples to illustrate how an intended meaning had clearly been shown to have been completely misunderstood, whether delivered in written or spoken form. However clear or precise the message might be, she asserted, situations, circumstances, interpretations and presumptions all held the capacity for the meaning to become totally lost on uncomprehending recipients harbouring  quite a different point of view. Explaining that it was an established fact that people can only take in 25 per cent of what they hear or see, it was unsurprising that such remarkable contradictory confusions regularly occurred. Given this inherent risk, the speaker was prompted to wonder whether Rotarians might question the effectiveness of their own communications and how they could be improved in making known more powerfully to the public at large how fantastic Rotary is and the great deeds it renders throughout the world. The warm thanks of the club were expressed to the speaker by Senior Vice-President John Hickerton.