Reflecting content helps to give focus to the situation but, at the same time, it is also essential to reflect the feelings and emotions expressed in order to more fully understand the message. The most immediate part of a speaker's message is the content, in other words those aspects dealing with information, actions, events and experience, as verbalised by them. It is very difficult to resist the temptation to ask questions and when this technique is first used, reflecting can seem very stilted and unnatural. You need to practice this skill in order to feel comfortable. Your responses should be non-directive and non-judgemental. When paraphrasing, it is of utmost importance that you do not introduce your own ideas or question the speakers thoughts, feelings or actions. It is often the case that people 'hear what they expect to hear' due to assumptions, stereotyping or prejudices. Paraphrasing shows not only that you are listening, but that you are attempting to understand what the speaker is saying. Paraphrasing involves using other words to reflect what the speaker has said. Be aware not to over mirror as this can become irritating and therefore a distraction from the message. This shows you are trying to understand the speakers terms of reference and acts as a prompt for him or her to continue. It is usually enough to just repeat key words or the last few words spoken. Mirroring is a simple form of reflecting and involves repeating almost exactly what the speaker says. Two Main Techniques of Reflecting: Mirroring This in turn helps them to direct their thoughts and further encourages them to continue speaking.
Speakers are helped through reflecting as it not only allows them to feel understood, but it also gives them the opportunity to focus their ideas. Reflecting does not involve you asking questions, introducing a new topic or leading the conversation in another direction. To show the speaker that you are trying to perceive the world as they see it and that you are doing your best to understand their messages.To allow the speaker to 'hear' their own thoughts and to focus on what they say and feel.Reflecting is the process of paraphrasing and restating both the feelings and words of the speaker.
#REFLECTOR DEFINITION HOW TO#
It is often important that you and the speaker agree that what you understand is a true representation of what was meant to be said.Īs well as understanding and reflecting the verbal messages of the speaker it is important to try to understand the emotions - this page explains how to use reflection effectively to help you build greater understanding of not only what is being said but the content, feeling and meaning of messages. Therefore, as an extension of good listening skills, you need to develop the ability to reflect words and feelings and to clarify that you have understood them correctly. However good you think your listening skills are, the only person who can tell you if you have understood correctly or not is the speaker.
In a studio setting, reflectors are often used as fill lights, bouncing back the spill from a key light in order to lower the lighting ratio on a subject. With a reflector you can change the angle of the shadows and give some control to the contrasts you are creating. Since the light from a reflector is directable, it gives more options when working outdoors where previously you would have had to rely only on the angle of the sun. That means we can bounce artificial light off a reflector to get a nicer quality of light, or we can use them outdoors to bounce sunlight back at a subject. It has many uses because bouncing light gives it a much softer look. This piece of material usually contains a frame that keeps it taught enough to angle in a specific direction and therefore control the direction of the bounced light. Most of the time when people refer to using a reflector, they are talking about using a piece of reflective material to bounce light in a certain direction. When it comes to photographic lingo, a reflector actually refers to two distinct pieces of equipment.