Direct Question/assumptions

One thing that is taught to Youth Care Workers is to ask Direct Questions when we see something rather than assuming that we know the meaning. For instance, if I am supervising a family visit and the father and mother say something that SEEMS normal but the child I am supervising looks down and squirms in their seat. Later (or immediately depending on my role) I will ask DIRECTLY what it meant to her when that statement was made. All families have different "rules" of communication; what to talk about, what we don't talk about, how much we involve others in our lives, how personal that involvement can be. If we assume that our rules are everybody's rules, we misunderstand much of what is going on around us, possibly taking offence when none was meant or missing the cues for offering of friend ship. If I have a stable relationship with someone and want to know what is happening, how they are feeling, if something has changed, instead of guessing or assuming-----take a risk and directly ASK !!