ABOUT Christa Freas
As a Senior Executive Assistant, part of my job is to provide opportunity and channels for effective communications both within the office of the Under Secretary of the Air Force as well as across the Department of Defense and a myriad of additional intelligence organizations and agencies. Learning about and applying effective communication skills is critical in coordinating across multiple departments and organizations; some of which are notorious for their inability to communicate effectively.
I am also part of the face of the organization. I am one of the first people many others come into contact with before they communicate with our senior leadership and I need to be able to appropriately represent this relatively new organization within the department. Exceptional communication skills, both verbal and non-verbal, are required in order to adapt to an incredibly dynamic environment and provide executive-level support on a daily basis. Earning a degree in Communications and learning about how and why some methods work better than others is a desirable skill that will further my professional career for the rest of my life.
I define communication as any means two or more people express their ideas, thoughts, feelings, needs and desires. Non-verbal and verbal communications allow people to experience the world around them and to become fully immersed in the conversation that is life. As an already expressive and relatively intuitive individual, the lessons I have learned so far through my studies of communication at George Mason have proved most valuable and having just taken the Interpersonal Communications course, I have reaped the benefits of that knowledge by applying it to my own personal relationships.
I have committed to the study of Communications primarily to learn about all the ways communication is used in the professional environment, with a particular focus on Public Relations. I want to hone my skills as an effective communicator in order to facilitate effective communication within my organization.