Reflective Essay

Running head: REFLECTIVE ESSAY
Reflective Essay
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1
REFLECTIVE ESSAY
1. Nature of Interaction with People who are Different from Me
My interactions with people who are different from me are always cordial in nature. I
try to foster friendly relationships with people who stand out in the crowd and with people
who are from a cultural background that is different from my own. I was quite a loner in my
childhood and because my family members were controlling for the most part, I was seldom
allowed to do things to my liking, always living according to the dictates of other people. I
know what it is like to be different, given that I have rarely got anything in common with my
parents or other family members, and have been told so more than once on my face. I am
reclusive and introverted and I like my own company. In school too I used to be the odd one
out, not one to open up too easily to other people. When I see people from a different culture
or gender come my way, I try to get to know them better. I am naturally curious as a person
and I believe that it is only when you interact with people from other cultures that you truly
begin to discover your own. I take part in cultural festivals that I am invited to attend by
friends and associates who belong to different cultural backgrounds, as this gives me an
opportunity to learn a lot more about them and their ways of life.
2. Perceived Personal Strengths and Limitations that can enhance or Limit
Multicultural Counseling Relationship
Some of my greatest personal strengths are the fact that I am capable of enduring a lot
of pain and agony, and that I am resilient by nature. I don’t let my challenges get me down
and am always one to bounce back from a situation of crisis. I try to look at the positive in
every situation even when I am deeply disturbed and take a lot of pride in the way that I have
handled all my relationships until date, some of which were quite abusive in nature. My
personal strength of optimism and the ability to survive a crisis situation can definitely
enhance multicultural counseling relationship. I understand that people who hail from