#6 Final reflection on learning

I will like to share my conversation with one of the professors I've met earlier this year. This professor mentioned that many students come and go through the portals of NUS thinking that they are the best but what they don't realize is that their degree is nothing but a piece of paper showing their capability of memorizing and regurgitating information. He let out a sigh and continued that most students have lost sight of the importance of interpersonal skills which are way more critical than their accolades when they enter the workforce.

Reading ES2007S as a module is one of the best choice I've made in my three years in NUS. I particularly found the soft skills learned relevant and important for my future. These include interpersonal relationship, teamwork, presentation skills, time management and appropriate handling of emotions. There were many opportunities throughout the entire course for us to explore each of these.

We begin as a class of 14 students and I remembered how each of us sat in our own seats feeling awkward to speak up. However, we ended the course last week as a lively class, comfortable to speak up and having our arms around each other for kodak moments. These would not be possible without the numerous activities we did in class. I reflect on the process of crafting and finally presenting our proposal and through this, I realized that the perfect project can only be achieved through excellent teamwork. Teamwork is not just about doing our parts as delegated but extending support to our team mates not only in the aspects of the project but also each others personal life. By understanding and putting in effort to know your team mates, the team will be able to achieve outstanding results as we enjoy the process together. This is in contrast to being obliged to doing work delegated to us and working on it 1 hour before the due date. The project has also helped us develop soft skills such like time management. Most of us had our mid term papers as well essays due while we were crafting our proposal, it was important for us to manage our schedule. With that, we also had to learn to cope with stress. I am thankful for my group mates who were extremely supportive throughout the process and have provided me with comic relief and support whenever I was feeling stressed and overwhelmed with work.

ES2007S has reminded me about the importance of teamwork. Everyone was once told that teamwork is important from the day we started school but not everyone had the chance to experience what excellent teamwork will lead us to. When I look back at the entire process of discussing and crafting our proposal while typing out this post, I feel an immense sense of satisfaction. :)

I believe I will not be one of those students who walked through the portal of NUS and enter the workforce with an accredited degree but absolutely no interpersonal skills.

#5 My reflection of the oral presentation (edited)

1. Although practice makes perfect, we should "practice" by giving ourselves more chances to speak up in front of a class and to a crowd rather than holding a script and pacing up and down in front of a mirror perfecting the exact words we are planning to say.

2. Know our audience. An excellent proposal is nothing but a booklet of paper if we are unable to understand how our audience will react to our presentation and adjust our tone and information to what they will appreciate and be interested in.

3. Be concise and selective with information which we like to impress onto our audience. Choose what is necessary and omit the fillers.

4. Be a good team member by knowing what each other is presentating and provide support for each other even during the presentation itself.

The above are the main learning points for me after going through the oral presentation. I'm usually a confident person when it comes to giving a presentation however I felt slightly less confident this time as compared to before. This is puzzling because being extremely clear about the proposal's content and having the chance to present our ideas to Brad as well as our peer group, I should have been extremely confident. Looking back, perhaps the lack of confidence stems from the fact that I recognized at that point of time that this was the presentation that will really matter. The mood and atmosphere then also exacerbated my nervousness.

From the feedback received from my peers and Brad, I overused the word "hence" during my presentation. I agree that the use of "hence" will give an impression that my presentation was scripted (although it wasn't). The overuse of "hence" was mainly due to my attempt to be systematic in order to alleviate my nervousness. I thought that being systematic will greatly reduced the possibility of stumbling and tripping over my words, which I have a high tendency for. Reflecting on my presentation, I think I should have cut myself some slack and loosen up! This is evident from the Q&A session. After presenting my part of the presentation, I felt very calm and relieved. This, coupled with a good clarity of our team's ideas and proposal contributed to a smooth delivery by myself and my team mates during Q&A.

I will like to conclude this post by giving credits to my team mates for an excellent job. No matter how awesome a person or team is at generating ideas, nothing will be produced if no action or hard work was put into it. Team Titus is the best project team I've ever been in. Everyone cooperated and put in our heart and soul for the project, the team dynamics is so awesome that as I stood in front of the class, I knew I was not alone. Thank you team.

#4 Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

Attending an exchange program was one of the most enriching program I've experienced in my undergraduate journey. Not only did I have a chance to attend classes in a university under a different education system, I've also had the chance to meetmany people from many different countries. I recalled an incident in Rome when my fellow friend and I joined a free tour around the Colosseum. When we first arrived at the Colosseum we were approached by an italian lady to join a free tour which will start in exactly an hour's time. We both discussed and decided to join the tour as it willgreatly enriched our time at the Colosseum.

Seeing that we have an hour to spare, we decided to get ourselves a gelato each to enjoy under the scorching sun. We then headed back to the meeting point at the Colosseum 15 minutes earlier so that we don't have to keep the rest of the tour waiting.

However, after 20 minutes passed the meeting time, the tour guide has yet to arrive although a group of 14 tourists have already gathered at the meeting point. Some of the Americans in the tour group as well as the impatient Singaporeans (which was us) started to get annoyed. The hot summer heat exacerbated the situation.

Finally, the tour guide, dressed in a loose fit tee-shirt, bermudas and slippers greeted us with a relaxed and cheerful disposition. He was extremely charismatic and quickly charmed the group. The initial unhappiness was quickly dispelled. He did a quick introduction of himself as well as briefly interviewed each of us to find out where we came from. What was interesting was, when he brief us on what we will be expecting from the tour he added a comment, "This one hour tour will take approximately 40 minutes, 45 minutes or maybe even less. *pause* Oh come on! This is Italy! Not Singapore. I know in Singapore a 1 hour tour will end exactly in an hour, no more no less. By the way, have the rest of you been to Singapore?"

The rest of the tour group then expressed that they have never been to Singapore. The guide then continued, "When I first stepped into Singapore, I've got a great shock! I've never seen so many signs in my life! No eating and drinking, no smoking, no chewing gums and many more!"

All of us laughed at his exclamation. His remark made me realised the differences in culture between Singapore and Italy (or Europe in general). In Singapore, we have a culture of being "law by law." This means that most of us tend to follow strictly to set of laws and is afraid or unwilling to deviate from it. This may be due to the fact that many of us are afraid to challenge the laws or afraid to suffer from any punishment as a result of deviation. This punishment may be a legal punishment or an informal punishment such like not receiving the maximum benefit out of any activities.

In countries like Italy, however, there is a more relaxed culture whereby Italians generally greatly value life's enjoyment such like good food and music. Most of them are more flexible in the schedule and tend not to follow to a rigid routine. They strongly believe in living life to the fullest. This explains why our tour guide appeared late for the session but felt that it was completely acceptable with no need to apologize. It also explains why his vivid impression of his visit to Singapore was that Singapore was an extremely clean country with lots of laws. This is because he was unfamiliar with such a culture and had to make effort to fit into it.

Such differences in culture between countries have to be made known to tourists. This is because some tourists may encounter a "culture shock" and ultimately result in an unhappy travel experience. However, if we were to understand the differences in culture between the place we are visiting and where we come from, we will be able to rationalise why and try to adjust our mindset to accept the culture of the place we are in. This way, we will be able to fully enjoy our vacation!

The charming Italian tour guide then ended the session by shaking each one of our hands and hugging a few of the Europeans in the tour group. By the way, he was really good looking too. ^.^

So although the session started off badly with me feeling frustrated with the lack of responsibility on the part of the tour guide, I felt better after understanding that the tour guide's late-coming was not due to his poor work etiquette but it stems from the culture that he is submerged in. Not only did I enjoy my tour at the Colosseum, my entire stay in Rome was one of the best holiday I've ever had.

In fact, I think I fell in love with Rome, from the architecture, the art, the food, the gelatos and the extremely friendly Italians. :)

Will be back there again in the future, for sure!

Application letter (edited)

Lee Chin Lin Jacqueline

12 Apple Crescent

Singapore 123456

+65 8976 8765

Jacqueline@es2007s.com

8 February 2012

BMSI Business Centre (BBC)

Agency for Science, Technology and Research

20 Biopolis Way

#07-01 Centros

Singapore 138668

Dear Hiring Manager,

I am expressing my interest in the above-mentioned position as advertised online at Jobstreet on 7^th February 2012.

I will be graduating from National University of Singapore (NUS) with a Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in life science with a specialization in biomedical science in June 2013. Being part of your company is a big opportunity for me given my keen interest and passion in immunology. SiGN’s aim of expanding and strengthening immunology research in Singapore will positively impact our community and I hope to be part of this.

In my course of study at NUS, I have gained relevant knowledge, skills and technique in research that will allow me to work efficiently in the laboratory. With a clear understanding in laboratory procedure, I will be able to assist research groups without hindering the project's progress. With an inquisitive mind and an ability to think on my feet, I believe I’ll be able to contribute positively to research progress as these are mandatory qualities of a researcher.

On top of having worked in labs in NUS, I’ve also had opportunity to intern at Kemin Industries where I had the chance to work on bacteria cultures. This experience had taught me valuable skills in the field of research and had allowed me to familiarize myself in labs. Hence, I am comfortable to work in laboratories and have also learnt to be flexible and adaptive to accommodate to the schedule and needs of the project researchers.

Apart from being well equipped with relevant knowledge and research techniques, I am also a good team member. I served as the Sports Director of the 30^th Science Club Management Committee and have gained valuable insights of being both a team leader and member. I understand the importance of excellent teamwork and complementation in a research group and is willing to be a supportive team player.

Last but not least, I am willing to learn new techniques and make up for any lack of experience as a fresh graduate with diligence. I hope my assistance to SiGN's research projects will be able to contribute to the success of the company's new discoveries.

Thank you for taking time to consider my application. I hope to hear from you soon.

Yours sincerely,

Ms Jacqueline Lee

#2 Resolving Interpersonal Conflict (Edited 13/02/2012)

Joann, Amelia, Jasmine and Nicole met on the first day of school in their junior college, ACJC. They were allocated to the same class with classmates from a wide array of schooling backgrounds. Due to the various schools in which these girls have attended previously, they are more comfortable to converse in English and were "in the same frequency." They formed a clique and got along very well. However, this did not last for long.

Amelia came from a well to do family and tend to be very insensitive at times. She makes fun of classmates who were less fortunate than her and has a bad habit to showing off. For example, during Mid-Autumn Festival, she emphasized that the mooncakes in which she had given to each of her teacher were bought from the Shangri-La Hotel to everyone she met that day. Jasmine is an opinionated and judgemental person. Although she is fully aware that Amelia is simply tactless and is harmless in her intentions, Jasmine is often agitated by her actions. However, she choose not to voice out her unhappiness directly to Amelia, instead she complains to Nicole and Joann who share the same sentiments.

The problem was never solved but there was no fights within the clique as they often laugh the matter off. However, in the period leading towards the A-level preliminary examinations, a big fight occurred between Amelia and Jasmine. Amelia had a habit of checking on everyone's revision progress and making sure she is doing more than what the rest is doing. She constantly planned gatherings and dinner get-togethers for the clique but never turned up for any of them giving excuses for her absence at the very last minute. The other three girls suspect that Amelia was trying to reduce the amount of revision time they had for the examination. They were aware that Amelia had asked for their progress to make herself feel good that she is more prepared for the examinations than they were.

Two weeks before the Preliminary Exams, Amelia started a conversation with Jasmine asking her if she had finished her revision for the Chemistry paper. She continued on to boast that her parents had hired a school teacher who charged 80 bucks per hour to tutor her and have finished all the other school's mock papers. This was the last straw for Jasmine who was extremely stressed by her commitment in the school's Tennis Team as well as the upcoming exams. In reply, she snapped, "Its none of your business."

Her reply shocked Amelia who widened her eyes and glared. Jasmine, who was already fuming continued to shout at Amelia. One year worth of pent up frustration was relieved all at once. There was no turning back for their friendship. Things became awkward between the girls because of Jasmine and Amelia's strained friendship and after awhile, Amelia choose to find other friends to hang out with.

After graduation, Amelia went to California for foundation studies and continued to New York while Jasmine continued her tertiary education in a local university. In a recent class gathering when Amelia returned home from the States, the two girls attempted to engage in a conversation to catch up with each other's life. Unfortunately, it was still a rather awkward.

How can Jasmine and Amelia resolve the tension and continue being friends again?

Active listening - A reflection

After the last ES2007S class on Active Listening, I thought it will be good for me to do a reflection. Listening is indeed an important skill. I always wondered if I'm a good listener. Sometimes, I find that people are too engrossed with their own situation to take a step back to listen to another person's story. For example, when we relate to something another person is trying to tell us, we might tend to interrupt the speaker and start telling the person about our own problem instead of listening to theirs.

I'm glad we had this lesson on active listening because it reminded me again about how important listening is. This includes our non-verbal actions when listening. It is true that the listener's action and movement affects the speaker and it will help if we listen attentively and respond appropriately.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Effective communication, Why is it important for me.

Communication is an important aspect of life. At every point of time, we are communicating, whether we know it or not. In fact, communicating with others verbally or non-verbally paints a picture of yourself and sometimes your life. Why do I say that? Basically, people form impressions of you based on how you behave (non-verbal communication) and what you say. Now this is important! You would definitely want to impress your boss or even your future in-laws! Impression is a tricky business, once it's formed, it's difficult to change it! So effective communication is extremely important and it's a lifelong skill which everyone should master. With Facebook being a commonplace in many people's life (not forgetting how stalking people on facebook is a popular past time when one's bored), even the photos you post on Facebook communicates to others about you!

Apart from communicating to others about yourself based on your speech and behavior, the quality of the communications you have builds the world around you. Having quality chats with your family strengthen family bonds. Also, choosing to forfeit one or two hours of sleep to have breakfast with your family conveys how important your family is to you and even by saying nothing at all! Apart from kinship, communication is the basis to how we form our network of friends. It is through communication that you understand each other better and find common topics and interests. Communication is exactly how you find out if someone is of the "same frequency" as you. Definitely, it is through communication that you form strong relationships and understanding between friends and family.

Effective communications is definitely a vital skill for one's success. For me, effective communication is important to me because I value relationships with my friends and family. I feel it sad that for many people, they tend to communicate less with their family as they grow older. As for me, I constantly ensure that I engage in meaningful and quality conversations with my family members. Also, my friends are important to me. I communicate their priority in my life by taking time and effort to organise gatherings and regularly text messages to show that I care. My friends have always been there for me when I needed them and when I was in the pits, they stood by me and helped me regain my confidence. They have effectively communicated to me that they care, without saying anything at all, and I greatly appreciate it.

Effective communications is also the key to all romantic relationships. My boyfriend and I had been together for four years. We started out rocky as we choose to assume that the other party shoud know what to do or what to say. I'm happy to say we don't quarrel as much as we used to now after bothering to speak our minds freely and comfortably. I guess this is the problem with girls, we just expect the guys to know what to do and what to say and when they don't, we make a volcano out of it. I am ashamed to say that I'm guilty of it sometimes but I guess it makes life easier if we just tell the guys directly what we want. For example, instead of hinting, why not just tell him what you want for your birthday or christmas instead of dropping hints that he probably don't get at all. The most common example would be us (girls) asking the guys, shall we have western or japanese for dinner? He answers western and the our face will turn black (because we wanted japanese). Get the drift? Effective communication is important, I've learned to just tell him what I want! :)

Another reason for the importance of effective communication for me is with respect to my future occupation. I'm going to be a teacher and I choose to teach in a Secondary school. My choice of teaching at a secondary school is because I believe this is the time that teenagers face alot of problems and this is when temptations are strong and incentives to turn to deviance is high. Who I am today is very much shaped by the teachers and friends I have in my four years at Secondary School. Effectively communicating to students that you care about their life and future is important for any teachers out there who wants to make a difference. This can be done by having quality chats and even simple actions like having meals with students during their recess time as well as after school. Also, obviously being a teacher means having to effectively bring message across and helping students to understand their subject. In order to achieve the primary objective of a teacher, effective communication is vital.

In a nutshell, effective communication plays a big role in everyone's life. Like it or not, you're communicating to others all the time.

Alright, Happy Chinese New Year everyone! Have a great holiday! Don't forget that to communicate effectively this CNY to all your relatives and friends! (Even on the roads when you're driving! Yes, you are communicating to others when you cut lanes without signaling! So don't spoil the festive mood for anyone!)

<3