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Saturday, November 8, 2008 To be honest, equipping myself with effective communication skills weren’t my main reason for choosing to take this course. Rather, the most alluring factor is the resume and cover letter component. Since this module has no final exam, is eligible for the S/U option and most importantly guarantees at least a B grade (from hearsays), so why not? |
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Saturday, October 18, 2008 Like how Hebbel aptly puts it, “Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion”. Passion, I deemed, is the key to success. My passion in mathematics has shaped me into one who is calm, analytical and logical. Endowed with good time and stress management, multi-tasking has never been a problem for me. Work experiences in various challenging environments have expanded my interpersonal and communication skills, as well as my social circle. As an active participant in leadership activities and volunteering services, I possess great initiatives and the ability to work independently, confidently and effectively as a team player. |
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Saturday, October 11, 2008 I strongly believe that the success in teamwork is not only based on the end product but also the process of working towards it. It is through this process one can gain the necessary skills and experience. The process of generating a research report brought about many reminiscences of project work. The only difference is we need not submit agendas and minutes for every single meeting. Since ES2007S is the only module the three of us have in common, conflicts in timetables are inevitable. In addition, with the amount of assignments, tests and deadlines to meet, our different workloads required us to prioritize our work in order for things to be done efficiently. The essence of how this is done is analogous to what is familiar to all National Service men- Guard Duty. So how do we make sure that we can meet the different deadlines of ES2007S as well as making sure that we have ample time for the rest of our modules? For instance, if I happened to have a test this week, Alvin and Jason will carry on with the report and I will take over once I have finished my test. Similarly, Alvin and Jason will stop focusing on the report until they have finished their respective tests. Thus, being honest and straightforward towards your teammates is also another important factor in ensuring effective communication and the success of the teamwork. Even though meeting deadlines can make our lives really miserable, I must admit that I really enjoyed the process of generating the report with my teammates. From the brainstorming of the research topic to writing the report, we had our fair shares of laughter but at the same time coming up with good ideas for our research project. If I were to choose all over again, this team would still be my first and foremost choice. Thank you Alvin and Jason, for making the first half of my ES2007S journey a fun and fulfilling one. =) |
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Friday, September 26, 2008 Since Hari Raya Aidilfitri is just around the corner, this post shall be focused on the main Muslim culture which I've observed- Muslims can only consume food which is Halal. Do watch the following video for clearer illustrative purposes. A picture speaks a thousand words. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdguyMJprsA I was appalled by the conversations in the video. Clearly, the questions asked did not seem accidental. As most of us know, Muslims are forbidden from consuming pork, alcohol, blood, meat dedicated to false gods etc. The dietary laws for Muslims are very clear- Muslims can only consume food that is Halal. Still at times, questions like “What’s Halal?” will be asked. In Arabic, “Halal” simply means allowed or permissible. To make meat Halal, an animal or poultry has to be slaughtered in a ritual way known as Zibah. Apparently, the basic respect non-Muslims should have for the Muslims is to pay attention to what comes out from our mouth. After watching the video, even as a Chinese, I felt extremely ashamed of how those people in the video actually made fun of the Muslim Halal culture. Mentioning food which is forbidden for Muslims clearly showed how much respect they have for them. Not once, not twice, not thrice. It didn’t matter whether the characters in the video did it on purpose, or was it accidental. The point they brought across to the public was clear. They certainly did not show due respect for the Muslims. However, I did learn something from the video. When we live in a multi-racial/multi-culture society like Singapore, communicating with people from other races is inevitable. In order to have effective communications, we have to understand the different cultures and values of each and every racial group. Like what Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Men are respectable only as they respect”. Sources: 1) http://www.halalfoodauthority.co.uk/define.html 2) http://islam.about.com/cs/dietarylaw/a/halalfood.htm 3) http://www.youtube.com/ |
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Saturday, September 6, 2008 Singapore is a clean and green city. Do we credit it to the public, or the cleaners? Ideally, credits should be awarded to both. Unfortunately, this is not the case in reality. Simply take a quick walk down the streets. If you do spot litters along the streets, and the first thought that run through your mind is “Why aren’t the cleaners doing their job?” I’ll beg to differ. If each and every one of us were to act responsibly, we will still be living in a clean environment, with or without cleaners. So how much knowledge do people really have in regards to the cleaners’ job scopes? Do people really feel that they are responsible in keeping environments clean? Or do people really care? I guess the answer is probably no. Litterbugs leave traces whenever they go. Streets, buses, trains, shopping centres and even cinemas contain their traces. Hence, with the presence of increasing litters in Singapore, there exists an urgent need to educate the public on how to keep our environments clean, without relying on cleaners. A simple act of responsibility from each and every one of us will be more than sufficient. Moreover, cleaners are supposed to maintain cleanliness, instead of transforming places filled with litters to clean ones. An attitudinal survey will be necessary to collect information on whether people feel responsible in keeping places clean as well as their attitude towards cleaners. With these information on hand, I guess the process of converting our society from a graceless to a gracious one will be much easier. Ten minutes. That’s all the cleaning brigade has as cinemagoers walk out. We don’t need ten minutes to discard our litters, do we? |
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Saturday, August 30, 2008 What are friends for? No, I’m not quoting it from sources, but that’s a phrase which spelt the end of an 8-year friendship. I was taken aback. Thunderous laughter which used to signify her presence was replaced with solemn looks and sunken faces. Joyful words were displaced with snide remarks that could easily slit through your heart like a razor blade. People do change, and the one who caused this change in Jane was a man she met online. I couldn’t accept it. “I’ll tell you when I feel that the time is right.” The “right time” never came. Tom’s a Korean currently working in the United States. He claims that he’s 30, but his looks stated otherwise. Jane’s family members were strongly against their relationship. As time passes, conflicts with her family members elevated and she felt that the only person she could turn to was Tom. Marriage was on her mind even when she only knew him for less than a month. Problems did surface between them, but she chose to handle it-alone. No, the above information weren’t first hand. Every single detail was narrated to me by different friends of hers, and all these bits and pieces were pieced together. Approaching me was the last thing on her mind. She knew I will disapprove of her relationship and she didn’t want to hear things that were against her wishes. I was hurt. I thought honesty matters in friendships. Apparently to her, friends are supposed to stand by her side even when we know things won’t work out; friends are supposed to encourage her in things that we ourselves don’t even believe in. Hence, that explains why she conveniently left me out when she needed someone to talk to. I would love to lend her a listening ear, but I wasn’t even given this chance to do so. What should I do to earn this chance? Time will heal all wounds. Will mine? |
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Saturday, August 23, 2008 The next time before you say “uh-huh”, think again. Women may use “uh-huh” to show that they are listening whereas men may use it to signal agreement. The next time you caused a whole group of people to burst out laughing, do not assume that you’ll make a great comedian. Ask yourself, are they laughing with you, or at you? Communication works wonders. However, the question is not how we should communicate, but rather how effective our communication should be. From the time we entered this world, right till we leave this world, communication has been part and parcel of our lives. Babies acquire non-verbal communication skills to convey effectively their messages and even when we’re dead, our dead bodies will still be able to communicate with the forensic pathologists.  Before we even enter the workforce, the first obstacle will be the interviews. Effective communication skills can make interviewers stand in awe of you. Convince them that you’re the one. That’s the way it should be. Make them afraid of you, and not the other way round. Next, office politics. Face it, accept it, and forget it. Be part of this game, or be an audience? That’s up to you to decide. Humans are unfathomable. So equip yourselves with the necessary skills to protect yourselves. You’ll never know when you’ll need them. And so, I shall end off with a quote from Peter F.Drucker:“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.” -Peter F.Drucker 1909-2005, American Management Guru P.S. Picture taken from http://images.google.com.sg/images?um=1&hl=en&q=babies+crying&start=20&sa=N&ndsp=20 |
