Final Reflection

I would not describe myself as a confident person. I can still recall the first time I had to stand in front of my class (back in Indonesia) and gave a short 5 to 10 minutes speech. Even now, I could feel the extreme fear I had. I kept my eyes fixed entirely to the script I had prepared. Not once did I dare to raise my head up. Instead, I continued reading in soft voice. As expected, none of the audiences were impressed. Whispers which indicated boredom filled the class, drowning my voice, and soon, my teacher declared, “That’s enough. You may sit down. Thank you”.

Having had such bad experience in presentation, my fear was multiplied when I was required to present again (here in Singapore) in English. Although I miraculously survived all kind of presentations in secondary and junior college days, I know that is not good enough.

This is the reason why I bid for ES2007S after reading the email which outlined the course objective. Today, I am very grateful that I have made the correct choice. I have learned a lot from this module, from how to write and express myself appropriately (using 7Cs) to building effective teamwork. I have also obtained a lot of valuable feedbacks from my classmates and tutor, which have definitely educated me and helped me in improving myself further.

Most importantly, however, is that I have found my confidence. I have thrown away scripts for presentation and have chosen to rely on outlines instead. Now, I have the courage to lift up my head and look at the audiences in the eyes, unperturbed even when greeted with baffled looks. In fact, when I see puzzled faces, I will try to slow down and elaborate my points further.

I do not deny that this confidence may come from numerous avenues for practice that the class provides. However, I believe that guidance from Brad and fellow classmates play a bigger role. This class has been a very forgiving class, one that does not laugh when I make mistake and instead guides me, giving me the courage and confidence I have always needed. Thank you.

I’ve never been the one to raise my hand
That was not me, but now that’s who I am
Because of you, I am standing tall
My heart is full of endless gratitude
You were the ones, the ones who guide me through
~~Do I Make You Proud – Taylor Hicks~~

Thank you to ES2007S group 10. Terima kasih. =)

Oral Presentation part 3 (suggested solutions)

Oral Presentation part 2 (methodology)

Oral Presentation part 1 (introduction)

Reflection on Oral Presentation

I was filled with mixed feelings when our presentation came to an end. On one hand, I was very relieved. “It’s over!”. Late night or early morning discussions will now be things of the past (at the very least, until a new semester starts). Finally, I will have more time to myself to relax, study, and catch up with materials I have missed. However, on the other hand, I felt a sense of loss. The past few weeks have truly been enjoyable and enriching for me. My group mates, Elin and Brooks, have taught me valuable lessons and helped me to improve myself. Without them, our proposal and presentation would not have been possible. They have tolerated the times when I was too persistent and demanding, as well as times when I was too lazy to squeeze out any drop of juice from my brain. In this whole process, I have grown closer to them and the prospect of not seeing them anymore on an almost weekly basis saddens me. I truly hope that the friendship we have forged will last and that we will keep in touch via facebook or email (since Elin is graduating and Brooks is going back to China! I’m the only one left in NUS! ). Thank you, Elin and Brooks. You guys are great!

As for the actual oral presentation, I do think that I was not fluent and engaging enough. I have tried to think of jokes and pictures to spice things up, but I couldn’t seem to find appropriate ones. There were also instances when I stammered. In addition, I was paranoid that the computer and pointer was not responsive (how could that even be? I must be over-paranoid) and thus, I kept stealing glances at the slides when I actually placed two pieces which detailed sequence of slides on the table. All in all, I do not think I was convincing either. Perhaps I should have provided clearer links between the points.

These are all, but my own opinion. What do my dear classmates think? Feel free to let me know! Any feedback will be highly appreciated. Thanks! =) 

Cultural Conflict

I once found myself in a very uneasy situation where several eyes were staring at me, conveying their disapproval of what I had done. My face burned under their displeasure, and I did not know what to do, except to look down on the floor and pretended nothing was wrong. Thankfully, the door in front of me was soon opened. A lady emerged and I quickly rushed into that small cubicle she just vacated, locked the door and started to reflect. What had I done wrong?

The above situation took place years ago, when I first came to study in Singapore. The first few weeks were shocking for me, as I experienced culture shocks, one after another. However, of all these culture differences that I experienced, the episode at the crowded toilet of a shopping mall is the one I will never forget.

I am not sure about gentleman’s toilet, but I have observed that the ladies’ in crowded shopping malls are identical with long queue. Singaporeans queue in one straight line before the army of cubicles and whichever cubicle that is vacated later will be taken by the first person in the queue. However, this is not how we queue in Indonesia. There, we stood in front of cubicles of our choice. For example, if I have stood in front of cubicle A, then I am only entitled to enter into cubicle A. Even if cubicle B is vacated and I happen to arrive before the lady who is standing in front of cubicle B, she is the one entitled to use cubicle B, and not me.  

Unaware of the queuing culture in Singapore, I conveniently stood in front of a cubicle when I first used the public toilet. I was unaware that the long line was made up of people who are queuing for the cubicles. I even thought that they were simply waiting for their friends, as they were standing before the lines of cubicles and not in front of each cubicle!

I later related this experience to my mentor, who explained to me about the queuing culture in Singapore. I then learned that cutting a queue is considered very rude and frowned upon.

I have learned a valuable lesson to be more aware of cultural differences so as to avoid being in hot soup situations in the future.

help me for my other survey. =)

Friends, please help me with this other survey as well. take only 1 minute (i promise). haha. thanks!!

here is the link https://spreadsheets0.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dHZWS3lNTUFnSWtJZlQ5aUk3MENoWkE6MQ#gid=0

Sheila

survey pilot test

Hi friends!
Please help us with our survey on quality of NUS Career Center.
here is the link. thanks!
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TMB9GP2

Job application letter

Job description :

DBS Bank offers hands-on experience in their business operations, giving interns the opportunity to observe, participate and contribute in meetings and other business events. Throughout internship, mentors appointed by the Business/Service Unit will provide interns with career coaching, guidance and feedback.

Requirements:

Students who:

* are currently studying in a university.
* have excellent academic results.
* have active extra-curricular records.
* have an innovative and enterprising mind with an international outlook.
* have leadership qualities and good team working ability and communication skills.

Duration of internship:

at least 8 weeks from May to August or November to December, assigned to either a Business Unit or Service Unit.

(the application letter)

10 Kent Ridge Drive

NUS Eusoff Hall Block XXX

Singapore, 119242

8115XXXX

U080XXXX@nus.edu.sg

5 September 2010

DBS Bank
6 Shenton Way, DBS Building Tower One
Singapore 068809

Dear Sir/Mdm

I am writing to apply for internship position in Singapore DBS Bank for duration from May to August 2011 which is advertised at the website www.singaporeinternship.com. Currently, I am a third year student at National University of Singapore (NUS), majoring in Electrical Engineering. As you will note from my enclosed university transcript and resume, I have consistently maintained good academic results as well as active participation in extra-curricular activities.

Throughout my study in NUS, I have successfully organised various activities for my committee members. I have also gained good communication and problem solving skills as I am required to constantly deal with and solve problems that my committee face. I also thrive on teamwork which is proved by obtaining excellent project results. In addition, I am a participant in NUS student exchange program because I regard this opportunity as an eye-opener to further widen my view and understanding of the world.

I truly hope that I will be given the opportunity to be part of this dynamic bank. I believe my education, skills and experiences fit your requirements, and I am confident my skills would be an asset to your company. I am available to meet with you at a time that's convenient to you. If you need any additional information, I will be more than glad to provide them.

Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Sheila Koh

8115XXXX

Interpersonal conflict

I have seen and experienced many conflicts that arise due to assumptions, unuttered expectations, and the absence of you-attitude. The following hypothetical situations aims at highlighting a conflict due to above factors that may be typical in our daily lives.

Karen, a cheerful and happy-go-lucky girl was very quiet during dinner. She was feeling down at the moment, having lost her wallet and found out that some of her books had been destroyed by molds due to careless keeping. These two events happened on two consecutive days, disallowing Karen the chance to collect herself together after each misfortunate.

Charlie, Karen’s friend, was aware of the mishaps that befell his friend. Nonetheless, he did not offer Karen any help. Instead, he joked about Karen’s adversity and claimed that she was over-reacting.

That proved to be the last straw for Karen and she snapped “Do you have the faintest idea what I have been through? It’s miserable enough that you, claiming to be my friend, do not offer me any help. And now you even joke about it? What an insensitive creature you are.” 

Karen then left the table, vowing not to talk to Charlie anymore.

Charlie was puzzled. He had assumed that Karen was fine because she did not approach him for help. Little did he know that Karen was expecting him to help, without her pleas. Then Charlie remembered that her wallet was a gift from her grandmother. Karen also got here books from her childhood friends, which explain Karen’s grave reaction. Failure to position himself in Karen’s shoes had cost him their friendships.

Looking at the murky situation here, what would you suggest to the two characters in order to resolve their conflict?

Why effective communication skills are important for me

"Sheila, first, let me tell you that this is a good piece of writing. I will not hesitate to give you a good grade if this is about writing a summary of your chosen topic. However, what we are looking for is how you get your idea across to your readers. It's about how you engage the readers and communicate with them. Not by throwing them with facts only. You need to talk to them. You get me?" asked my tutor.

I nodded.

"So, don't be discouraged and keep on working. I am sure you will do much better next time". She ended with an encouraging smile.

I nodded again. However, the truth is, I didn't get what she meant. Even so, I didn't bother asking her anymore because I was feeling so down at the time. Fortunately, weeks later, I managed to find out what she meant after consulting one of my seniors.

This episode, which took place 2 semesters ago brought to me the realisation of how important and difficult good communication is. And this struggle is not limited to writing. I soon realised that it applies to my daily conversations as well. Often, I am disappointed at the unexpected reactions I get from the people around me.

"That's not it!," I would normally scream in my head," Oh gosh. I didn't mean that. Seriously, why did it come across badly?"

All of these resulted from my inability to express myself the way i intended to, thus, giving the other party the wrong signal and interpretation.

In short, my incapability to communicate effectively has cost me my grades and perhaps, some friendship. Through these hard ways, I have learned why effective communication is crucial.

Hello world

=)