Reflection on Group Project and ES2007S

Throughout the second half of our semester, our group has been working on the written proposal as well as the oral presentation together. Although we distributed the workload, we would always come back together and agree on things before we put everything together.

Our group was also able to collaborate effectively through the use of wiki.NUS. With the wiki, it seemed as if our group did not even have the need for face-to-face meetings as we were able to upload our materials on to the wiki platform anytime. It was easy to use and organise as well. However, not all technologies are without shortcomings. Once, our group typed out a Chinese version of our sample survey questions and we forgot to save a copy on our hard disks. In the end, the Chinese copy of the survey was literally ‘lost in translation’ as wiki.NUS does not support Chinese characters. Although wiki.NUS had a function which restores previously saved files, we did not manage to recover the lost file.

We started doing our surveys early and managed to gather a large sample size through a period of 9 days. I was glad that my group mates were very honest in the conduct of the survey as that would aid us greatly in the analysis of the survey results. We met up for several discussions before finalising our ideas and suggestions for our proposal of implementing rooftop gardens. With the help of Dr Radhika, we realised the need to narrow the scope of our proposal in order to be focused in tackling a specific problem.

I remember a time when all three of us were stressed out near week 10 and our group suffered from a miscommunication when compiling the proposal draft for peer review. However, we were able to sort out our misunderstandings quickly so that our group was able to work cohesively again to produce a seamless proposal.

I definitely would not have been able to take on this project myself. Three is always better than one. Doing project in a group might seem like a hassle, but the inconveniences pay off. Group members help to criticise one another’s work and sift out errors. Doing the project in a group also meant that the workload is shared. I would have burnt out in my course of studies if I were to do this project alone.

I really enjoyed working together with Seow Peng and Yijie. Both of them are hardworking and reliable group mates. As both of them worked in NParks before, they contributed several valuable insights with regard to implementing a rooftop garden and foresaw several problems to our proposal before they arose. Thus, we managed overcome these potential problems and produce a ‘wholesome’ and complete proposal.

Although I did not know Yijie before I took this module, I quickly found out that she was an amiable person who gets along with others very easily. Sometimes she’s a bit quiet, but she is a really helpful person. Seow Peng is also very helpful. There was a time when both of them knew I was busy and offered their time to do part of what was allocated to me. Although the workload of this project was slightly heavy, I am sure we enjoyed the working process.

In conclusion, all of us in ES2007S still have a long way to go in being professional and effective presenters. Our learning will never end. However, taking ES2007S was definitely a good start. Through its non-exhaustive materials, the module has thoroughly equipped us with basic social and communication skills that are essential for communicating effectively and professionally in the working world. Thank you Dr Radhika for tutoring us and for being so patient with us. Thank you!

Dr Radhika and I

Reflections on Oral Presentation

The oral presentation for ES2007S was one of the few times in my NUS life in which I had to do a presentation. As compared to the peer teaching, this time was slightly different as it was more formal. From the peer teaching experience, Dr Radhika said that I knew my content well, distributed my eye contact evenly and projected my voice well. Hence, I continued to make sure that I maintained these qualities during the oral presentation as well.

On our way to the Oral Presentation. Go Go Green Garden Group!

Although my classmates remained the same from the peer teaching, the “audience” was different, and every presentation has to be catered specifically to the audience. If I had any “take homes”, it would be that I learnt how to be focused in my presentation. I learnt that every good presentation has to be able to sum up into a sentence. That kept our presentation on track. I also learnt that, if we wanted to deliver a strong and convincing presentation, we have to keep the ‘meat’ of our presentation compact. As such, certain details like case studies were left out and only important ideas remained our presentation. Quoting Garr Reynolds, an effective professional presenter, he said “Eat only until 80% full”. He meant that we should not bore our audience with details after details but give them enough to leave them thirsting for more.

Dr Radhika gave good and encouraging comments to our presentation, and it really boosted my self-confidence in public speaking, provided I was well-prepared. Her positive comments let me know that our preparation for the oral presentation itself did not go wrong. Actually, I thought that the comments given by Dr Radhika might be a little too generous. She could have been more critical of our presentation, as I thought that there were still areas that we could improve.

Working with my group mates was fun because both of them were always so cheerful. However, we might have been a little too tardy with work on the presentation, as slides were only readied less than 2 days before the presentation. However, I am sure each of us has put in huge amounts of thought and effort into creating an engaging and interesting presentation before sending to me for compilation. I, being a slight perfectionist myself, put myself in charge of the consistency of the slides, in terms of alignment and font colours. I was picky about the nitty-gritty details I found on the presentation of other groups and I realized my group would not be spared from the chopping board either. Other than that, I thought that the flow of the presentation was quite smooth. This was probably because that problem had already been overcome in our project proposal. All in all, I would say that our group efforts paid off.

Thank you Dr Radhika for teaching us and guiding us, and thank you Yijie and Seow Peng for bearing with my late work. Thank you to all my class mates for being such friendly and supportive people, always giving friendly and constructive comments. J

Intercultural Observation Exercise

There is an economical rice stall near my house which I frequent. The stall is run by mostly Chinese (PRC) here on a work permit and a few Singaporean Chinese. Just last week, while I was queuing up for food at that stall, there were only two Chinese (PRC) workers around – one cooking and one serving. In front of me was a Singaporean Indian in his 30s, while another man before him was ordering several packets of food.

Here comes the problem. As the Chinese worker thought that the previous person had finished his order, he motioned to the Indian man for his order, saying “Hello. Hello”. Obviously, the Chinese (PRC) worker could not speak English and neither could the Indian man speak Chinese. But as the Indian man ordered a takeaway packet, the person at the front of the queue requested for more packets of rice. The Chinese worker had no choice but to continue serving him instead of the Indian. The Indian man got upset and hurled expletives in Hokkein at the Chinese (which he understood). In his angst, the Indian man even discriminated the Chinese (PRC), emphasizing that they were foreigners and did not belong here.

I thought: What made the Indian man so angry? Was it because he was impatient? Even if he was, there was no need for such vulgar language and becoming so rude. I felt hurt that he was disturbing the racial and cultural harmony we have in Singapore. However, I perceived that he had several preconceived assumptions about the Chinese (PRC) who are working in Singapore. Some of them might be:

1) You don’t speak my language (English or Tamil)

2) You are not Singaporean – you do not belong here

3) You are just a worker, I am the customer and I am always right

4) You are inferior, I can swear at you and walk away with it

Thus, offense was taken when the Indian man was provoked and could find no common ground between the Chinese worker and himself.

I think the Chinese workers were definitely hurt emotionally because the other worker who was cooking wanted to swear back at the Indian man but he had already walked away. I am certain that this was not the first time the Chinese workers have encountered such situations because sometimes, Singaporeans, in general, can be very rude. In response to this, I observed that they have learnt to compromise in such situations and to control their feelings in order to serve other customers that patronize their stall with a wide smile.

When the Indian man swore at the Chinese workers, there was no doubt that he might have had a certain sense of ‘safety’ because he would not feel threatened being a part of the majority (being a Singaporean). Well, as they say, there is safety in numbers. However, I felt that what he did was wrong in that he was condemning and discriminating those from different cultures and background just because they were the minority in Singapore.

If you witnessed this situation, how would you feel? Why do you think the Indian man acted this way?

Application Letter Critique

Here is draft 2 of my application letter. I have excluded my personal details for obvious reasons.

9 FEBRUARY 2011

SGS TESTING AND CONTROL SERVICES SINGAPORE PTE LTD

26 AYER RAJAH CRESCENT, #03-07

SINGAPORE 139944

To whom it may concern:

QA Chemist – Oil, Gas & Chemical Lab, Job Reference APAC00187

I am enclosing my CV in response to the job opening for a QA Chemist in the oil, gas & chemical laboratory. As a QA chemist I am seeking to support and maintain the quality systems and instruments in the laboratory with diligence, to conduct detailed inter-department quality audits with and to offer non-comprising quality assurance to clients.

I have recently graduated from the National University of Singapore with an Honours degree in Chemistry. I have in-depth knowledge in chemistry and have experience using chemical machines. I have proper knowledge of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) as well as of laboratory safety regulations. These are specific skills and specialized expertise that meet the requirements you are looking for.

As the demands of the chemical market are ever-changing, I understand the need to formulate new quality assurance strategies for clients. I believe that my research studies in my Honours year have thoroughly equipped me with the skills required to innovate new ideas and implement new strategies. Being able to complete my degree with Honours has trained me to be determined and resilient through the course of my academic studies and I am sure these attributes will help me to overcome the new challenges of working with SGS.

Having supported myself through my tertiary studies with part-time jobs while handling the high workload of NUS, I have learnt to manage my priorities as well as to excel under stress. I have also learnt to be able to work favourably with my peers and professors to achieve and complete the tasks on hand. I believe that these qualities that follow me to the workplace will help me adapt quickly and to be able to tie up amiable working relations with both clients and colleagues alike.

SGS is an established international organization with offices in several different countries. I would find working with SGS to be very rewarding and challenging. I do hope that you will look favourably at my application and I look forward to hearing from you.

Respectfully Yours,

Liew Yong Qiang

Resolving Interpersonal Conflict

This particular incident occurred between me and a close friend of mine, K. Both of us are leaders in a percussion group. Part of our duty is to teach the members how to play certain sequences or songs. The previous weekend, I taught at the practice session while K was in Kuala Lumpur.

A few days later, we were together in the studio when one of the members, J, reflected to K, saying “Hey, did you know that Yong Qiang asked us to write down a sequence using that technical counting method? I think none of the other members understood what he said *lor”, attempting to make a joke out of it.

Reacting, K shouted across to me, asking “Why did you teach them that?! It will only be a waste of time! I think the only person in our group who documents a sequence in such a manner is only you!!!”

I was irked. “I’m not going to talk to you about this”, I said in a dejected manner. K further shouted, “Why are you reacting like this? J is providing constructive feedback. As a leader, you should take it positively!” I wanted to rebut, but changed my mind as I knew that doing so would turn the conversation into an argument. As such, I brought myself a distance further away from them and sat down to think through the things that he said.

After about five minutes, with well-constructed thoughts, I approached both K and J. I explained that my focus was not to teach the technical information but primarily for the members to write down the sequence in order, lest they forget. This helped to clear up the misunderstanding. I also elaborated on the teaching structure for that weekend and how I felt I had taught to the best of my ability and helped overcome the problems faced by the members. When K tried to interrupt, I urged him to let me finish speaking before he responded.

I felt that K did not understand the full picture before giving his opinions. Explaining my point of view to him helped to clear up the preconceived ideas he had of me. Although K was right that I should receive feedback positively, the strong and assertive tone he used in putting across his words had instead upset me. This reinforces the statement that it is not what you say, but how you say it that matters.

J should also have channeled his feedback to me directly, rather than to another person. This would definitely have had a more positive effect on me.

Reflecting on this incident, I realized that my immediate responses to such adverse situations are uncontrolled and it portrays a side of me that is reacting negatively to the speaker. There is usually a delay before I can control my emotions and manage my thoughts. This is a weakness which I have to constantly improve on because my emotional capacity will definitely be tested in the future.

Now for the question: How well do you think that you will handle your emotions and not let them fly when your close friend is providing constructive feedback to you though in a harsh and assertive tone?

*lor is a slang term used widely in Singapore to assert a statement and usually carries with it a sense of resignation or dismissiveness

Why Effective Communication?

As I grew and matured over the years, I became more aware of myself and my surroundings. I started to take heed of my own actions and tone of speech towards others. At the same time, I observed many differing responses from people, both verbal and non-verbal, to the way I interacted with them. As I asked for reasons why some have reacted irksomely or felt uncomfortable being around me, it dawned on me that positivity and sensitivity are two important aspects of good communication.

No one likes being around dull and pessimistic people, neither do they enjoy the company of a person who often speaks negative words to put people down. As such, I have learnt to make use of positive facial expressions and tone to make a conversation more friendly and engaging. Smiling, adopting a positive posture and making eye-contact are some of the non-verbal communication techniques that I have picked up. Little did I know these skills span from a wider and more holistic approach to effective communication which I will discover in ES2007S.

Being sensitive in speech is important. After all, I speak (or type) from conviction that it is not what you say, but how you say it that matters. Being sensitive also means being an active listener in conversations. Learning to communicate effectively increases my conscious capacity to understand others first before putting across my ideas and opinions, thereby helping me to be a better leader and teacher in the future.

I am definitely looking forward to more lessons in Professional Communication! ;)

Comic relief drawn by a friend of mine who speaks in animal language and calls me flamingo :p