Final Reflection on Learning

13 weeks ago, I was sceptical about taking ES2007s. I was doubtful on whether I could manage the workload for the module given that I was in the last lap of my race with my Final Year Project(FYP) and other modules hounding me. Today, however, I should say that I have no regrets having taken the module. It has shaped my verbal, non verbal skills and knowledge in so many ways that I think I would have regretted it if I left NUS without taking it. Most modules nowadays attempt to make you a good presenter and a good team player but what ES2007s did to me was much more than that. It made me a person with assertiveness.

I have always been submissive. I used to believe that saying "no" to someone was really unkind. I used to help my schoolmates with their assignments such that I soon became the "ask for help" person. I was taken advantage of. Taken advantage to do their homeworks and projects. One lesson in ES2007s on assertiveness opened my eyes to the possibility that I was being submissive. I realised that because I was constantly meek, many people took the chance to make use of me. They used me to get their school work done, they used me to get their projects done, they used me to get their errands done. I realised that maybe it was time I started being assertive. I started standing my ground and saying no to people.

The change from then was profounding, the pressure on me to do someone else's work was lesser, the pressure on me to share my assignments for them to copy was lesser. It felt like I had a mind of my own and a voice of my own. I still remember Dr Radhika saying during my group's discussion on how it was important to find your voice in this world. That line struck a cord and today, I think I have found my voice and my stand. The fact that I learnt this before my entry to the workplace has indeed been the biggest gift that ES2007s has bestowed on me:) For that, I am truly grateful for having taken the module.

Reflection on Oral Presentation

"It takes one hour of preparation for each minute of presentation time"-Wayne Burgraff

An oral presentation is one that puts forth a proposal in speech. Negelecting the nitty gritty details in a proposal, a presentation is one that attempts to catch the attention of an audience with visuals. To present a proposal in a persuasive manner is an art to be mastered. The art of persuasive presentation is one that comes with constant practice. Today, when I sit down to reflect on my group's presentation, I know that each of us have attempted in our own ways to master the art of presentation. We have come a long way, all the way from small bickerings on the topic to choose for the proposal to an eloquent and persuasive presentation. The hardwork of all my team members shone through on that day. Honestly, I would say that all of us showed improvements in presenting our ideas. I personally felt that I learnt three things while preparing for my presentation showdown on monday. 

“In presentations or speeches less really is more” ― Stephen Keague, The Little Red Handbook of Public Speaking and Presenting

Firstly, less is definitely more when it comes to presentations. I learnt that visuals should not be distracting, they should be simple and they should aid the reader in understanding what you have to say. They are an aid to your presentation, you had to be your presentation. In that way, I would say that the slides that my group used for the presentation were apt. They had few words, many pictures and they were to the point. 

“There is no such thing as presentation talent, it is called Presentation Skills”-David JP Phillips

Secondly, I learnt that practice is the key to a good presentation. Memory is secondary, what is primary is practice. My group practiced several times before the presentation. We ensured that we synced as a group and we did our part as individual presenters. I used to believe that presentation was a talent but I learnt that in fact, anyone can be a good presenter with practice. That practice slowed me down and gave me the chance to convey the message to my audience. I learnt that at the end of the day, my presentation should enlighten the audience, not leave them in a mess and to do that, I had to start with speaking slowly.

“Top presenters have total control of their fears. They make fear their slave, not the master."-Doug Malouf

Lastly, I would say that the biggest fear I overcame through these practices was the fear of public speaking. I learnt that if you knew what you had to say, you need not fear of saying it in front of an audience. Knowledge is indeed a powerful tool to overcome your fears.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”― Mahatma Gandhi

Overall, I would say that my group's presentation was one that came with strengths and weaknesses. Whatever the case, the learning process to the presentation was the one that mattered and that process has strengthened us individuals in ways aplenty.

Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

A difference in culture is one that stems from the different ways in which people are brought up. The different upbringings cause people from different cultural contexts to react in different ways to a particular scenario.

The 5 "different"s in the previous paragraph stem from my own experience with intercultural communication. I used to associate intercultural communication and intercultural behaviour as something that occurs in a situation with people of different racial roots but I never thought that difference can exist within people of the same race. I always thought that I would face problems while communicating with people from China or people from France but little was I to know that I would face an intercultural scenario in India!

On my recent trip to India, I was faced with several intercultural scenarios and these scenarios taught me that intercultural behaviour happens everywhere. Given that I come from Singapore, my values and communication skills are very different from people in India. I believe that rubbish has to find its way to the dustbin, i.e. no littering. I believe in honesty and I have never thought of bribery as a way of getting things done. My beliefs placed me in a real awkward spot in India. When I was in India, I came across many instances when people littered. They threw their rubbish at their house entrance, they threw it at eating places, they threw it everywhere except the dustbin. And I used to complain loudly that rubbish was not to be thrown everywhere. Once when I was complaining, a guy who overheard me complain turned to me and scolded me for being petty. He told me off and asked me to keep my "high class" behaviour to myself. I was taken aback cause I felt that my behaviour was not "high class", it was being decent and appropriate. Since then, I have come to terms with the fact that people with different upbringings, and hence their cultural backgrounds(note: not racial), see things differently. And in different contexts, it would be more appropriate to adapt to the scenario than complain about it. As for me, I have started seeing littering as way of living in India and a no-no in Singapore.

Resume

Saraswathy D/O Gunasegaren        Mobile: +65 12345678 Email: mailmail@hotmail.com 

Education National University of Singapore (NUS) §  Bachelor of Engineering (Major in Bioengineering) § Expected Second Lower Class Honors §  Dean's list in 2011 Semester 1 §  Expected Date of Graduation: May 2013	Aug 09 – Present
Work Experience Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore Temporary Tax Assistant, Customer Service Officer (ETRS) & Call Centre §  Managed tax declaration forms (Individual and Property) §  Handled difficult phone calls with patience §  Assisted passengers in Changi Airport with their GST refund through the Electronic Tourist Refund Scheme(ETRS) and received compliments from 2 customers §  Changi airport group (CAG) certificate for customer service Kandang Kerbau Hospital (KKH) Temporary EEG Assistant §  Understood the nuances behind electroencephalogram and worked with EEG technologists and doctors to ease the EEG experience for patients §  Played with patients and got them to cooperate during the EEG SINDA Teacher §  Tutored 6-15 children aged between 7-12 in various subjects §  Taught lessons in a creative manner that garnered high success rate among students	March 2009-July 2009 May 2010-July 2010 May2011-July 2011 Jan –  March 2009   July 2012-present
Co-curricular Activities English Drama and Debate Society Member §  Participated in several plays and camps §  Roles in speech day plays Tamil Drama and Debate Society Member §  Participated in National drama camp SINDA Youth Leaders’ Programme (SYLP) §  Collaborated with Eden School to organize a carnival and walkathon for children with autism that has an expected turnout of 150 participants Volunteer with several organizations §  Assisted in goodie bag packing for the Children Cancer Foundation’s(CCF) “Hair for Hope” project §  Volunteered with Singapore Arts Festival in ushering duties §  Spearheaded a carnival in Nee Soon East Zone 1 Residential Committee(RC) that drew a crowd of 100 people	Jan– Dec 2005 May – Aug 08 Sept 2012-Present
Awards / Achievements §  National Debate 2005 & 2nd prize in Tamil Oratorical competition
Skills / Interest § Fluent in both written and spoken English and Tamil § Proficient in Microsoft Office § Basic Photoshop skills and C programming knowledge(FYP)

Application Letter Critique

15 February 2013

Block 123 Cover Road

#12-345

S123456

Mobile: +65 12345678

Email Address: mailmail@hotmail.com

HR manager

Human Resource Department

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore

55 Newton Road, Revenue House

S307987

                                                                                       

Dear Hiring Manager

Application for position of Senior Tax Officer (Enforcement Officer)

I am writing to express my interest as a Senior Tax Officer (Enforcement Division) with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) after attending your recruitment fair at the National University of Singapore(NUS).  I am expected to graduate from NUS with a 2^nd Lower Class Honours in Bioengineering in May 2013 . I am keen to start work as a Senior Tax officer in IRAS as it is a reputable government body that overseas the tax management in Singapore. 

As an engineering graduate, I have honed my analytical skills through the various projects and modules I have taken through my stint in NUS. My analytical mind and leadership qualities have rendered my team a constant A in design projects and group projects. Also, I am proud to be a good logistics personnel in my team projects as I keep track of project progress and project documents in an organized manner. I have also ventured to study modules outside of my line of discipline so that I will be an all-rounder. These modules have aided in improving my verbal and non verbal skills making me an effective communicator in the workplace.

During my stint with IRAS on 3 occasions, I have worked with various departments that includes the Individual Income Tax (IIT) Department, the Property Tax Department and the Good and Services Tax Department (GST). I worked as a customer service officer under the GST refund scheme in Changi Airport and I have a Changi Aiport Group(CAG) certificate on customer service. My stint in IRAS taught me the computation of taxes and customer service etiquettes that I believe will be pertinent for the position of Senior Tax Officer(Enforcement Officer).

Apart from academics, I also volunteer actively. Recently, I joined the Singapore Indian Developememt Association(SINDA) under a programme called the Sinda Young Leader’s Programme(SYLP). This programme allowed me to improve my leadership skills in a national level. As a team, my group in the programme spearheaded a carnival for children with Autism that saw a turnout of 150 Indians and Non Indians. I believe that these experiences will help me to become a better person in the workplace and the society.

I thank you for your time to review my application. I enclose my resume for your consideration. I look forward to a face-to-face interview with you to discuss my suitability for this position. I can be contacted at 12345678 or mailmail@hotmail.com at your convenience.

Yours sincerely,

Saraswathy(Ms)

Resolving Interpersonal Conflict

Working well in a team is a quality that is cherished upon in workplaces and schools alike. If you were to ask me, I would say that working with people is like making a coffee. You need to know that too much of sugar will make the coffee too sweet and too much of water will dilute the coffee. Similarly, being too understanding or outspoken might not work in your favour when working in a team. Just remember that working with people is not just about you, it is about a collective team effort. And when a team comes together, many things can go wrong. In the end, it is not the conflict that counts, it is the ability to resolve the conflict that is pertinent.

Speaking of conflicts reminds me of a group project I had in the first semester in Year 3. Everything was fine until one member of my team started taking the rest of us for granted. Let's just name this team member Y. Y was a good team member in the initial stages of the project but as our project progressed, Y stopped turning up for meetings. The rest of us, we sat down one day to talk about it and we reached a conclusion that it was time that we sent Y reminders of meetings. Although this idea was the best for the team in that situation, it didn't exactly work in my favour. As the assistant leader of the team, I was tasked with calling Y to remind him of meetings .This turned bad cause whenever I called Y, it appeared like I was nagging at him and picking on him. Our relationship got strained and the team started ostracizing Y and functioning without him.

Soon, Y realised that we were cold towards him and he proposed a meeting in person.  He said that he had a lot of activities outside of school and that he didn't have time for meetings. He promised to make time in the future. After that meeting, our group worked together. There were still instances when we felt that Y was not working hard but we got used to taking turns to remind him to do work. In my team's case, it was quite evident that communication was a problem. The lack of communication changed the team dynamics and it resulted in conflicts.With communication, we understood each other's schedules and differences. We got to working as a team, where we took turns to remind Y of meetings.In the end, my team got an award for best design presentation. I got my coffee, not perfect, but definitely one that was worth it. After all, a perfect coffee can only be achieved with practice.

Although the conflict was resolved amicably, things might have turned out different if we had decided otherwise in the initial stages of the project. What might have happened if we never resolved the conflict with Y?

Effective Communication

Communication is something that is second in nature to all of us. Sending countless text messages and electronic mails while waiting for the bus or train to arrive is not something new to many of us. While communication is easily what we do everyday, I believe that the word "effective" in "effective communication" changes the crux of the matter and takes communication to a whole new level. 

Effective communication, in my opinion, is the ability to depict one's ideas in a coherent manner that would elicit the appropriate response from the listener.  It is a pertinent tool to convey messages in professional and non-professional settings. While many of us can convey messages easily and effectively in the virtual world, we get stumped when communicating with someone face to face. Poor verbal cues and nonverbal cues take the better hold of us, pushing us into awkward scenarios during face to face communication, therefore highlighting the importance of effective communication in today’s world. Furthermore, the daily use of shorthands and Singlish in text messages makes us victims of ineffective communication in professional settings. While the correct usage of English is a platform for effective communication, I believe that effective communication can take place even with Singlish. 

A recent incident I witnessed at the wet market with a foodware vendor can help substantiate this. The foodware vendor’s choice of words when answering his customer took me by surprise. When one of his customers questioned him on the instructions on how to use the pan, he said,” Turn to your backside and look at the wording ah...” While his answer left me in a fit of laughter, his customers looked happy with the answer and left with a look of satisfaction. This is a clear example of how effective communication can be achieved even with Singlish. This example also depicts how the idea of effective communication varies from one to the other. A Caucasian with no prior experience with Singlish might have been totally flabbergasted with the vendor’s instruction but the aunties did not have a problem understanding the vendor. The vendor, in this scenario, effectively communicated his idea. Effective communication therefore cannot be limited to the use of proper English. Maybe, the aunties might not have understood the vendor if he used proper english. Maybe.