That’s fast. 12 weeks
of ES2007S classes just flew by. I remembered the first day of class. I walked
in expecting some normal tutorial style class. Instead, I was handed a piece of
paper, ‘Communication icebreaker- Finding
someone who....’ We had to circulate around the room, introduce yourself
personally and then find someone who fits the characteristics on that paper and
ask appropriate questions on it. This clearly got me out of my comfort zone.
There were so many strangers in the room and I had to walk up to them and
personally introduce myself. Nervously, I manage to know 10 classmates. At
this point, I thought this is not going to be just another module.
From that day since I
first step into Es2007S class till today, these strangers have become friends
and I have learnt lots of things from Brad and everyone in this module.
I have learnt how to
deliver an engaging oral presentation. Though I am not 100% confident yet, I am
definitely making progress. I am glad that we had many presentations. It
allowed me to get out of my comfort zone. It gave me a chance to practice organizing
my thoughts before speaking, something that I struggle with before.
As an engineering
student, I rarely have the opportunity to write. Even if I did, it will always
be accompanied with equations and drawings. Blogging gave me an opportunity to
express my thoughts. I had to learn how to be courtesy, correct, conscious,
clear, coherent, concrete and complete (7Cs).
These certainly improve my writing.
Another major takeaway
from this module was learning to communicate effectively. I have learnt to be
more aware of my non verbal expressions. Clearly, we shouldn't underestimate
the power of non-verbal communication.
One of the highlight
of this course was the mock interviews. Unlike the usual career centre course
that I took, this module offered a chance for us to put what we have learnt
into practice. In fact, role playing as an interviewer for the first day helped
me prepare for a real internship interview later that day. It gave valuable
insights of what a HR team will be looking for in an interview.
Having learnt a lot
from this module though feedback from everyone, I am confident that I am
better prepared for life after graduation. In fact, I have been able to communicate
better with my peers now. Thank you everyone!
I would like to thank
my project proposal groupmates, Michelle, Sofie and Zhiwei for the fantastic learning journey together. I have learnt a lot from three of you.
Last but not least, I would like
to thank Brad. I have enjoyed this module though your enthusiasm. Thank you for
creating an open environment where it is easy to exchange opinions and ideas in
class. I always find the opinions shared in class interesting (that’s one of the
reasons why I like to listen instead). The critical and constructive comments you
give in an encouraging tone certainly helped in the learning process.
This will definitely not
be the end of my journey on learning to communicate effectively. There is still so
much more to learn. Till then ‘Fake it until you become it’.
All the best for the
finals everyone! Take care!
