Final Reflections On Learning

Every hello ends with a goodbye.

My dearest classmates, 

This is the 6th time I would be writing on this blog and the last. It has been a good 13 weeks and now it's time for us to part.  But before I do, I would like to relate some of my thoughts, most of which I have been saving for a very long time.  

Along the long narrow pathway to our class leads to a small open window," the light at the end of the tunnel" I would often think to myself. How apt, given the fact that I had enrolled in such a class for the quest for enlightenment. I had never been one to look out of windows but there was something captivating about that window. I can't put a finger on why the window was so special , heck! I cannot even remember the outlines of the window. Was it brown or black? I guess I would never find out. Perhaps it was the way the light shone in and how it fell on the cold hard ground. I found myself falling into its gravity. Whenever I was early, before anyone came, I would stand at that very window, looking out .And as I stood there staring out, i would hear the laughter's from Dr Radhika 's earlier class punctuating the otherwise quiet hallway.

 I did a little thinking at that window. What these weeks meant and how far I've come.  I vividly remembered my first presentation(Dry Run on listening skills) and how it was a complete disaster , I clutched on to a piece of paper, nervously shaking and simply reading out what I had written . The subsequent presentation by Edwin, Ka Yan and Kristie hit the final nail on the coffin.  They were spectacular compared to our performance! My heart sank, it was only the first few weeks and they were already so good.  How am I able to catch up?

Quickly, I convinced myself that ample preparation was key, and I promised I would never let that happen to me again.

For the actual peer teaching , the preparation phase was a breeze. I had known Clarence prior to this class and Xue Hui was very accommodating to our suggestions. We prepared way in advanced and conducted rehearsals to prepare ourselves for the actual presentation.  And it showed in our peer teaching ;we were generally more confident and received positive feedback. For the first time in my life , I thought I might actually be good at this.

The proposal group was a different story. We were meshed into a whole new group with different people. I was worried about the group dynamics given that i had never worked with anyone of them before. The first discussion was quite intimidating , when all of them started taking out their notepads and laptops and starting writing/typing away at our discussion points.  But my fear was unfounded and they turned out to be amazing teammates. In my opinion, Yi Bei was like the leader of the group giving us the much needed direction and scope of discussion, you could always count on her to make the right decision at the right time. Ka Yan was always there to give her insightful analysis on the said topic. And we have Bernice who always went the extra mile(editing/compiling) to make sure everything worked out for the group.

But it wasn't always smooth sailing, I recalled an occasion when there was a conflict of ideas. We were debating on whether it would be better to target our proposal to the Ministry or to the School officials. When asked for my opinion on the matter I sat on the fence. Clearly I didn't want to offend anybody. To me the choice was irrelevant and either would have worked out the same.

A couple of weeks later Dr Radhika spoke about Submissive/Assertive/Aggressive behaviours and I quickly indentified myself deferring more towards the submissive. Like the video shown last Friday, this behaviour most certainly doesn't offend anybody, but it most certainly doesn't get anything done.   For that I am rather apologetic to my group for the times I should have been more assertive.

This has been an exhilarating journey . I believe we can all be proud of what we have done together in these short 13 weeks and how far we have come. ES2007S has been more than just a module ; for the first time in a long while it felt like I was in an actual class, with actual classmates I could put a name to a face. I have met wonderful people along the way and have made many friends from around the world.   

To my classmates, Edwin,Dinah , Andy, Xuehui , Kristie , Madhav , Akaash , Bernice , Yi bei , May-ee , Jasmine , Isabel , Xie Xin , Clarence , all the best for this semester and see you around in school.

Juan, Tobi and Ka Yan, Thank you for being with us for the last 13 weeks, and sharing with us your culture and experiences. I hope your trip to Singapore had been an enjoyable one and i wish you all the best in your future endeavours.

To Dr Radhika, Thank you for engaging us students and prompting us whenever we feel inadequate to speak out.  Thank you for your patience and understanding throughout the past 13 weeks. We really do appreciate it.

Goodbye and god bless.

Goodbye and god bless.

Goodbye and god bless.

Yours sincerely,

Yechuan. :)

Reflection On Oral Presentation

“And let me just cover one more slide before I let you go” Beamed the professor. 

Quickly I glance over at the digital wall clock mounted just above where I was seated. “ 11.50”, it read.  One more slide? Doesn’t she know I have the biggest presentation of my academic semester to deliver? Perhaps I should sneak out, because if I knew what her “ one more slide” meant it would mean being really late. Quickly I glanced back to plan out my escape route, but I saw that it was no good , I  was seated too near the front and I would cause too much of a disturbance. Resigning to my fate, I sat down on my seat and waited until she released us.

Needless to say I was flustered and only arrived in class at 12.15 PM. Despite the initial rattle , the familiar faces of my classmates calmed my nerves down.  Upon seeing the excellent performance of the earlier group, I had a glimpse on how a good presentation should be like. I took note of their inflection and tone and made a concerted effort to emulate their good points.

*Flashback*

Due to our conflicting time schedule we had only managed to squeeze in one rehearsal prior to the actual presentation. However we made sure we covered good ground during the short time we had.  We collated our slides and mutually agreed upon the fonts and background. Due to the lack of time we had to practise our parts on our own. During the preparation phase I was contemplating on whether I should bring up cue cards to jolt my memory in the event that I forget. Hearing horror stories on presenters freezing up after forgetting their lines from Ka Yan most certainly didn't help. But at the same time I didn't want my cue cards to become a crutch. The thing about bringing up notes, is that there will always be the temptation to refer to them.

In the end I decided to ditch the cue cards, I convinced myself that I could always use the PowerPoint slides as a giant cue card, should the need to refer arise.

I decided to employ the "Story telling" presentation style with the intention to change mindsets on childbirth. Given the fact that the targeted audience would be mainly the school cohort; with the Provost included of course, i felt like the presentation need not be too stiff . Slides were chosen to be minimal with as few words as possible, with pictures to guide my presentation.  Initially, I was a little worried because being in engineering ,most of my presentations are centered about mathematics and science, and I had never done anything like that before.  

To pull it off, I had to craft a decent script and that took me longer than I had expected. But that wasn't even the hard part, I had to memorise the whole script!  The problem with memorizing scripts is that we tend to be robotic and regurgitate whatever we know, but it doesn't have to be the case if we remember to input our emotions , vary our tone and inflections. Often the audience won't remember what you say but they will always remember how you say it.

12.50 and it was our turn to present. Being the first speaker i felt the burden to set the mood of the whole presentation.  Thankfully things went without a hitch,(except for the glitchy handheld scroll-er that wouldn't seem to respond at times.) well until the middle of my presentation when I actually blanked out. Quickly I glanced at the screen for inspiration and thankfully it came and I was able to finish my part. 

Looking back, ample preparation was integral in carrying out a successful presentation, the many dry runs i conducted with myself gave me the confidence to present . However  there were a few things I could have improved upon. Firstly ,I could have spoken a little slower to let the message sink in with the audience, instead of rattling on and on. Secondly I could have adopted a better posture because I felt that I was slouching(after reviewing the video on IVLE).

In sum , I felt like our team had done well except for the fact that most of us were a little jumpy that day. Perhaps we let our nerves get the better of us sometimes.

Let me end off with a clip from an old movie. In this video we see the protagonist Chaplin giving a speech , if you notice really hard you can see him reading off a screen, but it doesn't matter because the way he delivers his message is really inspiring. Do watch it if you have the time.

Cheers!

Evaluating Intercultural Behaviour

I've always been under the impression that we lived in a culturally homogeneous society; for the most part of my life , I was brought up that way. We celebrate Christmas along with Chinese new year, a perfect mash of the yin and the yang's. Culturally , I identified myself as an ethnic Chinese but at the same time I exemplified western behavior.

I grew up on a staple diet of western television ; Power Rangers , The Mask  & Captain Planet to name a few, but at the same time was equally hooked on Korean , Taiwanese and Hong Kong dramas . Subliminally, cultural and societal norms were being hardwired into my make. For instance I know for a fact that the Americans call the tissue , Kleenex, and the plaster a band aid. I also know that they attend junior and high school in place of our primary and secondary school system all without stepping one foot on the American soil. But in spite of the many things I know , there are a lot more things that I'm ignorant about.

I recalled a trip I had with my family to Hanoi a couple of years back. Upon clearing the customs I was tasked with bringing the luggages to the allocated bus waiting for us at the depot, while my parent and my sister went to exchange money at the local money changer. As I was pulling or some might say dragging the many luggage towards the bus about 300 metres away; evidently struggling.  A young Vietnamese boy upon seeing my plight quickly dashed over to where I was.

" Do you need any help sir?" he asked empathetically.

I could have sworn I saw an angel that day, or perhaps it was the blistering heat that made me see things.

"Yes... please" I said as I pointed towards the bus to what must have been a kilometer away.

He caught my gist, Enthusiastically he picked up 2 of the 3 luggage that I was dragging and carried it towards the bus.

"oh my, what a friendly and helpful kid." I thought to myself, " he must have had really good upbringing!".

Upon reaching the bus , I made it a point to thank that boy profusely. But the young man just stood there and kept starring at me the whole time like he was expecting something more.

Wasn't I sincere enough? Perhaps he expected a hug?

I smiled awkwardly at him ,clearly at a lost on what to do next. The bus driver soon caught on to what was happening and signaled to me by rubbing his fingers together.

" Oh money!" I gasped, perhaps a little too loud.

I hurriedly sunk my hands into my back pocket to reach for my wallet, but all I could find was a lone USD$100 note which my mum had handed to me before we landed. Most reluctantly , I handed over that sole note that I had.  

What I later found out was that it was customary for the locals to help out tourists at the airport  for a small fee . Whereas in Singapore it would be considered touting; which is illegal in Singapore.

But I took away an important lesson that day , that we should always strive to be culturally aware especially when you are in foreign territory. I had made the assumption that I was all knowing about the world but boy was I wrong. It was truly a humbling experience to say the least!

Cultural Self Awareness

You are who you think you are, because somewhere along the way ,someone told you that in the first place! Likewise we practice certain cultures not because we are of that culture, or from that culture but because along the way someone handed it down to you. Culturally I'm an ethic Chinese, but I do not practise all of the Chinese culture. Sure, I do celebrate Chinese new year like the rest of the Chinese populace but compared to my Chinese counterparts from the rest of the world , there is a noticeable difference in the way I act or carry myself. It then begs the question, does that make me any less of a Chinese? Am I who I am because of my culture? Who defines what should be the proper Chinese culture anyway? To be honest I do not have all the answers. But if I had one , culture isn't just something you do or act; it goes deeper than that. At the end of the day, it is a mindset.

Knowledge of cultural worldview frameworks

As earlier elucidated in the above paragraphs , I had thought that I was all knowing about the world. But alas was I wrong! What I realized is that we cannot know everything. But this is no excuse to stay ignorant, especially in light of our technological advancement and the prevalence of the world wide web as a medium and source of information.

Empathy

We tend to view the world through our own colored lens. Looking at a white piece of paper through our red lens we assume that the paper is red. Along the way , another person looks at the same piece of paper through a yellow lens and inevitably a scuffle ensues between both parties. Who is right? well , neither is because the paper is white. Similarly  our perspective on world issues are tainted with an invisible coloured lens - depending on the way you are brought up ,and largely in part, influenced by your culture. What we should do then, is to take a step into the other parties shoe and try to think from his/her perspective. Perhaps we might even see the white paper in the end.

Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication

Different cultures have different distinct communication styles. Even down to a simple greeting, in Singapore we generally shake hands, whereas in certain parts of Asia, like Japan , Korea and Myanmar they bow . While these medium of communication may be different , their intended message are the same.  I recalled a situation i encountered while i was working in an engineering firm , The regional manager from America had just flown into Singapore for a meeting, after the meeting ended, the Manager went round the meeting room to shake everybody's hands. When it came to my colleague from Myanmar she bowed instead of shaking his hands, leaving his hand hanging . It was a really awkward moment to say the least. To me, it felt a little rude.  I couldn't understand then, why she couldn't reciprocate his gesture, after all it was just a simple handshake. I later found out from her that a bow was considered more respectful than a handshake.

Curiosity & Openness

I have always been relatively receptive to peoples culture , perhaps being in Singapore, a land of many cultures have honed that about me. But whist evaluating this portion I do recognize that I'm not a very proactive person, as in I do not actively seek out different people to hold a conversation with. I'm happy to observe from a distance and draw my inference from there. 

Application Letter / Resume

Tong Yechuan
53 Sunset Drive
Singapore 876543

September 16 , 2012

11 Biopolis Way

#10-10 Helios

Singapore 138667

Dear HR Manager,

I am writing to express my interest in Joining Bruker AXS Singapore for the position of Service engineer as advertised on Jobstreet.

The job description of a service engineer is a challenging one. However I trust that my background and strong technical knowledge in the field of Engineering will make me a very suitable candidate for the post.

Prior to my undergraduate days at NUS, I was working part time as a Sales Engineer at Gauging & Automation Pte Ltd. During my time at Gauging, I was exposed to various technical products, from ultrasonic clamp on flow meters to oil on water level detection systems. Being in the front line as a sales engineer I am required to be well versed technically, on the various engineering products that we carry.  Despite being fresh in the sales scene, I did not disappoint ,and was able to meet my employer’s sales target every single month. Being a sales Engineer meant that daily interaction with clients were unavoidable , effective communication skills were integral in carrying out my role successfully . I am also effectively bilingual , with strong spoken command of Both English and Mandarin.  

Additionally my two years experience as a Combat Engineer in the Singapore Armed Forces has expanded my horizon on engineering military hardware. Being a Bridging operator , I have had firsthand experience  on handling various engineering military equipment. My two years in the Army has taught me how to work with people from all walks of life ,especially on how to work in teams. I am very honored to have had received the accolade of company best solider during my service.

I find this job post very enticing and am excited, at the prospects of the opportunity to receive training overseas.  Should you find me suitable, do contact me at 123@nus.edu.sg ,alternatively you may call me at 91234567 to schedule a interview.

Warmest Regards,

Yechuan.  

Education:

2nd Year Undergraduate at NUS School of Engineering ;Pursing a degree in Electrical Engineering.

Prior Qualifications Includes 'A' and' O' level Certifications. Taken At SRJC and ACS respectively.

·    National University of Singapore (Engineering)

·    Serangoon Junior College (Science)
-Class Representative
-1st Runner up Tchoukball 'A' Division

·    Anglo Chinese School (Barker) (Pure Sciences)

·    St Patrick's Secondary School
- Represented School in Basketball 'C' Division

·    St Andrew's Junior School

May 2012-August 2012 

Future Electronics Pte Ltd

Warehouse Assistant

· Perform daily packing activities such as weighing, wrapping, sealing and labeling an extensive range of electronic component parts by hand
· Responsible for filling the packing list for customers and sending out finished packaged cartons of electronic components
· Fill in reject tags for non-conforming parts detected
· Ensure using proper packaging material and pack in the most economical way
· Fill in packing lists for customers
· Ensure that customer labels are pasted on the right shipping carton
· Assist with ad-hoc urgent shipments

Feb 2011-August 2011 

Gauging & Automation Pte Ltd

Sales Engineer

•          Sales of Chart Paper, Pens & Spare Parts ( Graphic Control, UK )
•         Pressure, Flow, Temperature Recorders.         Turbine meters, Flow Computers, Thermowell  ( Cameron USA/UK )
•          Pressure ,Temperature Gauges  ( Rototherm UK )
•          Responsible for drafting up purchase orders ( SO) , Order confirmations ( CO )& Performa Invoices.
•          Liaise with our supplier to get the best lead time for our end  user.
•          Load and  unload the goods & repackage it if necessary once it arrives in our storage room.
•          Conduct Bi-monthly Stock take.
•          Ordering inventory
•          Responsible for the sale of  Engineering products, to advise & to liaise with end user on the correct Specifications to be used.

April 2009- Feb 2011 

Singapore Armed Forces

Combat Engineer

•         Bridging Combat Engineer Pioneer ( Corporal )
•         IPPT Gold ( 2009,2010)

•       M16 Marksman( 2009 )
•        SAR21 Marksman (2010)
•         SAF Class 3/4/M3G license.
•         Responsible for the operation and  maintenance of the $4 million M3G.
•        Doubled up as an Anchorage Pioneer to do bank preparations during exercise.

December 2009-April 2009 

Gauging & Automation Pte Ltd

Accounts Assistant

• Handle multi currencies' Accounts Receivable/Payable
• Issue of Debit and Credit Notes
• Update daily receipts and journals
• Monitor and follow up on aging invoices
• Cold Call Prospective customers to arrange for an appointment on behalf of the sales engineers.
• Arrange for interviews on behalf of MD.
• Any other tasks assigned by superior

Familiar With A21 Evo Accounting System.

Interpersonal Conflict

"Don't apologise! Your Sorries are cheap!" He Barked.

At that moment everyone must have been staring at her as she quickly ducked her head into the cubicle to dodge her colleagues inquisitive eyes.

I didn't know what she had done wrong this time , other than his intense hate towards foreigners - all she could do was to apologise.

Just two days earlier I had saw J crying secretly in the pantry, I knew who had made her cry again. It was none other than that detestable Mr X !

Mr X was a very valuable client of ours , oh so very generous but oh so very nasty. He was notorious  for picking on foreigners in our office. Unfortunately J was tasked to service his account. And he made sure her life was a living hell; nip picking on every little thing she did.

That day was the final straw, I insisted that she handed that account over to me to handle. I thought that I was doing her a favour, ridding her of a pest.

But she had misinterpreted my intentions as an indication of her inability to handle a client.

"Enough! Why does everyone think so little of me? I am more than capable of taking care of myself. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!" She exclaimed! Much to my surprise.

I wasn't ready for her sudden outburst. Granted ,I wasn't looking for gratitude but I felt her misguided anger was unwarranted.

"Fine ill never bother about you again!", I said as I turned to leave, evidently annoyed by her accusation. As I turned , I saw her face changed to an apologetic demeanour, perhaps realising then that her remarks were undue.  She reached out her hand to stop me from leaving but I brushed it off coldly.

   

I didn't even give her a chance to explain or perhaps apologise , I had justified that she needed to feel sorry for what she had said.   

After that day I was guilt stricken from the fact that I should have been more understanding.  What followed were awkward meetings as neither party knew if it was the right time to apologise and if the apologies would be reciprocated.

There was about three weeks to my last day of work. During that period, it was of my greatest wish to resolve the issue before I left. But alas I couldn't bring myself to do it and neither could she.

In retrospect had I been more forbearing and had attempted to resolve the issue there and then, it wouldn't have escalated to such levels. What do you think i could have done differently, to prevent such a situation from happening?

A wise man once told me  "time will heal all wounds " , his perhaps , but not mine.

Effective Communication

Much has been said of the need to communicate effectively, it is perhaps of man's innate nature to communicate, after all no man is an island. Communication is not only limited to the professional setting but in our every day lives, even as we interact with our friends and family. Communication therefore is a skill that we all have to master in our lives. 

As a toddler, had Usian Bolt stopped training as soon as he learned to walk he probably wouldn't be the fastest man alive today.

Likewise knowing how to communicate is not enough , the key is to learn how to communicate effectively.

I remember vividly a badminton game I had with a friend. From the way he served the shuttlecock, i already knew I had the game in the bag. Similarly when communicating, people can usually tell what kind of a conversation they are getting themselves into from your opening lines. We want the first few words that come flowing out of our mouth to be refreshing, unique and special. We want our audience to be captivated and recognize how insightful we are.

Last Semester during a tutorial for one of the Singapore studies module, I was seated amongst the history majors, we were told to discuss in our small groups on why the development state model for Singapore was an apt one; that drove me absolutely crazy because everyone felt like they had to prove it in 30 words or less. I was no exception and I hastily rushed an explanation. Needless to say i made a complete fool out of myself. But I took away an important lesson that day; if it doesn't make any sense in your head it probably sounds a lot worse out loud.

Communication is a two way process with a speaker and a listener, but more often than not the focus is usually on the speaker. But for communication to be truly effective, the listener plays a vital role as well.

Last January I attended a friend's 21th birthday party. At the party I noticed one of my friend engaging in a very lively conversation with an individual he had just met. When it was time to call it a night I asked him if they had hit it off. He told me that it was probably one of the more engaging conversation he has had in a long time. Curious on who the other party was I went on to ask questions about her, but to my surprise he knew nothing about her; where she was from, where she studied, absolutely nothing!

"Then what did you talk about?" i questioned.

"err... about me?" he answered bashfully, perhaps only realising then that he had been the focus of attention the whole time. "She listened to what i had to say and we carried on from there...".

I learnt two things that night, the importance of making the audience the spotlight and the importance of listening. Indeed, when we take our time to listen fully instead of trying to compose an immediate response is that when we do respond we are more able to give a suitable answer. What we say when do is proof of how well we have listened.