Final Reflection On Learning

Every hello ends with a goodbye.

This is the 4th and last time I will be writing on this blog. It has been a good 13 weeks going through this module; I have made new friends, learnt new skills and brought home valuable lessons.

I can still vividly remember my very first presentation for this module; the Emotional Intelligence presentation that served as a turning point for me. I usually do not like standing in front of a group and addressing them as a whole, but preparing for that presentation, and successfully executing it greatly boosted my self-confidence. It has definitely given me the courage to speak confidently to a group of people. I also came to the realization that ample preparation is the key to reducing stage fright, and this was indeed a most useful discovery.

For the actual peer teaching phase, the preparation was a breeze for Vanessa and I had known each other prior to the module and our working styles were somewhat similar, and we were quite accommodative of one another’s suggestions. We prepared well in advance and conducted rehearsal sessions to prepare ourselves for the actual presentation. The effort we put in was evident in our peer teaching; we were confident and engaging in terms of the class activity that we had prepared. For the first time in my life, I felt that I might actually be good at teaching and presenting.

The proposal project group was a different story altogether as I was grouped with people I had never worked with before, and I was naturally worried about the group dynamics. The first meeting was rather awkward, with me as the leader having to give instructions to a group of strangers. But my fears was unfounded as my team mates turned out to be amazing ones who never failed to support me.

But the journey was not always smooth-sailing. For example, I recall an occasion when there was a conflict of ideas. We were debating as to the various infrastructural issues that could be incorporated into our proposal, and could not come to a unanimous decision. It then became a tough decision for me because as the leader of the group I most certainly did not want to offend anybody with the decision I made.  For this, I am rather apologetic to my group for perhaps having been less assertive as a leader than I should have.

This has indeed been an exhilarating journey. I believe we can all be proud of what we have done together in these short 13 weeks. 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 classmates whose names I can put a face to. I am thankful to have met wonderful people along the way and have made some good friends.

To my classmates, Kok Soon, Jade, Yi Rui, Vanessa, Nguk Neng, Lu Xi, Yi Yan, Haikal, Jie Yang, Terance, Michelle and Basker, all the best for this semester and hope to see you guys around in school!

To Mdm Fazilah, thank you for taking care of us students, and encouraging and prompting us whenever we lacked the confidence to speak out. Thank you for your patience and understanding in guiding us throughout the past 13 weeks. We really appreciate it.

Reflection On Team-based Research Project Proposal

It has been quite awhile since I last worked on a group project and perhaps due in part to that, this team-based research project proposal has indeed been an enriching experience that has imparted useful skills that would no doubt be beneficial in the working environment. Not only have I gained some mastery as to writing a professional report, I have also learnt to communicate with others in a more effective manner and to lead a team in coming up with a project proposal. In addition, this project has imbued me with the sheer importance of getting a message across clearly. From experience, I know that it is quite possible for text messages and emails to be misinterpreted at times, resulting in misunderstandings and reduced efficiency.  To pre-empt these potentially costly mistakes, I decided to hold face-to-face meetings and discussion sessions, and I made it a point to make or ask for clarifications whenever in doubt. Patience was vital, especially since my team mates and I had different working styles, and it was the first time any of us had taken part in such a project. Therefore, at the crux of the great working alliance that we built was the fact that we took the time and effort to understand each other better, allowing us to reconcile our differing working styles.

Being part of a team, in essence, means that every member has a crucial part to play. It was fortunate that my team understood that.  I must say that I was really glad to have been grouped with such hardworking and diligent team mates who not only carried out the tasks allocated to them with great efficiency and to the best of their abilities in spite of their various other commitments and projects, but also took the initiative to do more than their share.

As for carrying out online research for information, it was important to find reliable sources and get information that was relevant and specific to the issue that we aimed to tackle; too much vague and irrelevant information only resulted in unnecessary confusion. I have also learnt that substantiating my hypothesis and results with valid and reliable secondary data is crucial in ensuring its credibility.

In preparation for the oral presentation, I adopted a positive, spontaneous and receptive attitude and listened actively to others’ opinions and suggestions and incorporated the constructive comments and ideas offered. It was such flexibility and openness to feedback that enabled me to take the project to greater heights.

Finally, I would like to thank my group mates, Jade, Yi Rui and Kok Soon for giving me the support I needed as a project leader and for the time and effort they put into the project. Without them, this project definitely would not have amounted to much. I really appreciate their contributions and am honoured to have worked with them.

Evaluating Intercultural Behavior

Individualism VS Collectivism 

Not too long ago, one of my friends shared a story regarding a business deal between a German firm and a Chinese firm with me. At first, it did not strike me as anything out of the ordinary. It was only during the lesson on the importance of fostering intercultural communication that the significance of the story struck me. I realized how ineffective intercultural communication could lead to failure in business in our globalized world. The story goes like this:

Several years ago, a German company found a profitable project that was being outsourced by a Chinese company and they were interested in investing in the project. The German company then sent a team over to China to explore the possibility of collaboration. The large state-owned Chinese company also wished to collaborate with the Germans. Once they knew that the German company was sending over a team, the Chinese company engaged in a lot of preparatory work to make the Germans’ business trip as hospitable as possible.

On the first day of the Germans’ arrival, the Chinese company hosted a very grand dinner to welcome the Germans. Following that, the Germans were brought to watch a famous traditional Chinese play. On their second day in China, the Chinese company arranged a one-day tour of the city for the Germans, including visits to some historical sites. The day ended with yet another big dinner which was presided over by some local government officials. It was on the third day, that the Chinese company finally showcased their project to the Germans. They pulled off the presentation very well and were successful in making their project seem as impressive as it was.

At the end of the business trip however, the Germans gave up on their plans of investing in the project. They felt that the Chinese company had spent too much time and other valuable resources on irrelevant activities, such as the extravagant dinners and the city tour. They were left with the impression that the Chinese company merely wanted to secure investment funds from the German side without really caring about the project itself. This led to their decision to back out from the business deal.

The decision on the part of the Germans came as a huge shock to the Chinese company, however, as they were sincere in their desire to collaborate with the Germans on the project. They were clueless as to what had gone wrong.

What can we learn from this story? It was ineffective intercultural communication that caused the business deal to fall through. Coming from a collectivistic culture, the Chinese always regard relationships amongst people as one of the most important aspects of communication. This often results in them treating people as more important than the business deal itself. However, the Germans hail from the other end of the spectrum. They are extremely task-oriented when it comes to work, and keeping business and pleasure strictly separate is of utmost importance to them. As such, when they observed that the Chinese were placing too much emphasis on cultivating relationships and much less emphasis on the project itself, they misinterpreted it to mean that the Chinese lacked task-focus and that they were unmotivated with the regards to the project.

Such cultural barriers due to ignorance do indeed hinder effective intercultural communication. Thus, it is important to make an effort to learn about and understand the cultural backgrounds of those whom we are dealing with so as to attain intercultural competence. This would definitely go a long way in allowing us to avoid misunderstandings and miscommunication.        

Resolving Interpersonal Conflicts

It is well known that good communication is the foundation of any successful relationship, be it personal or professional. Throughout life, we all encounter many different types of conflict. As such, being able to handle them is a skill that one cannot do without. One of the most common types of conflicts faced by us is interpersonal conflicts. One can employ 3 key steps in managing such conflicts. Firstly, one must try to engage in effective communication by developing good listening, relating and questioning skills. Next, one must learn to accurately interpret nonverbal communication. Last of all, one also has to build good interpersonal communication skills.

In addressing the first point of effective communication, one has to minimize the communication barriers that could occur at the various stages of the communication process. To ensure this, it is crucial to get your point across without misunderstandings and confusion. This can be achieved through using clear, concise and accurate channels of communication. As the person sending the message, you have to be confident that the information you are communicating is useful and accurate. As the recipient of the message, you have to cultivate good listening, relating and questioning skills. It is the quality of the communication between the sender and recipient that will serve to determine the outcome of the message and whether there will be any prospect of a conflict.

Next, the accurate interpretation of nonverbal communication is of paramount importance as it makes up nearly 93% of effective communication. Thus, it is essential to register the facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, posture and tone of voice of the speaker. The ability to understand and use nonverbal communication cues serves as a powerful tool in helping you connect with others, expressing what you really mean and fostering better relationships.

Moving on to the third key factor, one also has to build good interpersonal communication skills. These skills stem from having high emotional intelligence. People with high emotional intelligence are usually successful in life because emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and understand your own emotions, as well as to realize how your emotions affect the people around you. Emotional intelligence also encompasses your perception and understanding of others; when you are able to place yourself in their shoes and understand how they feel, you will be better equipped to manage the relationship in question effectively thus reducing the possibility of conflicts arising.

To summarize the 3 key steps in managing conflicts, one can be an effective communicator by being aware of one’s surroundings, sensitive to nonverbal cues and also by working towards developing greater emotional intelligence. In conclusion, proper communication is of utmost importance in reducing the possibility of conflicts and the above mentioned 3 key steps to effectively manage interpersonal conflicts can be employed in achieving it.