Saturday 8 November 2008
Final Reflection
After reviewing my first post, I realized that my understanding on the values of effective communication skills remains similar. Though knowing the importance of effective communication is one thing, being able to apply it to my everyday life is another. Learning the skills that we were taught in class is indeed very useful. However, it would have been pointless if we do not have the confidence to apply these constructive skills to our everyday life.
As I am more of an introvert person, I took up this module with the intention of improving my communicating ability. In the beginning, I was afraid to make mistakes on what I said so I spent most of the time listening and watching how the others communicate. As time passes, especially during the project, I found myself having enough confidence to voice my opinions naturally. It is also through the project discussion that I learned to organize my thoughts so as to provide my ideas in the most understandable ways. The confidence that I gained in myself through this module is most definitely the best end result I can wish for. I believe that with confidence you would have won half of the race even before it starts, where it also applies to communication.
Blogging, which is something that I would not have done otherwise, has quite surprisingly helped me a lot in my language both in terms of writing and understanding others. It allows me to express myself freely without needing to be wary of the reactions of my readers. Thank you Brad for the brilliant idea of incorporating a blog into the module. I will definitely be blogging in the future but in another blog though.
Now, I see communication as a mosaic with many parts, each of which contributes to the overall picture. Like many mosaics, the field of communication has evolved over time. I believe that this evolution would continue to adapt to the needs of people on how we communicate in the future. Therefore, there is a need for us to constantly update ourselves with the right communication skill. This is what life is all about, constant learning.
Lastly, I would like to end with a quote by Edmund Hillary, “it is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”
By Woen Susanto
10:29 pm
Saturday 18 October 2008
Biodata
Currently a fourth year honors student, pursuing a Chemistry degree in the National University of Singapore, I am an Indonesian who has found a second home in Singapore.
More than a decade ago, I was unwillingly left behind by my parents for a better education in Singapore at the tender age of eight. Little did I know how that would change my life for the better when I was forced to gain independence without the company and guidance of my parents. Yet I managed to survive the one of the toughest of needing to master a whole new language without even the slightest knowledge of it – mandarin. Through overcoming a variety of obstacles and solving countless life challenges by myself, I have grown to be more mature and capable than many of my age.
Due to my strong sense of responsibility and a keen interest in soccer, I was given the club captain role of my secondary school soccer team and a spot in the school soccer team in my junior college. In the course of being a club captain of my team, I was sent to various leadership training courses and acquired leadership abilities that have been implanted into me for life.
Having encountered various experiences, I develop a philosophy that success will never come without hardwork.
By Woen Susanto
3:35 pm
Saturday 11 October 2008
Reflection on Research Project Experience
In my opinion, for every person who is enthusiastic about group work, there is another who dreads it and I fall into a sub-category somewhat in between. With this mentality, I gained both positive and negative experiences doing the research project and through these experiences, I gained valuable knowledge on working as a group.
In general, group decisions are better than those made by a single person and group interaction can heighten creativity. However, it may also increase the time needed to reach decisions than individuals do or suppress individuality. Some ways to reduce the longer time needed to reach decisions that we have learned and utilized are to participate constructively and to conduct all meetings following an agenda. Minutes writing has also helped us to stay on track of our progress. I have also learnt that creating and maintaining a constructive environment encourages members to contribute freely, minimizing group think.
On a side note, I also saw the importance of building interpersonal relationship via small talks. Such light conversation helps to create an opening for further interaction. Through small talks, we can choose to disclose more information about ourselves, other than the image our appearance and posture portrays. It is due to small talks that I gain a better understanding of my group mates and come to develop friendship with them.
For the upcoming group oral presentation, I will definitely be watching my non-verbal communication which can be misleading when miscomprehended. During the presentation itself, I will also be extra careful about my choice of words and I will constantly assess how others might interpret the message that I am conveying to avoid misinterpretations of my points. I am really grateful for the wonderful group mates that I have who each have our distinct ability, allowing us to work like a team. Our discussions were all conductive and smooth sailing and hence, I believe by sticking to how we are communicating now, the group oral presentation will also be a breeze.
By Woen Susanto
11:32 pm
Saturday 27 September 2008
Evaluating Intercultural Behavior
Looking at today’s multi-cultural world, people have eventually learned to appreciate the distinctions that make each culture unique. Certainly, in order for people of diverse cultural backgrounds to communicate successfully and to live in harmony together, a great deal of knowledge, flexibility and sensitivity are necessary. One good example of a success story is Singapore. Singapore is no doubt a multi-cultural country where people from different ethnic groups are living well together. Apart from the opportunity of having seen and experienced various cultures in Singapore, we are also constantly exposed to different cultures of other countries through the mass media. Just last weekend, I got reminded of how interesting and exclusive the Japanese culture is when I watched an episode of “Japan Hour” on Channel News Asia.
In the program, the hosts spent most of their time introducing the food and having their meals. During each meal, they would clap their hands and say "itadaki-masu" aloud before digging into their food. The male host was the one speaking most of the time while the female host spent most of her time smiling and nodding to questions asked. I also noticed how loudly they were slurping on their soups and noodles.
There are many practices that are unique to Japan. One example that I’m sure everyone is familiar with is the traditional phrases Japanese says before and after a meal. They are "itadaki-masu" which will be said before a meal and "gochisou-sama" which will be said after a meal. This important table etiquette is Japanese’s way of showing appreciation for the food. In addition, it indicates the beginning and the ending of their meal.
Another example on table manners is that by slurping on your soup or noodle loudly, it is an accepted custom which indicates that the soup or noodle is yummy. In comparison, I used to slurp on my soup when I was young which would unquestionably get me scolded badly by my parents. I was told that it was rude to slurp and that would portray bad table manners. While slurping is an act of praising the chef in Japan, it is a behavior of bad table-manners to the Chinese.
The above mentioned are all in regards to the dining etiquette in Japan. Evidently, there are many other customs and regulations as well, in which I shall not elaborate on. As for the reasons for these customs and the taboos, I suppose it all arrows down to the Japanese society judging one’s sincerity more importantly than one's actual accomplishments. Therefore, a sincere attempt at observing the proper etiquette will bring approving comments since your sincerity is reflective of your personal character.
By Woen Susanto
11:00 pm
Friday 5 September 2008
What is Happening to Gaia? (Revised)
The presence of natural resources used to symbolize survival for our early ancestors but within just a few centuries, the whole idea holds a totally different meaning altogether. Today, these resources are not just a mean of survival but they have an economical value. Ever since the industrial era, Homo sapiens have been depleting Earth's resources just for their own selfish needs; not only are they taking the precious resources away, they are also polluting Earth in the process. In return, Gaia is now retaliating with unstoppable forces (natural disasters, the melting of the polar caps etc.), and Homo sapiens can do nothing to stop him.
The issue that deeply bothers me is that whether we, the Homo sapiens, are aware of the impending catastrophe if nothing is done quickly. At such, I am keen to do a research project to determine what the students of NUS are doing to conserve energy. As there is no grant for this research, it will have to be done on a smaller scale. Hence, I will only be focusing on the students from the Faculty of Science (FOS), which is where I am from conveniently. Through this research, I hope that more students will be aware of the current situations and more actions could be done to help Earth's dire condition.
As the main aim is to determine what the Science students are doing or have done in energy conservation, attitudinal survey will be vital to the successfulness of this project. I will be focusing on certain specific issues (e.g adjusting the temperature of the air-conditioner to be 25 degree celsius etc.) in the survey. Although the sample size might not be large enough to represent the whole population of the FOS in NUS, I believe the results collected could be conclusive if a variety of the students are targeted. It would also help if the survey is well-prepared with proper ordering and phrasing of the questions.
In summary
Research Question - Whether students from the FOS of NUS are doing or have done their part in energy conservation.
Purpose Statement - The main objective of this research is to to increase the number of students that will play a part in conserving Earth so that more actions could be done to help Earth's dire condition. In addition, I hope that students will be updated on the latest information of Earth's deteriorating conditions.
P.s.: This post was edited on Sunday, 11.50pm. Thank you Zhiyi, Brad and Desmond for your suggestions.
Food for thought.
Scientists are researching intensively for alternatives to the natural resources, but even with these alternatives, there will be disruption to Earth in one way or another. One example would be the biofuel. Although it is a much cleaner alternative as compared to fossil fuel, it also has its disadvantages such as needing to clear up hectares of forest for the plantation of palm oil trees (this is also true for wind energy). Having said that, do you think that urban development is necessary? Are we supposed to live the lives of our first ancestors to be able to sustain the life of Gaia?
By Woen Susanto
11:14 pm
Thursday 4 September 2008
Answers, answers, answers...
In this situation, there are definitely several things that could have been done by Tarzan to avoid the conflict. Firstly, I can safely say that the main problem lies in their differences in view of the problem. Jane felt obliged to do something more for Eunice apart from comforting her while Tarzan felt that leaving Eunice alone is the best solution. Perhaps this had come about due to gender differences. Females tend to be, correct me if I am wrong, more emotionally-linked to their friends than males.
Another cause might be Tarzan’s continual reading of the newspapers article, which is a non-verbal cue that he is not interested in the topic. This might have caused Jane to feel agitated and hence, she got angry more easily.
Furthermore, Tarzan should have been more careful with his words. Instead of saying‘just leave her alone for awhile', he could have said‘perhaps she needs some time alone to think about it' which is much less assertive.
Regarding the comments, I totally agree with Benjamin and Desmond. It is the diversities in views between the different genders that makes life so full of unexpectations and of course, makes life much more interesting. In addition, Desmond made a strong point about desensitization i.e. taking someone for granted as time goes by.
As Liang Fu has said it, Tarzan should have been more attentive when someone is talking to him, rather than just trying to brush the person off so that he can get on with his reading. It all boils down to having a good EQ.
P.s.: Thank you guys for the comments. It is much appreciated. Cheers!
By Woen Susanto
10:31 pm
Saturday 30 August 2008
The Conflict
“Can I ask you about something?” asked Jane as she joined Tarzan on the sofa in the living room. Tarzan and Jane have been together in a relationship for many years.
“Sure,” answered Tarzan, without even looking up from the Sports section of The Straits Times that he was reading. Lately, the news of the Olympics had been a hot topic of discussion in school and he wanted to be on top of information among his friends.
“Eunice broke off with Matthew yesterday,” began Jane. “She said it was because of their religious differences. Matthew wanted her to convert to his religion but she refused. After much argument, she pointed out that breaking up is the best option for them since they couldn't come to an agreement. I thought she was too harsh to have mentioned that but you know what’s worse? Matthew agreed immediately! Eunice is so upset now and my comforting doesn't seem to work at all. What do you think I should do now?”
“Just leave her alone for awhile,” Tarzan replied coldly. “I'm sure she will be alive and kicking again in no time.”
“What?” exclaimed Jane in shock. “I can't just let her suffer alone at a time like this. There must be something I can do.”
“Yes, and that is to leave her alone,” said Tarzan with a slight irritation. “I bet she wants to be alone to think it through as well.”
“No, I don't think so,” argued Jane. “Don't you think her decision to break off with Matthew is too abrupt? Maybe I should talk to Matthew to hear his side of the story.”
“Don't be such a busybody,” said Tarzan as he looked up at Jane from the newspapers for the first time since the discussion. Michael Phelps had just won his eighth gold medal. What an incredible man, he thought.
Jane had her arms crossed now, with a huge frown on her face. “I'm a busybody?” she asked angrily.
“This is their problem and if she chose to walk away, then so be it” explained Tarzan as he placed the newspaper aside.
“You just don't understand, do you?” asked Jane, even more irritably. “I am her good friend and I simply can't sit around and wait for her to recover from this by herself. This is..”
“Okay, fine." Tarzan interrupted suddenly. "Why don't you just tell me what you want me to say and I'll say it,” he said helplessly.
“You're hopeless.” Jane rolled her eyes and walked away.
~ ~ ~
The above situation is a partly real and partly hypothetical story of what had happened recently during the Olympics episode. I had changed and added certain information so as to protect the privacy of the people involved and of course, to make the story seems more interesting. I personally feel that this is a common case of interpersonal conflict in a boy-girl relationship due to the much differences, physically aside, between a male and a female. To support my point, a quote from a book by John Gray (1992) goes, “men are from Mars, women from Venus.” As suggested by this quote, men and women are as different as beings from different planets. Though it may not apply to the the large variety of people in this world, this particular phrase is no doubt a cliche to describe the differences between the two opposite sexes.
That being said, I would like to know if anyone has been in a similar situation like this before where an opposite gender has a conflicting opinion/view? What better way should Tarzan communicate with Jane? What better way should he handle such a situation?
Just to side track from this conflict, how would you put your idea across to a person with opposing views without starting an argument or making it seems like you are a strong headed person?
By Woen Susanto
4:38 pm
