Communicating is a complex, two-way
interaction or process. In my opinion, the complexity lies in the fact that multiple
interpretations can be derived from the given speech. The message may not be
transmitted or received with its original intention and meaning.
My initial understanding of
effective communication is mainly how a person speaks and presents himself or
herself. I always thought that anyone who speaks and writes well is one with good
communication skills. However, the first three sessions of the module had proven
me wrong. Through the presentations that my peers gave during lessons, I realized
that having good listening skills is also crucial to communicating effectively.
Good listening skills would enable me
to capture more accurate information and thus, it would allow me to make sound
decisions based on the transmitted information. It flows. When I listen better,
I understand better and it would make communication easier.
Human are natural social creatures. We
communicate and interact and through these processes, we define ourselves. I
like to leave good impressions and I would like to portray myself in a way that
I want others to see, thus having good communication skills would be the first
step to take.
Not forgetting, my graduation
approaches. Job applications, writing resumes, interviews and job probation are
all inevitable processes I have to go through. Everyone will strive to stand
out so as to increase their chances of getting the job. I am no exception.
Mostly importantly, what I want to take home from the module would be the
ability for me to present myself not only professionally but also truthfully. I
may not have outstanding academic or extra-curriculum records to boast but I do
want to prove others that I have other qualities. Hence, having effective
communication skills would allow me to present myself well so that people can
judge me in a way that I want them to.
I too have forgotten, until this class, that listening is also a skill for communication we should possess. And did not know, until that peer teaching session that there were so many different types of listeners. It reminds us that being able to speak well to different listeners is also an important skill. Different listeners can also include those of varying attention spans, different academic background or value systems.
ReplyDeleteI too, like you, most importantly want to learn interview skills and how to present myself on a professional level to my peers. I'm looking forward to what this module would teach us!
I agree with you that it is also important to prove your non-academic qualities. I find that nowadays, Asian countries, like Singapore, tend to place too much emphasis on academics such that soft skills, like listening, are slowly forgotten.
ReplyDeleteAlthough getting stellar results in school could get you a good job (good in terms of pay) once you graduate, but ultimately, your soft skills or emotional intelligence will bring you further up your career ladder. From my observations, I think I can safely generalize that someone who is very book smart could lack interpersonal skills and vice versa. This is because sacrifices have to be made if we want to have, for example, a high intellectual quotient as we cannot have the best out of both worlds. What do you think?
It is probably one of my motivating factors for picking this module up as well!
ReplyDeleteYour post got me thinking, is it that important to be able to protray what we want or should we strive to protray what the audience want.
I was inside the bank one day waiting for my turn to be served. While i was waiting, i couldn’t help but overhear a conversation a banker had with the client.
The person he was serving was an elderly man probably in his late 60s, the banker was speaking to him fluently in a mixture of dialects and mandarin, his body language was relaxed and friendly, in fact the banker reminded me of an ordinary uncle talking to a friend.
When the elderly man left, the banker promptly signalled for his next client. Now it was if the banker was stricken with a split personality! A bipolar disorder of some sort; His mannerism changed, he became more professional and he spoke in perfect English. It was as if i were looking at a different person.
But what changed was the client not the banker; the client he was speaking to now was a young working executive.
What i inferred from that sighting was that effective communication covers more than just perfecting our writing and speech but rather how we are able to change like a chameleon to suit different scenarios. Effective communication is unlike a mathematical or physics problem whereby we can master it by applying a standard set of steps to solve it. I would liken it to an art form where my interpretation of it would change (and conversely how I would tackle it) with the passing of time and place.
I could relate with you on the point of listening since I myself was reminded as to how important listening is to communicate effectively! It ultimately boils down to respect towards other, a trait every cibilised human being should possess. If you were to think about it, no one will want to communicate with someone who doesn't seem to respect them as an individual.
ReplyDeleteAs a comment to yechuan's anecdote, I have always battled with the problem of how to socialise with others while being true to yourself. The idea of being a chameleon, behaving differently to different people, something I've always seen people doing do seems to be against the principles I should be adopting as a human. However with time, I realised instead of seeing it as a superficial act, I now see it as you trying to bond with others to engage them hence, allowing healthy ties to be established. Having a clear mind when interacting with others with no ulterior bad motives is the key.