Take for example couples who come from two different ethnic groups that have little or poor command of English. How do such couples then learn to grow and understand each other after so many years, or even learn to live with each other in the early years? They were able to communicate effectively nonetheless despite the language barrier, because for 1) they sought to understand and listen and 2) they sought to find other ways to make each other clearer to the other party. This thus prove that the idea of a “duck talking to a chicken” actually can happen in real life, if they can to communicate effectively.
Also, in a workplace or school environment, a student who can always explain herself better in a clear, understandable way in her writing always gains in any class situation or examination. A person who is applying for a job, definitely scores in an interview if she can present herself as one who can communicate effectively and confidently. My ex-boss at Citibank used to exclaim of how much SMU students were in demand because of the way they were able to carry themselves and speak well. And when such comparisons are made against other local varsity students, it does at times, make me feel that they are somewhat at an advantage in the real world. This, in a sense, really does show how important communication is as it determines your future path in life as well.
It is therefore essential to be equipped with effective communication skills if you want to be successful in just about anything. That is of course subjective to all of us, be it in love, academically or at work or anything under the sun. Hopefully, the end of this course would mean that I'd be able to communicate better in every aspect possible and ready me for more challenges ahead!
/edited/ 1 feb
I would actually hope to improve my communication with others so that I can be understood better! Many a times, I find myself stumbling over words, and being unsure how to phrase what I have to say properly. I also often find myself being overly nervous and speaking too quickly when I'm afraid as Jing Yang had pointed out in our activity in class where I had to recount the story to Nadiah. I was therefore very encouraged when I saw that this module also helped in writing a winning formula for cover letters or resume writing which would be highly essential when work starts. As I have already mentioned in my pre-edited post, it is often that SMU Students are in demand, because they are able to impress the wow the panel of interviewers and articulate their ideas well. Knowing that the workforce will be a highly competitive environment in the future, I want to be sure that I would have, by then, cultivated the necessary skills for effective communication so that I will not be on the losing end! Afterall, though being able to communicated effectively might not be innate for all of us, I am sure it can be nurtured! (:
Thanks, Jane, for this post.
ReplyDeleteYou do a good overview of the importance of effective communication skills. It may be a bit extreme though when you mention "couples who come from two different ethnic groups that have little or poor command of English." That will be a minority of couples in the world, of course, and yet communication is very important for each pair. It would be good to address the needs of the majority first, or not?
Also, I'd like to know what your specific needs are. You mention a boss at Citibank and that person's opinion of SMU grads. It would have been instructive to hear about the communication needs in your post at the bank. (And what makes the SMU grads different?)
On your language use, I have one comment. Here's a clause that can be confusing because of problematic language use:
"...and even when it comes to dealing with people of whom which you might have a language barrier with."
Do you see the problem?
Despite my pointed comments, I really appreciate your effort here. (I just want you to reflect even more on your written communication.)
This has nothing much to do with our module. Just feel like commenting on the issue of smu grads much preferred to other local varsity students.
ReplyDeleteMy lecturer in NUS told me that people out there like SMU students because SMU students, like you said, are able to articulate and converse well and fluently. The bosses can "bring them out to show people", that's why usually they get the jobs of being a presenter or some PR-related ones. But people out there recognise NUS skilled and critical thinking students, so they would prefer to hire them to do research work. Well, there's from my lecturer (from SOB).
No worries man.. Some of them are perhaps forced to be trained to speak well (look at their assessment), but we have the innate ability! Haha! (no offense to anyone alright.. =))
Hello =)
ReplyDeleteAdding on from Grace's comments, yes I have to agree!
It is surprising to see that what sets SMU students apart from their peers is their ability to speak well. (This shows how the very more important effective communication is).
Perhaps, NUS students should start learning from our SMU peers.
I have to say though, is character somehow linked to the ability of communicating effectively? I observe that most SMU students tend to be more expressive, outgoing and most importantly outspoken, thus they have better chances at interacting and communicating with the rest. But what if one is of the more reserved and quiet type? They probably spend less time socialising, thus having lower chances of improving their communicating skills.
Other than the “innate” ability that we usually talk about when it comes to communicating effectively, perhaps it is also something that has to be nurtured.
Brad: Thank you for pointing out how much sentence structure and use of words could be a problem. I will make sure I'm mindful of what and how I write stuff in my coming post!
ReplyDeleteWith regards to the stint in Citi, my boss said that SMU grads often wowed interviewers during the interview because they were able to carry themselves well and articulate well. Also, because I was temp working in Customer Service department, it was definitely important to be able to communicate effectively with the customers who were on the line. Such customers were often impatient and unhappy with their cards etc. Therefore my boss often had nothing but high praise for them as they were, as she said able to "talk".
Thank you for reading the post tho! (:
Grace:
I think it's true that they are trained to be more vocal and carry themselves better given that a lot of their grading depends very much on class participation and presentations. So I guess it's right that you say that they are known for their ability to articulate well, while NUS students are known to be skilled thinkers! This mod will thus definitely help us overcome such mental barriers especially at interviews when we'll be faced with competition from all over!
Nad:
I'm pretty sure it can be nurtured! Because it's highly unlikely that all SMU students have that ability or characteristic which makes them able to communicate better than we do! And I do believe that people who are less shy are able to express themselves better... However the flip side to that would be expressing themselves too much at times, more than what is needed or what is comfortable to others..
hi dear Jane,
ReplyDeleteNice post and i certainly agree with your point that the ability "to effectively communicate" often opens up more opportunities in the workplace. I just want to point out that perhaps the reason the SMU graduates were prefered over NUS/NTU graduates is that when all 3 have the relevant skills, the SMU student outshined the rest because of their effective communication skills. Having only the ability to communicate well without the skills involved will not have landed the SMU graduate the job. Communication skills enhances one's image to employers and thank goodness it can be improved :D
Hope you have explained more of your personal reasons/specific needs for wanting to communicate effectively with others.
Hi Jingyang!
ReplyDeletethank you for your comment! I have specified certain needs at the end of my updated post! (: Hope you find it more insightful from my point of view!
I agree that it's not just the ability to communicate well that lands us jobs, but it really does create a highly favourable first impression! (: