In this post, I will be explaining how I have changed throughout the semester and how these changes are related to CG1413.
At the start of the semester, I initially felt that this module was not important when reading the description. However, I had learnt this was not so, especially during the numerous projects where we had to work in teams to complete specified goals: CG1102 asked us to implement codes, CG1108 required us to design and build a robot while CG1413 had a problem-solving presentation.
I learnt of the various ways to help manage team projects, through the use of timetables and idea-sharing applications/websites such as Etherpad. These are important lessons to me since I have always had a bad habit of forgetting deadlines and these reminders helped me to focus and schedule my work better. In the future, working in teams will be much easier with these applications.
Acting as the leader for the CG1413 project, I learnt that the leader position is vital to the team. It is from this experience that I found that I am lacking in leadership skills such as people and time management to help encourage the members to work towards the goal. This is one area that I have to improve on in any future projects since this will affect the moral of the team and I would first have to improve on my own time management skills before focusing on a group setting.
I also learnt that various body gestures might be misunderstood by others. While I did know our gestures can have multiple meanings, it was only after watching the various presentations and meeting videos that I realised that I did numerous small gestures that distract or can cause misunderstandings to the viewers. This is one thing that I kept in mind for all future presentations and it can be seen when comparing the first oral presentation to the second, where I tried to keep in mind not to have conflicts between my gestures and my information.
Overall, I think I have improved on my communication skills throughout the semester. I was mainly ignorant of the various small details towards communication and had a slightly poor working attitude. It was through the various experiences of multiple projects that I have improved on these negative aspects. However, there is still much to learn and put into practise.
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Dear Rayner,
ReplyDeleteFrom your post, I just realized an interesting fact. The 3 major projects that we are doing this semester require us to complete different goals, but the principles of effective team communication would always apply. (Teamwork, Communication, Writing Skills, etc) This CG1413 module is really a great help in allowing us to learn and practice (during the projects) at the same time.
The usage of the internet applications (Gantt chart, Etherpad, NUS wiki, etc) is really a great help and addition in better organizing our findings and research. For example, the Etherpad is really a great platform for online meetings when members are unable to meet physically. (Thanks to Angad!)
Being a leader of the team is not an easy task. Other than focusing on the project itself, he/she would also need to consistently check on the morale of the team and make sure that the team is cohesive and moving towards the same goal. The responsibility of the leader is definitely greater than the rest. Since you are the leader, you will definitely felt pressure when you are leading the team. You can take it as an enriching experience. For subsequent projects in the future, you definitely be able to do better if you are the leader. If you are not the leader, at least you know how your leader would feel, thus you could understand him/her better which leads to better cooperation.
Your gestures may not be suitable in certain situations which may lead to misunderstandings. Some of the gestures are a form of habits. In different settings (culture and countries), some of our gesture may be offensive to others. Thus, you should try to understand their way of life and also be constantly aware of your body language. The effort you have made would then be seen and appreciated by others. :)
Good Luck to your Finals!!!
Regards,
Kevin Lin
Hi Rayner,
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you on the first point. I underestimated the "power" of CG1413. Although the presentations,reflections,projects that we had to do took a toll on us, we gained many skills in the process.
Your point about gestures and body languages is valid. Sometimes, irrelevant gestures can be distracting and misunderstood. Non-verbal communication is vital during presentations. The posture (body language) and gestures will tell many things about a presenter. The important thing to note when presenting is to gesture at the appropriate time. This will add impact your point/message.
Finally, I was impressed with your presentation for CG1413 project. During the Q&A session, you carried the team like every leader would do.
Best of luck for the upcoming exams! :)
Before i engage your post proper, let me just give you my opinion on how much you have changed while and after attending this module.
ReplyDeleteOn the very first presentation, you wore white short-sleeve shirt with black pants. From my point of view, i did notice that your black pants are cargo pants as i could see some huge side pockets. This showed that you did not understand the concept of formal attire, which thus gave a very bad impression for the audience.
During that presentation, you constantly stumbled and got lost while halfway presenting the presentation. From our private conversations before the presentation, you did know what you are going to present. Possibly due to lack of confidence, you are not able to present what you knew to the audience clearly.
Hand gestures then, were excessive, indicating that you did not know clearly when, and how to make use of your gestures to
1. Direct attention to the screen
2. Facilitate understanding
Body gestures were a slight problem too, as you tend to shift from left to right. The problem with that is that it gives your audience a very uncomfortable feeling, and makes them tired, just by looking at you swaying.
On the very last presentation, you wore a long sleeve shirt, with proper black business pants. The major change showed how much you have understood regarding giving people a very positive first impression. The way you portrayed yourself had seen major changes too; you seemed to be more confidence and ready.
As per the first presentation, you still did not muster enough confidence to speak, looking at the audience. Evidence included looking at the screen too often, variation of volume and also a long pause during the presentation. Although i do think it is difficult to "suddenly" become a person with a lot of confidence, you could really handle the situation better. You could divert attention by
1. Referring to your fellow presenters
2. Look and derive something from the screen.
Sometimes, stopping suddenly makes people feel that you are lost, while some random ideas or analogy can catch their attention.
I like the fact that you reduced your hand gestures to simple-to-follow hand signs. You are now able to lead audience towards understanding your points and make it less confusing and less tiring for them to understand
As for your blog post, i realised that this post is more of a what-have-i-learn post then a how-much-i-had-changed post. According to our blog post definition, it should be reflective, i.e. talking about your thoughts about how much you have changed.
"Personal personal personal!"
Your post definitely showed that you had improved tremendously in your communication skills. Each point is clear and concise, even though it still lacks a bit of concreteness. I believe showing more examples such as what kinds of misunderstandings you had, how you failed in making people follow your timing etc. would be a good way to convince your audience on what really happened and how you planned to resolve it.
The idea about bring up all three kinds of project you had and then not talking about them in details makes it pointless in mentioning them. It gives people a false prophecy on what they will read in the later paragraph. Hence, do remember to keep your introduction paragraph checked. Since 1413 is about communication, i believe communication via blog posts should too, be taken seriously, and viewers should be anticipate what points you will bring out next. Failing which, might make the reader feels left out.
Overall, i still think you improved a lot throughout this module; you are now more expressive and interactive.
Good luck to your future endeavours!
Hi Rayner,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you with the point that we underestimated CG1413. When I first learnt of the CG1102 presentations that were involved on top of a 1413 problem solving project, I was significantly troubled by the crazy workload ahead.
After roughing this semester out, these skills that we picked up will always stay with us. As Kevin mentioned, even if the objectives of the projects were different, communication principles can always be applied to attain effective teamwork.
It is good to see that you identified a main weakness during your 'stint' as a leader. However, you should not fret about avoiding leadership roles until you overcome this weakness. Instead, I believe you should have the courage to take control both as an individual and as a leader to his team.
All in all, it was a fun and nice semester and I am glad to have known you. I look forward to working with you in future.
Yours sincerely,
Junhao Quek
Hi Rayner,
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that in the beginning we didn't realize the importance of this module. This is because we never knew that working in a team is totally different from individual work. CG1413 is a module which made us learn skills which would be useful throughout our lives whether we are studying or working.
I think that you have made significant positive changes during the semester. You have improved upon you communication skills especially when it comes to intercultural communication. You are able to convey your message effectively to the people and are ready to listen to them patiently. (I can say this from my personal experience of talking to you.)
Being a team leader is not an easy job as you have the responsibility of the performance of the whole team. I haven’t got a chance to work with you in any of the teams so I don’t know much about your team work skills. In your blog, I can see your concern about managing time. I feel that you should try to plan and organize things effectively keeping in mind the deadlines and the tasks to be completed.
In your presentation skills, you have made improvements with regard to your gestures and manners. In the second presentation, I think that you were calm throughout the presentation in spite of all the technical problems. You were polite while answering the questions during the Q & A session. However, you should be more confident while speaking during the presentation. Due to the lack of confidence, you fail to convey your message effectively to the audience.
Overall, I think you have succeeded to learn effective communication skills which are highly needed in a multi racial society. Being a team leader in future teams would give you a chance to further improve your skills.
Good luck for your exams!!
Thanks
Best Regards,
Nitika
Hi Rayner,
ReplyDeleteI see that you have embraced the use of technology to facilitate projects. It is true that we have had productive meetings online. I am also happy that our CG1102 team has a leader who has a similar interest in these innovative means of communication. However, something did cross my mind when I thought about all these. Did technology also make us lazy? Did it prevent us from learning the fundamental method of communication and agenda tracking? In this sense, will it pose an obstacle to the principles we have learnt in this module.
I am only saying this as I have seen a vivid example in the CG1413 projects. The Wiki was supposed to fuel collaboration and creativity. However, many were misled into thinking it was a common storage for data. Thus, the appendix started pilling us with loads of information which everyone else found difficult to comprehend on its relevance or meaning. In fact, I found it even more confusing when trying to read some of the Wikis.
Perhaps we should explore more into this area and sieve out the really effective technology or make those that are not good better.