On a ending note, ES2007S is perhaps the only module I have taken in NUS that I have really enjoyed, and where there is a two-way learning. This course has taught me a lot of soft skills but the most important take-away from this course is to be clear and concise.
I tend to beat around the bush a lot, especially when I'm drafting or writing something. My style was always "once upon a time in a far away land ..." rather than going directly to the point. I guess this comes from being an engineering student where my lab report has no page limits and we would throw any information that we think if relevant to the report without giving much thought to it. Throughout the course of this module, being clear and concise is always emphasized as part of the 7Cs, and I learnt about the importance of it. Being clear and concise makes the receiver (of your message) get the point accurately, rather than having to guess what you are driving at and interpret your message wrongly.
This, for me, is especially important when giving an oral presentation, which is the second reason why I choose to write a script for it (the first reason being the fact that it is a graded presentation). Since the oral presentation was suppose to be a persuasive one, I did not want to risk trying to elaborate without a proper script or outline and end up beating around the bush.
Being clear and concise also helped me to better craft my application letter and resume. My first draft of my resume had almost every single detail of the things that I have done since secondary school, and I had feedback that I should keep it simple and concise. By the time it came to the mock interviews, I had cut down from about 4.5 pages to 1.5 pages worth of information.
Another area that it is important in is the elevator pitch. Having only 2 minutes worth of time to pitch your idea, it really helps to be clear and concise to summarize weeks worth of work into a few sentences with the additional requirement of convincing the other party that your project is worth his time to look into.
Besides being clear and concise, there are a lot to take away from this module. For example, the difference power words can make in your cover letter and resume and also the importance of non-verbals. Being the lucky one who found a temporary job before I entered the university purely by connections and also having found an internship at Singapore Polytechnic where I was the only applicant, the importance of word choice in the cover letter and resume never came to my mind. However, after this course, I would pay attention to my resume and cover letter so that I can better sell myself to my future employers.
I feel that this is a useful take-away from this course as in the working work there will be tons of applications where you will need to be clear and concise. I hope that you guys have enjoyed this course as well, and learnt many soft skills from it!
Thank you Brad for being such a wonderful teacher!
9 comments:
Hello Hannah,
After spending the evening today listening to almost 4 hours of project presentations of which many were too informative and too long I really agree with you. Being clear and concise is really important to make the audience stay focused and interested enough to listen.I think you did a good job during the final presentation keeping the focus on the important parts, but I also think you are able to do that without scripting yourself.
Thanks for sharing!
Mikaela
Hi Mikaela
Yes I realised through this course being clear and concise is very important, but also bearing in mind that we should not be overly vague. :)
Your presentation was great too! Keep it up! :)
Regards
Hannah
Thank you, Hannah, for this fine reflection. I especially like the way you focus on your learning of the value of the elements of clarity and conciseness. You then do a very good job of substantiating your opinion, referencing what you have actually done in various tasks. When you mentioned your resume, I had to smile. Yes, I remember that long initial document! Aren't you happy that you don't need so much detail anymore? :)
In any case, it has been rewarding for me to assist you during your learning journey this term. All the best as you continue developing your effective communication skills!
Hey Hannah,
Thanks for sharing about the most important takeaways from this course. I guess different people place emphasis on different aspects on the course and it is always good to have your opinion.
You were very clear and concise in your presentation. I think you have successfully implemented this aspect of the course. Now we can only keep improving.
Thank you for working with me this semester. Good luck for your exams and see you!
Kel Ley
Hey Hannah, this module has also been the only one I've enjoyed! My friend even told me: "this is the first time I've heard you say that a lesson is fun."
Other than power words, I also remember about the importance of parallelism! This is also something we need to take note of if we want to make a lasting impression!
I had fun knowing you guys! (:
Hi Brad
Yes my resume looks so much neater now! Thank you once again for guiding us through this journey!
Hannah
Hi Kel Ley
Good luck for your exams too and see you!
Hannah
Hi Samantha
Yep, parallelism is important too! I had fun knowing you guys too! Good luck for the exams!
Hannah
Hi Hannah!
I have the same problem as you! I can never quite write concisely as I always feel that I cannot explain myself well. The 7Cs was definitely an interesting concept. I guess I never really thought about how being clear and concise apply to spoken words as well. Thank you for pointing that out. I think you are a confident speaker and you present yourself very well. Hope that you have achieved your goals set for this module with regards to communication.
All the best for finals!
Xiao Wei
Hi Xiaowei
All the best for your finals too!
Hannah
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