My opinion on how communication is a complicated process remains unchanged, but the depth of understanding and the horizon of accomplishing it has broadened; it still seems like an arduous task to let a person understand the message you intended it to be the first time round, but this module has helped in enhancing the effective transmittal of the message as well as avoiding unnecessary conflict by first understanding the recipients’ customs and culture. It remains an art that some seem gifted in, one that others have to ponder and practice over.
Humans were blessed with the gift of not just speech and hearing, but sight as well. Communication isn’t only verbal; visual cues also aid in capturing the audience’s attention to a decisive extent. Simple but captivating slides will help the speaker gain the attention of the audience during a presentation. Similarly, a blog decorated with a nice background picture or a meaningful image captures a reader’s attention over another that is plain.
In order to increase the audience’s receptivity towards oneself, a variety of communication devices can be utilized. An attention grabber can manifest in the form of an intriguing image or a disturbing statistic. One certain but tricky way to capture an individual’s attention is to anticipate what would seem pleasant to their ears; being in tune with their frequency would give one an extra edge. Sincerity also plays a vital role; performing appropriate research on the background of a company, a person, or the issue of concern is evident of the effort put in and a reflection of the importance by the individual.
The crux therein lies not in merely conveying the information, it’s about how the information is conveyed through the choosing of words , non-verbal communication like the tone, and not displaying aggressive body language.
The interaction with others in the class displayed the complexity of transmitting an opinion to another. The first barrier is the other party’s own opinion, which very often differs between individuals. A humble approach beats one that is imposing; respect needs to be gained between mutual parties before the doors of receptivity are open. A self-bestowed sense of superiority often results in a conflict.
Lastly, I would like to thank Ms Goh for guiding the class towards a better understanding of effective communication. Working with Bryan and Cassandra has also been an invaluable learning experience as we listened to each other and found ways to reach a common consensus when differing opinions arose; I would like to thank you both for the endless hours and effort put into the groupwork.
I truly enjoyed the sessions, the interaction, and the work; beats any mundane and boring core module anytime, anyday!
Hi Desmond,
ReplyDeleteKudos for yet another well-written blog post. You gave a comprehensive view of important lessons you’ve learnt from this module.
As this module concludes, I would like to thank you for being an effective team player when working on our research project. It was a great experience being able to apply my newly gained communication skills to attempt to communicate effectively with you and Cassandra. Working on this project with the both of you has taught me the usefulness of effective communication. With effective verbal and written communication within our group, we were able to constantly meet datelines and yet find joy in working with each other. Thus, this proves that the skills gained in this module are indeed beneficial to us.
Importantly, I believe that learning does not end in the classroom. Having learnt the theories of effective communication, we should seek to apply this knowledge out of the classroom. It would only be through much practice that we would one day be true effective communicators.
All the best with the upcoming exams!
Cheers,
Bryan
Hi Desmond,
ReplyDeletethis was a post well-written, yet again=)
You brought up a very interesting point about the crux of effective communication being the way the information is conveyed through choice of words, the tone, and body language. It is indeed true that our non-verbal cues have a strong influence on the message that we wish to convey as there are many instances where the message that the conveyer wishes to convey gets distorted and might be received in a way that was not intended by the conveyer. Hence, I feel that through all the hands-on assignments in this course, we have better understood this particular aspect of effective communication.
Working together with you and Byran has been a fulfilling and fun experience=) I have certainly enjoyed myself and thanks for being a great team player.
Like you, I view effective communication as a life-long learning process and there are still many aspects of effective communication to be uncovered and mastered. Therefore, even after this course has ended, we should never stop discovering and honing the different skills( oral as well as written) of communication.
Cheers
Cassandra