Post #6: Reflection on principles of communication/teamwork on programming and problem-solution projects

CG1413 has been a module of self-discovery for me. Working in a team for a module for the first time, I have learned not just about myself, but also about others and how to interact effectively in a team such that I can benefit the team using my strengths. In this post, I would reflect and summarise what I have learnt from this module.

I have found out that being an extrovert, it is easier for me to approach new people. I can be an asset as a leader as I would be able to quickly open up with people and help them open up with each other. I have also found out that I can use my voice and expressions to my advantage and have a knack for spontaneity and thinking on my feet.

However, my confidence can become my weakness if it turns into overconfidence, as what happened in Oral Presentation 1, where I had not prepared my presentation, thinking I would give an impromptu, and ended up getting nervous and stuttering during the presentation.

Another area I need to work on is my approach to problems. Coming from a competitive background, I have a more straight-forward way of talking to people. However, the work environment in Singapore promotes a politer behaviour. I need to be less aggressive in conflict-resolution lest I might come off as authoritarian. I realised this while working in a team for one of my modules. Even though my group-mate didn’t say anything, I could tell that something I said had pinched him. I talked to him later and it turned out that I had indeed hurt his feelings unknowingly.

Working in a multi-cultural environment is very different from working with people from same background. Some people may not be comfortable interacting with those with different nationalities or accents. It is the responsibility of everyone in a team to ensure that these people get enough opportunities to present their views. For instance, Dam Long was very shy in the beginning of semester and would not speak much in meetings. However, as we encouraged (or even forced at times) him to speak, he became more confident and the result was very evident in Oral Presentation 2.

Overall, this module has been a learning journey and I say this not just for the sake of saying it but because I actually felt it. Even though the soft skills we learn are intangible, I have started to see its effects. I am now better at expressing my views and am more receptive of other people’s opinions. These skills would go a long way in improving my social and professional interaction in future.

Post #5 Reflection on Oral presentation 2

My blogging group had the presentation on the CELC Project on 22 March. I feel that our team, on a whole, did very well. We were able to effectively present our problem and solutions, and satisfactorily answered most of the questions in the Q&A round. However, there is always room for improvement and this is what I noticed about myself.

The first thing that shouted at me in the video of our presentation was that I should have given more chance to my group-mates to give the answers in the Q&A round. Whenever I knew the answer to a question, I would step up, thinking that my group-mates might not know it. What I should have done, instead, was to let the others present their views, and then add on to their answers if required.

I also realised that some of my points weren't as well received as I had anticipated. For instance, not many found my hip-hop dance video funny. A good strategy here would have been practicing the presentation in front of group-mates and noticing their response, which would give a gauge of how well I'm able to carry my point across.

Despite these glitches, I’m satisfied with my presentation. I was energetic and had a personal tone with which the audience could relate, as remarked by someone in the audience later.

As for our team, not only was our end product good, the journey to that was a pleasant one. I can passionately say that I had an enjoyable time working with my group-mates. The disagreements were solved in the most rational way possible, everyone was considerate to others and we all were more than willing to help each other out. We started out as a group and ended up a a team. This experience is what matters the most to me!

Post # 4; Reflection on meeting 1

We had our first group meeting for the CG1102 project last Thursday. Communication during the meeting was excellent, and we all played our roles effectively. Overall, the meeting went very smoothly but we forgot a few fundamentals.

Firstly, it was only during the meeting that we decided who our group leader and secretary would be. Moreover, we chose it without much consideration, based only on the roles we were temporarily playing at that time. Because of this, the leader did not get a chance to set and declare the agenda of the meeting. Even though we roughly knew what we would be doing, we did not exactly know how much work we would do on the spot and how much of it we would do later.

Secondly, we had not planned the meeting in advance. We had not booked the venue, had not thought of how to set up the camera and now that I think of it, we did not have any sort of back-up in mind. We did not know where to go in case the room was occupied, we did not have a spare camera, we had kept the meeting so late that we did not have the chance of a second meeting as one team member was going overseas soon.

Despite these glitches, our team performed very well. None of us felt uneasy in front of the camera. For me, the most likeable thing about our team is that everyone clarifies whatever they are confused about instead of passively accepting it. Anni noted everything down acutely and Michael steered the meeting in the right direction.

As I reviewed our video, I noticed that I presented my answer without asking others for theirs. We should have all discussed our solutions and come up with the best one. What I did instead was that I asked others to add on to my idea. This is one area I need to take care of in future meetings.

Post #3: Resolving interpersonal conflict

I recall an incident where two of my friends Vish and Mohit had a conflict because of their different personality types.

Vish is a punctual man. He has high regard for his and others’ time. He lives an organised life, rarely misses a deadline and expects the same from others in matters involving him.

Mohit, on the other hand, is a laid back person. He starts working only close to deadlines, often misses them, is often late for meetings, and is insincere about his work and life in general.

Whenever Mohit and Vish had to meet in order to go somewhere or to hang out, Mohit would often be late and Vish does not like it. He tried explaining it to Mohit several times, but Mohit wouldn’t change his habits. Vish finally gave up and decided that he would just save his time by purposely going late whenever he has to meet Mohit.

There was this time when they had to meet for lunch. Vish went there half an hour late, but found Mohit waiting for him. As Mohit had an internship interview right after lunch that day, he got angry at the fact that Vish got late. He started scolding Vish. Vish got upset and came back at Mohit for often being late and wasting his time.

I had to meddle to solve their fight. So, I know both sides of the story. Here’s what they told me.

Mohit felt that it would have been acceptable if Vish had gotten late for some valid reason. However, he was angry because Vish had purposely come late, assuming that Mohit would be late. And this was despite the fact that Vish kept “lecturing” him on being punctual. Mohit felt that Vish was reprimanding him by doing this.

Vish felt that Mohit was being unreasonable as Mohit himself was usually late. He felt that if Mohit was not ready to change his habit of being late, the only way Vish could save his time in his busy schedule was by being late for meetings himself. He could not afford to waste his time like that.

If you were in my shoes, what would you tell them?

Post #2: Observation of team behaviour: intercultural and interpersonal communication

I belong to one of the most diverse blogging groups in the class. There are people of four different nationalities and four different races in my group. However, it is amazing to see how smooth our discussions are. Everyone understands each other and contributes constructively. I am going to examine the reason for this in the light of a theory.

The Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT) suggests that people subconsciously change their speech style to the style of the listener in order to accommodate with him/her. I find CAT very relevant to our group. Everyone understands the need to come out of their comfort zone and speak in a manner which is easily understandable for others. We read the other person and react in a manner which we think would bring our point across clearer to the listener.

However, CAT fails to explain fully how communication in a team works. Whose style of speaking do we accommodate with when there are people from so many backgrounds in a group? From my observation of our group, I realise that we all try to standardise our communication by modifying our speaking pattern to one that is widely accepted and practiced in Singapore. To put it clearly, we talk in the ‘Singapore way’. This provides a common style of speaking for everyone, which is also understood by everyone.

CAT is just one of the many theories that exist on intercultural communication. There are also ‘Identity Management Theory’ and ‘Standpoint Theory’. All these theories explain how cross-cultural interaction can be effective. From my experience, each member in my group has shown good communication skills; our cultural differences have not been able to impede our discussions and we have had a productive time in our meetings.

Following are some links if you want to read up more about the theories:

http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0767430344/student_view0/chapter29/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication_Accommodation_Theory

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intercultural_communication

Post #1: Communication and teamwork: what they are to me?

Communication and teamwork, two different words but not entirely independent. The success of a team depends largely on how well its members are able to convey their ideas to each other and how well they understand each other. The importance of effective communication and teamwork is not just limited to the workplace or school; but is seen in every walk of life. I’ll tell you why it is important for me.

When I came from India to Singapore a few years ago, talking to people was one of the biggest problems I faced. I wouldn’t understand their accent, they wouldn’t understand mine. We thought very differently. It was then that I realised the importance of communication in daily life. Good communication skills are needed no matter what you are doing, playing a sport, writing an email, or even simply talking to a friend. Communication, often confused with verbal communication, is much more. It is any form of interaction with another person, not just by words, but also by our actions, or body language.

With the increasing complexity of the nature of work these days, it has become impossible for one to work alone. I would soon be an engineer and would be working with teams on projects. I therefore need to be a good team worker. I need to understand the views of my teammates, give them due respect, resolve issues in the team and keep the team together. One who cannot work with people has no place in today’s work environment.

Communication and teamwork are two of the most important attributes in a person today. It is only after you can communicate effectively that you can be a good team worker.

BLOGGING??? :S

:S is probably the closest to what my face must have looked when I first found out that we would have to write a blog for CG1413.

To be frank, I have always been running away form writing. When I came to Singapore, many of my friends back in India asked me to start blogging so that they can catch up with me. I chickened out! I'm just so scared of it. It doesn't feel like we're made for each other.

And here it was. I have a whole module which requires me to write, and that too a blog, where people will criticize my writing and judge me by it (something which is definitely not the strongest of my aspects)!

Unwillingly enough, I created a blog and wrote a profile of myself. Then, as I sat down to write my first post, I remembered something we discussed in the previous class, the importance of reflection. I started reflecting on why I'm so scared of blogging in the first place.

"When I'm talking to someone, I usually don't think twice before what I'm saying. Then, why should I think ten times before writing something? My friends don't hate me for what I say (or so I think ;)). How is writing any different?"

As I thought more and more about it, I started to overcome my fear of writing.

"It couldn't be that bad!"

So, I thought why don't I start my blogging journey with what got me the courage to write it -Reflection!