Interpersonal Conflict - The World is not a Utopia...

Utopia is an ideal world where everything is perfect, especially in its social, political, and moral aspects. Of course in this world, there is no conflict at all. But sadly in this world that we live in, there are all kinds of conflict, specifically 5 kinds - person versus person, self, environment, technology and society. However, I would like to discuss about person versus person - interpersonal conflict. In this scenario which I am sharing happened in one of our most familiar and favorite places - the lecture theater.

Professor A was giving a lecture in a rather soft tone. Ironically, seats were only occupied from the fourth row to the last. Halfway during the lecture, Student B yelled out from the last row, "Can you speak louder? I cannot hear what you are saying!". The professor was stunned for a brief moment and finally replied, "Since the first few rows are not occupied, come down to the first row now so you can hear me better.". Student B yelled back without any hesitation, "No thanks, I am comfortable where I am sitting now.". The professor warned the student not to be rude or he will chase him out of the class. The student then kept quiet and the professor continued the lecture from where he was interrupted.

I was sitting at the fifth row, luckily the professor was audible. However, I found that what happened then was rather amusing. Basically I thought that Student B has absolutely no idea how to be diplomatic and polite. Definitely one who has the lowest emotional intelligence I have ever seen! Pardon me for saying that if you found it ironic. If Student B wanted to get what he wants then he should be more polite and humble instead of being aggressive and rude. Or perhaps he could have just moved down to the first row.

As for Professor A, I felt that he has said and done the right thing. And I felt that he should deserve the students' respect and we should try to be polite when communicating with them.

Like what Albert Einstein said, "Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.". If Professor A and Student B understand each other's intention, would this incident happen? What would you do if you were Professor A or Student B?

1st Blog Post - Why ES2007S

Hello everyone, since this is the first blog post, let me share with you why I have chosen to undertake this module and some feelings which I have towards this module thus far.

This module teaches us how to become a more effective communicator in various social settings, especially within the workplace. What I like about this module is that it takes a holistic approach. The whole package teaches us how to do presentations, effective job search skills like resume writing and interview skills, improving our listening and speaking skills and also our team work ability.

Having attended the first few lessons, it has occurred to me that communication is not as easy as I thought it would be and certainly does not come naturally to everyone. Some may be very adept in communication, while others are simply terrible at it. Well, I believe that I am in the middle of these two extremes. Moreover, why make mistakes in the future as an employee while I can afford to make some mistakes now as a student? Thus, I feel that I should learn from my mistakes now and improve my communication skills as it would certainly benefit me in the future.

Besides, employers today not only look at the qualifications and experience but also if one possesses those invaluable transferable or ‘soft’ skills. Communication skill is one of those transferable skills. The ability of presentations, written and spoken skills to drive messages across effectively and accurately. Only then, your audience will be able to interpret those messages correctly and act upon it accordingly. Hence, I would certainly want to increase my chances of getting employed.

The first few lessons were really fun and were able to effectively drive home certain messages. I have enjoyed the lessons and will continue to be. Let us all become an effective communicator at the end of this course!