Is it the end?

I'm an outspoken girl, thus I always thought I had no problems communicating with others since I was very chatty. After taking this course, it made me reflect on how little I knew about communicating effectively, and how much I have to learn.

This course allowed me to understand the concepts behind effective communication (both verbal and written), and the examples that we went through in class helped to put these concepts into real-life situations. We got the chance to simulate a mock meeting with proper agenda, and had to write detailed minutes for that. This exercise showed me how difficult it was to write minutes without any error at all, and I now have a new found respect for secretaries! Also, it was a great challenge to put together our written report, but it helped us put our newly acquired skills into practice, such as writing a business correspondence, and how to write in a persuasive tone.

The best example of our verbal communication exercise would be our oral presentation. I tried very hard to relax, but was still pretty nervous during my OP. Subconsciously I kept referring to my notes (which i didn't realise until I saw the video), probably because I was nervous and felt insecure without saying every single word I've written down! :) But I've come to learn that it's best not to refer to the notes. I should be delivering my speech and thinking at the same time, and not just simply regurgitating everything I've prepared.

All good things must come to an end. I really did enjoy myself throughout this course, although there were stressful moments too. I think that I've picked up many practical skills, especially those of writing a good CV and job application letter. These are skills that I could use immediately as I've started to apply for jobs. I had a great tutor and great classmates, and all in all I had an enjoyable time of learning. Kudos to US!