right ? wrong ?

A few years back, I was surprisingly elected to serve in this leadership position. I had to work with this committee consisting of a few other people. As the pioneers of this club, we did not have any seniors to look up to. I was totally clueless about what’s expected of me to do. Hence, I did what I felt was right. One fine boring day, we were having training. I felt the team’s moral was kind of low, so I decided to do something different, just some light trainings followed by something I thought would be fun. Before we start the ‘fun’ activity, 2 members, 1 of them a committee member, went off to do other stuffs. I felt super pissed. I mean why can’t they be more supportive? Especially since 1 of them is a committee member. After training, I decided to talk to the 2 of them. That’s when the volcano erupted. I started questioning them about their actions. To cut things short (actually all that happened, was JUST some shouting and screaming), some other committee members came in to add some ice, and all of us walk out with the urge to kill each other. Being someone who’s pretty laid back, open to ideas and with mild temper, it was a situation I never expected to be in. I felt I wasn’t in the wrong, hence there’s no need for me to do anything. I thought that, it will be a full-stop, everything will be fine after ‘a while', and if there’s anything, we can always talk about it nicely and come to a conclusion. But wells, what really happened, were that the two of us keep communication between each other to a minimum. The feeling is just s****.

Sometimes, I wonder, was I so totally right? Is there really no wrong with my actions? What would happen if I choose not to approach them? Is there a better way out? Is there anything else I could have done back then? Mm...

Eventually, the ‘a while’ turns out to be a few years. We happened to meet unexpectedly, though things were kind of weird at first, but, at least we chatted. By then a much more mature me armed with much more wisdom then before, realised that, actually there’s no such thing such as who’s right who’s wrong. Everyone’s right. It’s just a matter of perspective. What everyone wanted back then, was for the best interest for the team, just that we were standing at different angles.

Take a step back, and the view would be much clearer. It takes so much effort to hate someone, so why bother? Instead, why don’t we just try to be a bit more understanding, throw away that worthless ego and life would be so much better.

“Speak when you are angry - and you'll make the best speech you'll ever regret.”
Dr. Laurence J. Peter

xoxo,
Student A

Useful ? mm..

The whole idea of giving presentation, public speaking have always sound pretty easy to me, or at least till the very day I have to do my very first presentation in class. I felt this super shitty feeling, anxiety, and had butterflies in my stomach. My mind just went blank. I went home thinking about what had just happened. It is only at that point of time, that I realise there is so much about learning how to talk in front of a crowd. Taking ES2007S will firstly allow me to learn about the basic skills in communication, understanding the different ways to communicate (verbal and non-verbal communication). The numerous opportunities to speak in front of the class will also help me to gain much confidence. After all, practice makes perfect. The chance to work on projects and conduct a class are just many of the other interesting things I will get to do, unlike all the typical science modules I had been taking, allowing me to learn about working with people from different background.

I always thought I know myself best and knows what I want in life, however, some time ago, when everyone starts asking me what I intend to do after graduation, and all I could reply is, “ erm anything “ . This trigger me to start reflecting on what I really wanted to do, what I enjoy doing. Taking ES2007S will not just help me to know more about myself, it also provides me with the chance to research on the different jobs available, and at the same time, force me to prepare my resume. At least, according to the schedule, those are topics that will be covered in this module and I really hope I can learn those skills during the cause of this module. Cheers!

xoxo,
Student A