This is just a random article that really tug my heartstrings. It is in Chinese but I will translate it for you. The title of this article is, "9 sentences that are most heartbreaking for your parents." This is an article that the journalist of our chinese newspaper found on a china website, stating the 9 sentences that children are forbidden to speak. These sentences may seem to be harmless to the children, but are actually very heartbreaking to the parents. In a survey done, more than 90% of the children said that they actually use at least 1 sentence often. 


These 9 sentences are:
1) "Okay, okayyy, I know, stop nagging."
2) "Is there anything else, if not I'm going to hang up."
3) "You won't understand even if I told you, so don't ask."
4) "How many times have I told you not to do this, you don't even do a good job when you do it anyway."
5) "Your thinking is so old-fashioned."
6) "I told you not to tidy up my room, see, now I can't find my things."
7) "I know which food I want to eat, don't help me."
8) "I told you not to eat these leftovers, why don't you listen."
9) "I know what I am doing, don't talk about it, aren't you sick of it?"


Personally, I am guilty of speaking 1 or 2 of these sentences to my mother when I am frustrated. In this generation, we seem to focus lesser on filial piety and only on ourselves. I hope that the people who have read this will follow me and try to correct ourselves and treat our parents better. We do not wish to hurt them anymore. 

Culture Shock

I love the Japanese culture. Although I am born a Chinese, I am fascinated by the culture and politeness.
The first culture difference that many Japanese find in America is their greeting customs. Although the greeting is one of the simplest human communications, both countries have different methods of greeting each other. Three differences include introduction, self-introduction, and departure. 
Japanese use nonverbal greetings instead of verbal greetings. Japanese use gestures such a bowing and nodding to acknowledge someone.
They have cultural universal such as family, religion, marriage, customs, ethics and greetings...etc...

For example, Americans prefer the inductive method that brings out general idea from concrete; therefore, they are apt to talk about their privacy first.  In other words, Japanese people are likely to talk about where they belong to. For example, the typical Japanese person first talks about his university or his major, then what kind of club they belong to. Finally they usually talk about hobbies or an event that happened recently. 
Intercultural communication takes place when different people from different countries come together and communicate nicely. We have to respect their culture and understand where they are coming from.
No matter how much differences, people with an open mind can learn from each other.




 

This guy deserves a medal

I think that this is a hilarious article and I agree with the statement, this guy deserves a medal. This article is about how a woman, I would think is a housewife, goes to the supermarket and she would bring her husband along. Either out of boredom or just for fun, her husband does various ridiculous and disturbing actions! Yes, I know when you read my title, you would be thinking that I would be writing on some super athlete or some hero who saved someone or something. Well, I posted this up so everybody can have a good laugh and brighten up your day as I know the deadlines are breathing down on our necks. Maybe next time everyone should think twice when you drag your partner to accompany you to the store. He/she might just do something really embarrassing or childish because he/she wants to entertain themselves. Imagine how the shock when you receive such a letter as above in your mailbox!

In chapter 4, we learnt about euphemisms which are unpleasant truths wearing a diplomatic cologne. Language can be interpreted in more than one way. This letter is wrote in a very formal way and clearly only states the facts that happened in the store. It starts of by thanking the customer for patronizing the store and then laying down that they are 'considering' banning the family so that they do not offend the customer directly. They then give the customer a chance to negotiate when they say that the family can come into the store if her husband would stop his antics. They then lay the facts with dates intact so that the customer can not debut because she would know that they clearly know the dates because of sufficient evidence, and she won't be able to complain against the manager nor the store. How many of us can put "Your husband is acting like a kid in our store, please ask him to stop or do not come to our store anymore." so nicely in words?

Is Anybody Listening?

Is Anybody Listening?

I have miraculously came across this speech which is given by the toastmaster on listening problem faced in the current era. He started the speech by asking a question, knowing that his audience will agree on. He continued with a personal experience and most of them reacted with laughter as they are able to relate to him due to their similar experiences. This later on garnered the interest of the audiences and engage them with what he is going to say next.

He continued by describing his past when he is practising active listening and concluded that communication had broke down due the fact that we are taking in communication styles and information from too many different sources. Unable to juggle between too many channels has caused his lack of focus when listening, this struggle is termed as “Communication Overload Disorder”.

Secondly, he compared and contrasted the way his wife talks to him and her friend; she only replied every comment with “Oh My God!” but it is spoken with different tone at each time. (That is how easy it is!) Eventually, he came up with my own system called the “Automatic Response Mode”, which allows him to act as if he is paying attention but he is actually not listening. It is just simply replying with “Ya, Uh Huh, and Really” but it has to complement with the different tones used at a particular situation.

This video shows us the methods used by the toastmaster in carrying out his speech and his ideas on listening. By listening attentively, you will be able to know and understand an individual’s style of speaking which will improve the communication. Thus, I believe that listening is a crucial skill that assists us to improve or maintain personal and professional relationships. In fact, we should all embrace and improve it.

After listening to the toastmaster, what is your view on “Communication Overload Disorder” and has it happened to you?

The Fun Theory

'Rolighetsteorin', or 'The Fun Theory' is an initiative by Volkswagen to use the element of fun to improve social behaviour.

Watch the video above and see how the FUN team inject the idea of fun in their quest to promote a healthier lifestyle for the commuters; by persuading them to take the stairs rather than their usual habit of using the escalators to get up, or down the train platforms. Amazingly, they managed to get that message across to majority of the commuters effectively! Interesting, isn't it? In other words, a sender can make his/her messages more appealing to the receiver, so as to retain the receiver's attention; thus, enabling the receiver to accept and understand the message thoroughly.

I think Singapore could also adopt this idea in our MRT stations. Not only will it helps in promoting a healthy habit, but can also make a commuter's day after a long wait for his/her train ride due to some disruptions in train service (which is becoming rather common recently..). 

Human Resource

Passing the public scrutiny test by a company and its management is way of finding out one's ethical thinking and background. 

Human Resource professionals are likely to be challenged daily with issues that present ethical dilemmas. The choices that HR professionals make, or guide others to make, may affect the productivity, profitability, and the public image of their organization. 

In this age of global communications and instant mobilization of public opinion, a company cannot expect to achieve its greatest potential and most serious objectives beyond the scope of public scrutiny. 

This means that a company and its management will be measured by its financial performance, as it always has been. But it also means that a company will be measured by additional , such as management's vision, depth, culture and social responsibility quotient. 

However, a company human resource is very important and here is a checklist of a few of the basic things a company's management should do in good times so that it can have the right to expect public support in difficult times.

Mutual respect organization.

In an organization in which respect is a demonstrated value, employees and managers treat each other with dignity and make it known that they care about the work they perform. The organization's leadership fosters initiative and creativity. Individual differences and perspectives are appreciated and promoted. All employees, regardless of their position, are recognized and rewarded for their contributions.

Overpromising. "This company is the best place to work in the county!" Are managers making these kind of self assuring statements?  If the norm is making brash, optimistic (possibly untrue) statements to achieve a short-term result, this is an indicator of a weak ethics system. Underachieving. Are employees allowed to barely "get by" and still be rewarded with a paycheck and even promotions? Is mediocrity accepted because it's too difficult to fire people who aren't really competent? If an organization takes the easy way out and tolerates employees who are negative and only partially productive, long-term success is jeopardized.

Reach

The REACH forum is a platform for civil and open discussions among contributors, on issues of national and public interests. It is an local online feedback forum where people can submit their say and comments.

Public discussion among citizens is more open minded where members of this forum posts comments about a certain topic.

 They have different categories of topics where you can pick and choose. For example, about Youth or Education or healthcare. A moderator would post a topic and many are free to leave comments or feedbacks. But all these are controlled by the moderator as he or she must keep track with the audience or citizens. 

Govt, Please Do Something for the Wayward Youths living on the Fringe ... Those Ah Bengs/ Lians, Hooligans, Gangsters...

Pictures like these are shown to represent the topic and many would then post comments regarding to this. 

The moderator would have to keep track of the comments and make sure all are heard before making any conclusions.

Reflect

With all the different social networks and electronic devices, do we actually communicate with people? Singapore is a fast paced country and everyone seems to be so preoccupied everyday. The following article will remind us to stop and enjoy the simplest things in life. 

My mom is a working single-mum and I am also busy with school and work myself. I hardly see her because by the time I am back home, she is fast asleep and when she leaves home for work, I will be asleep. Sometimes I personally wonder what are we all rushing for, rushing to? Are we living the life we want?

When was the last time you actually communicated with your parents?

Editing Beauty

Ever thought of improving your appearance? This product will most likely make your dreams come true.

Fotoshop by Adobé (Adobe)

 This video is a spoof of real software called Photoshop; using the same concept shown on Maybelline commercial video. The idea is to showcase the power of Photoshop and how you could use it to modify your images. For example, it allows you to change the colour and the size of a person. It shows that by using Photoshop, one could easily lie about their appearance and even their race.

What I realise is that this video has fulfilled most of the AIDA model.

Firstly, this video has managed to catch my Attention within the first 10 second because of the magical effect it could produce and it looks professional and real unlike those that are made by students.

Secondly, it has sparked my Interest by showing more functions the product can provide and left me wanting more.

Thirdly, after looking at all the benefits and realizing that it could not be real, the Desire for the product kept me hoping that it will be available in future.

Lastly, Action, knowing that this product is not real; there is actually no place that I could get it.

Although this commercial has only managed to fulfil 3 main criteria due to the fact that it is actually produced to make fun of a product and not to sell it. I believe that if this product is real, I would actually get into action and buy it.

So does this video give you the similar idea?

The Patch -UP

Have you heard of the royal story of Prince William and Kate?

They broke up in 2007 after 5 years of dating but got back together again after some time. This reminds me of how we still communicate with our ex-boyfriends or girlfriends after a break-up.

Usually we will look at ourselves with self-pity and blame ourselves for it, that is the looking-glass self effect.

This term refers to people shaping themselves based on other people's perception, which leads the people to reinforce other people's perspectives on themselves. 

People shape themselves based on what other people perceive and confirm other people's opinion on themselves. The term "looking glass self" was first used by Cooley in his work, Human Nature and the Social Order in 1902.
Instead, we should ponder on our mistakes and improve ourselves to a more positive person. 
Usually a relationship ends because of many factors, role relations, paradoxes and spirals. 
Both people must complement each other such that the relationship balance and works out.

From what we learned in class,  5 steps to retreat from initmacy.
1. Differentiating- Arguments where its from a selfish point of view
2. Circumscribing- Restricting communication
3. Stagnating-Long periods of silence
4. Avoiding-Physical/Emotional separation
5. Terminating- It's Over!

Some effective ways to get our conversations clear to our partner is to own your message, avoid apologizing, make the messages specific and do not criticize the other party. 


Hope you will get some pointers on how to work out a inter-personal relationship!

KONY 2012

KONY 2012

KONY 2012 Video Link: http://s3.amazonaws.com/kony2012/kony-4.html


This is an insightful and powerful video with a strong idea and cause. I initially thought the video was not worth 30 minutes of my time but after the first 10minutes i thought otherwise.  The video addressees many elements of communication in all forms, including social media like twitter, Facebook, and using these mediums and platforms to spread causes and ideas by 'sharing'. The power of the video comes from the acknowledgement and the fact that this organization 'Invisible children Inc" has international world recognition, support and backing from governmental bodies.This video exemplifies the power and influence that Facebook and social media sites have in our generation today. The connectivity of the world transcends boundaries with individuals holding the power of the click.

The issue in focus here is on Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord's resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda who's cause is to maintain power and nothing else. Many crimes and heinous acts have been committed by Kony and his army. Kony kidnaps young children, and gives them weapons to mutilate and kill for his own pleasure. He often commands and forces children he capture to kill their own parents. Female children he captures are used as sex slaves while males are forced to fight for the LRA. This tragedy and extreme situation has been happening in Uganda for the past 20 years. This video aims to bring awareness to the world, and by means of social networking sites, to gain popularity. The video aims for Joseph kony to be a household name to spread the awareness of his evil-doings around the globe. This video shows the extent of his acts, and also the extent of the world's ignorance and how uninformed we are of his existence and his crimes.

The video is very inspiring as it features how one man with an idea managed to influenced so many others, rally support internationally, formed a group with similar ideas and beliefs and lobbied government backing in support of his cause. This video shows us the journey of the creator of the video and how he reached the stage his cause is at today. This video is powerful and engaging and i did not feel bored or lose my attention while watching the video. I feel videos like this have such a tremendous effect and influence on viewers.

I personally feel that Joseph Kony should be put to justice and that we should act now. The Children and youth in Uganda need to be saved and they need to be set free. I feel we should all set aside our time to watch this video and remember that whether we live or not should not be determined by where we live.

Same Gestures, Different Meanings..

Gestures, or movements of the head, hands, arms, and legs can be used to convey specific messages that have linguistic translations. These gestures can be very useful in the workplace because they are a quick way to convey thoughts and feelings without needing to speak or write. Additionally, many such gestures are generally widely understood, although they may carry different meanings in other cultures. For instance, although the "ok" sign that is made through touch of the thumb and forefinger with the remaining fingers extended is seen as a positive gesture in the U.S., in some other cultures, this is seen as a vulgar gesture. Here in Singapore, we share similar hand gestures with the same meanings as the ones used in the US.
This video shows 7 widely used hand gestures, which differ in meaning when used in different parts of the globe. So people, the next time you go travelling, be sure to use the correct hand gestures; or, you might get yourself into trouble!