Hui Xin is currently a Year 3 undergraduate at the National University of Singapore (NUS). She is due to graduate with a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Life Sciences with concentration in Biology, in July 2009.
Being actively involved in co-curriculum activities in Junior College (JC) and in the University, she had demonstrated various capabilities by having held various leadership positions and also planned and managed different events. She was the President for Outdoor Adventure Club in her JC years and had led and planned many expeditions to mountain in Malaysia. In NUS, she was the marketing-in-charge for NUS mountaineering club. She has spearheaded fund raising events and managed to raise $10 000 for the club.
Besides being an avid adventurer, Hui Xin also has a heart for the nature. She was with the Singapore Zoological Gardens as an Education Camp Facilitator, whose job involved educating the public about conservation. Having a passion for nature, she truly wishes to pursue a career in wildlife or energy conservation work in the future.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Blog post #5: Oral presentation
Have you ever experienced a stage fright during a presentation? I am always pretty anxious before presentation, especially if it is a formal presentation. Therefore, I have dedicated this post to how we can deal with nervousness experienced during presentation.
A good presentation is about how well we capitalize on our voice quality and verbal and non-verbal cues. If the presenter gets nervous, the voice quality like volume and pitch of the voice will be affected and non-verbal cues would only show his/her anxiety. Hence, it is important to know how to keep calm during presentation.
The first trick is to be very well prepared by practicing the speech many times, rehearsal the presentation out loud exactly how it will be delivered and in front of the mirror. By doing this, one can also observe whether their non-verbal cues are appropriate. It is not enough to just type out a speech. As the old saying goes, “practice makes perfect”.
It’s common for people to tell you to breathe deep and slow to relax. That actually has a scientific explanation! As stage fright is caused by a biochemical reaction when body release hormone adrenaline to deal with stressful situation. By breathing deep and slow, you are actually capable to suppress the nervous system reaction to stress.
Lastly, the presenter has to take things easy and be CONFIDENT. It is important to not have overly high expectation for our presentation and understand that we cannot possibly please everyone’s expectations.
Do you have any other ways to deal with stage fright?
A good presentation is about how well we capitalize on our voice quality and verbal and non-verbal cues. If the presenter gets nervous, the voice quality like volume and pitch of the voice will be affected and non-verbal cues would only show his/her anxiety. Hence, it is important to know how to keep calm during presentation.
The first trick is to be very well prepared by practicing the speech many times, rehearsal the presentation out loud exactly how it will be delivered and in front of the mirror. By doing this, one can also observe whether their non-verbal cues are appropriate. It is not enough to just type out a speech. As the old saying goes, “practice makes perfect”.
It’s common for people to tell you to breathe deep and slow to relax. That actually has a scientific explanation! As stage fright is caused by a biochemical reaction when body release hormone adrenaline to deal with stressful situation. By breathing deep and slow, you are actually capable to suppress the nervous system reaction to stress.
Lastly, the presenter has to take things easy and be CONFIDENT. It is important to not have overly high expectation for our presentation and understand that we cannot possibly please everyone’s expectations.
Do you have any other ways to deal with stage fright?
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Blog Post #4 Evaluating Intercultural Behavior- Singaporean experience in HK cafe
Different people, depending on their cultural background, can interpret culture of a society from different angles. This post is based my intercultural experience as a Singaporean in HK café.
I stepped into a typical HK cafe during lunch hour in Hong Kong. It was packed with people and the queue was pretty long to get a seat. Surprisingly, I did not have to wait long to get seats. Inside the café, I saw working-class HK people in suits were either engrossed with eating their food or busy talking on the phone or doing something. Though I did not expect a feast, the food on the menu were mostly fast-cooked food like Maggie mee with luncheon and egg, western set meals, sandwiches. From the kitchen, about ten plates of food were churned out every few minutes. Food was served and plates were cleared really fast. It is definitely not a place for chitchat or relaxation at lunch hour.
I felt that struggling to finish my food faster to keep up with the pace in the café. I wonder how HK people can take such mad-rush lunch everyday. In a competitive HK society, people feel that time is precious and cannot afford to lose any minute. The café and its food reflect the pace of life in HK city- fast and efficient. The menu has an interesting mix of the east and west, which also reflect HK as cosmopolitan. Though Singapore and HK is similar, most Singaporeans, at least for me, would not be keen on such stressful lunch.
I stepped into a typical HK cafe during lunch hour in Hong Kong. It was packed with people and the queue was pretty long to get a seat. Surprisingly, I did not have to wait long to get seats. Inside the café, I saw working-class HK people in suits were either engrossed with eating their food or busy talking on the phone or doing something. Though I did not expect a feast, the food on the menu were mostly fast-cooked food like Maggie mee with luncheon and egg, western set meals, sandwiches. From the kitchen, about ten plates of food were churned out every few minutes. Food was served and plates were cleared really fast. It is definitely not a place for chitchat or relaxation at lunch hour.
I felt that struggling to finish my food faster to keep up with the pace in the café. I wonder how HK people can take such mad-rush lunch everyday. In a competitive HK society, people feel that time is precious and cannot afford to lose any minute. The café and its food reflect the pace of life in HK city- fast and efficient. The menu has an interesting mix of the east and west, which also reflect HK as cosmopolitan. Though Singapore and HK is similar, most Singaporeans, at least for me, would not be keen on such stressful lunch.
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