Saturday 17 November 2012

Reflections on ES2007S : The journey

It's hard to believe that ES2007s has finally come to an end. It was by far the most enjoyable module I've taken in NUS. I used to look forward to Tuesdays and Fridays and the engaging nature of the module made the other drab modules I have bearable. I was quite sad the day of the last class but I'm glad we will have a batch outing sometime during reading week. As far as the module is covered, I decided to break it down:

Valuable lessons learnt:

1) How to influence my non - verbals to project confidence and skill
2) Writing great CVs and cover letters
3) Preparing for and performing at job interviews
4) Drafting research proposals with a certain degree of formalism
5) Critical reading
6) Making things engaging yet structured ( my tendency to ramble has reduced)
7) Using Haiku ( something I learnt in the process)
8) YOU are the presentation, not your slides

Here are some some lessons I learnt indirectly:

1) Enjoy cultural differences, its the only way you will grow. Live & Learn
2) Friends are found in the unlikeliest of places
3) Wanderlust is the greatest desire, travel and visit the places you talk about
4) If you get to know a person well enough, he/she WILL impress you

I feel Brad did a wonderful job of both teaching and facilitating learning. Not all learning comes from your professor but your peers and this showed in our classes. He fostered a very good level of interaction and exchange between us and this made the classes even more enjoyable and unforgettable. His diverse experiences in life and his blog added to the appeal ES2007S had to me.

I lauded Shi Ying for sharing so openly in her second blog post, and today I'm going to do the same.
I haven't told too many people, but I went through a bit of a personal crisis this semester JUST before my peer teaching, my long time girlfriend back in India ended things with me.It had a really bad effect on me, I started skipping all my classes. I was scared about whether I could present for my peer teaching as I was fighting back tears just before I had to present. I'm glad it went well, meeting all of you and the workload distracted me and made me realize, life goes on. It was as if everything was perfectly positioned to help me through this time.

I don't feel like ending this blog post as its the last thing we have left to do in this module, but I have to. All good things do come to an end.  I wish all my peers the very best !  Don't ever be daunted or intimidated by anything, you are ALL amazing people in your own unique way. I'm ending with one of my favourite songs, high hopes by Pink Floyd. All the best for your future!

18 comments:

  1. Hi Rohit,

    I can’t help to feel sad that Es2007s has come to an end as well. Thinking of all the various things we had learnt from this module, I certainly feel that all the hard work such as to practice for presentation or to rush out the proposal is worth it. I totally agree with you that Brad has done an amazing job. His stories are appealing and the way he conduct the class is also very enjoyable. Es2007s will not be same without him.

    Even though I have heard about your story before, I still must say that I admire your courage for sharing your personal story with us. It is difficult to get over someone so close to you but I hope that you will try your best to get back your usual self and find someone more suitable for you.

    Lastly, thanks for everything you did for the project proposal. The idea will not even work out if we do not have your technical knowledge. Therefore, I am really glad that you were in our team.

    All the best to you too!

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    1. Thank you Yea Wen ! It was wonderful to work with you and hang out with you!

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  2. Heys Rohit,

    I am sorry to hear about the break. It must have been really tough on you but I am glad that you got through this ordeal and I truly believe that you are an even tougher and stronger person than before. You always came across to be a very charismatic person to me and you portray yourself very well. I must say you really keep your personal emotions well in check and I am thankful that you came for communications class despite all these and made the class so much more enjoyable and bearable for each and every one of us. I hope for this semester to pass, but I wish that communications class never ends. Why isn’t it a 16 MCs module that spans for 2 years? It would have been really awesome if this is so. I really look forward to our post-module gathering!! And I hope this class would stay as united as it is.
    I wish you all the best and i will try to pop by engine to have lunch with you guys whenever possible!

    Regards,
    Shiying

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    1. Thank you Shi Ying! I wish it was a longer module as well :) I really hope the class stays this united. Give me a call whenever and I'll try my best to join for lunch! Take care

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  3. Hi Rohit,

    I agree with what you stated as the valuable lessons learnt, but I am more impressed with your indirect takeaways from this module. It is nice and pleasurable to have you as our classmates for these twelve weeks. Thanks for all the sharing in class. You are really very knowledgeable in the field of computer engineering! I believe you definitely will have a great prospect in this field. I have heard about your break up with your girl but I admire your courage for sharing it on this blog post. You certainly hid your emotions well during classes. Hope you will get over it soon and find someone who deserves to be the queen of your heart one day.
    All the best for your future endeavours! And see you around school! :)

    Cheers,
    Yong Sheng

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    1. Thank you Yong Sheng ! All the best to you too!

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  4. Hey Rohit,

    You did a good job in breaking down the key elements that we learnt in our class. I totally agree with you.

    I came to know you as someone who is easy to work with and talk to. Thank you for all the constructive comments you gave to me and I am glad to know you as a friend. We should meet up again with smoothing beer.

    All the best with your internship application.

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  5. Thanks Bernard ! Will definitely meet you over a beer

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  6. Hi Rohit,

    I really did not know that you were under a great stress just before the presenation. Sure, you shared with me your story during our travel; however you always have a strong emotional intelligence. Although you were under great emotional strees you appeared very calm and stoic about the whole situation. Crying Rohit is something that I cannot conceive of! I could not pretend I understand the pain you were feeling since I have never been in relationship; but it is great that you have moved on in life.

    I think all of us agree that you come up very strong in this module. Similar with everybody, I am impressed with your communication skill - both in terms of writing and speaking. I am impressed with your delivery during peer teaching and oral presentation - you appeared so natural and made presentation appear so effortless. In terms of writing, you also have a natural flair that invites envy and admiration.

    I hope we are able to keep in touch, perhaps when you are having a beer with Bernard - I can tag along despite my aversion to beer. Perhaps I can have a glass of Chardonay instead. :)

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    1. Looking forward to having our get - together :)

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  7. Hi Rohit,

    You have been an asset to our class in many ways and inspiring too. We got the idea of using the high-cool style after you did in the peer teaching. So thanks to you, our slides for the OP looked nice. I was very unfortunate not to be present for your peer teaching presentation but I heard that it was easily the best presentation. Kudos to you for doing so well despite being emotionally down. Like I told you before, people change and that isn't in our control. Glad to hear that you are moving on. Your great speaking skills, writing skills, general knowledge and technical knowledge have made me wonder how you manage to stuff everything into that 1.5 kilo brain. Being in the same course and in the same hostel, I am sure that we will bump into each other every odd day. Wish you best of luck in all endeavours of life Rohit!

    Chandra

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    1. Thanks Chandra! I really liked your slides for the OP, very Haiku-like :)

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  8. Hi Rohit,

    Thank you for your honest post. I am glad that you are able to express your pain here and still manage to put a smile on your face every single time I see you in class. I still cannot remember your age but I know you are younger than me. However, despite this age differences, you seem so much more wise and knowledgeable. You are a person with self-confidence and charisma. Therefore, live your life to the fullest and I know you will be successful in the future. Good Luck!

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    1. Thank you for your kind words :) All the best to you too

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  9. Hi Rohit!

    Well if I don't don't start reading your other blog and commenting there this will be the last comment from me to you. Promise I will check out your other blog and only because you are such a god writer. I have really enjoyed your writing but also having you in class and your presentations have been awesome(as I like to say).

    I'm now deciding to invite my self to India, and you can be my private guide. Hope you don't mind!! And of course you are always welcome to Norway and Scandinavia. Then I can be your guide.

    Wish you all the best in the future, and may our roads cross!

    - Sumea!

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    1. Yes, please do check out www.singbynight.tk I have really enjoyed hanging out with you guys in class and over lunch etc. Please do come to India, will happily be your tour guide :)

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  10. Thanks for your effort with this last reflection, Rohit. What a thorough overview: well-organzied, detailed and precise, and yet poignant. I appreciate the lists and the personal sharing/story-telling. The accolades are also appreciated as well. The truth be told though, working with folks like you and the others in Group 7 on the topics served in our course gives me an unfair advantage when thrown up against others here at NUS. This is a course that nearly drives itself; I fill the tank.

    In any case, now I need to thank you for your great energy and effort this term, your keen insights and creativity, the clear knowledge demonstrated and, it seems, the ability to hold it together even when your emotional Rome was burning to the ground. Like someone else commented, it was a pleasure working with you and reading your posts this term. (Thanks too for the Floyd clip!)

    All the best as you continue your learning journey!

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