SOFT SKILLS
After studying part-time at CQUniversity for nine years and working in various paid and voluntary industries for the past two decades, I have developed and enhanced my soft skills. These are listed below.
Combined Seven Soft Skills
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Student at CQUniversty
As part of our coursework, we had to work in teams to complete certain assignments and earn grades. Our teams were expected to collaborate and function efficiently in order to complete the assignments within the given deadlines.
Example:
One such assignment was a case study related to the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant explosion in Japan. We had to research and present a paper on better practices for Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) based on this case study. Our group's hard work and collaboration paid off with a distinction at the end of the term.
Throughout the assignment's completion, we had to utilise a diverse range of soft skills. These included problem-solving, clear communication between team members, adaptability from working individually to working as a team, critical thinking when selecting relevant information from our research, and effective time management to meet the assignment deadline by scheduling group meetings and organizing our other assignments.
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Student Representative Council Member at CQUniversty
I joined the Student Representative Council at CQUniversity to enhance my leadership skills and explore beyond my comfort zone while residing in SA. I applied as an Adelaide member and eventually became the Deputy Chair and then the Chair of the council.
Christmas Appeal
The success of the Christmas Appeal across multiple CQUni campuses was due to effective teamwork, strong communication, and successful collaboration with members from diverse cultural backgrounds.
Community Example
As a council, we were able to successfully apply all seven soft skills and convince the Vice-Chancellor Advisory Committee to participate in the Clean Up Australia National event. This was a great achievement in contributing to a more sustainable environment.
Initiating the idea and bringing it to the table required influential communication with my team. Seeing the agenda actioned until today is a satisfying achievement.
Personal Example
During my experience with Brad Seymour's Nexus Combined Martial Arts training, I learned how to remember defence moves quickly. This skill of listening and memorization helped me realize that with hard work and dedication, anything is possible. Starting as a beginner with a white belt, I progressed to a red belt, which resulted in a significant change in my physical fitness. From being able to do less than eight push-ups, I was able to do 80 when I reached red belt. I believe listening is a crucial communicative skill, as well as speaking openly and not taking criticism personally. This experience proved that I was willing to step out of my comfort zone and improve.