Communication Essay

A career defines who I am and what am I all about. It is true that a majority of people will choose to work for what pays and offers them the most, especially living in today’s economy. However, I believe that my chosen career path should base on the source of my passion and interest in order to ensure a long term success in life. Therefore, when it comes to my interest and passion, the first thing that came into my mind would be dancing. Being a dancer since I was three years old, I always dreamt of having a company of my own which manages dancers from all around the world. To be specific, my chosen career would be the director of a dance company. The main reason for choosing this career, of course, is because of my passion in dancing. Therefore it would be great if I could spread my passion in this healthy sport to the society as well. In order to understand further on the requirements I need for my chosen career path and also the challenges I might face in the future, the company I decided to interview is the owner of a dance company named Redmouse Dance Academy. Person Interviewed (Ms. Pearl Wong Huei Woon, Director of Redmouse Dance Academy) In her mid-30’s, Ms. Pearl Wong Huei Woon has been working as the director of Redmouse Dance Academy, which is based in Dataran Mentari Bandar Sunway for the past 3 years. As a dancer herself, she has been to different countries and explored different dance companies from all around the world after graduated from high school, but focus mainly in Asian countries such as Korea and Japan. She has a vast amount of knowledge in the dance industry. She even brings over dance instructors all the way from Korea for her company in Malaysia knowing that Koreans are well known as great dancers. Besides that, knowing that the Korean pop songs are the current trend in Malaysia, Ms. Pearl Wong encourages her Korean staffs to teach Korean Pop Dances in order to meet the needs of the society. Throughout the interview, Ms. Pearl Wong Huei Woon shared many experiences of working in her career and how rewarding this career can be. Brief Background Information of Ms. Pearl Wong Job Scope i) Maintaining Company’s Image According to Ms. Pearl Wong, as the director of the company, it is very important for her to maintain the company’s image. In order to do so, she has to ensure from time to time that the Korean Instructors she hired did their job well in providing high quality dance instructions to her customers. She also accepts feedbacks and suggestions from her customers so that more improvements could be done to maintain the company’s reputation in the dance industry. ii) Planning and Organizing Ms. Pearl Wong has always been active in planning and organizing dance-related events occasionally to promote and gain attraction from the public towards her dance company. She offers opportunities for her students to perform in the events she organized and also events in collaboration with other dance companies so that the public could witness the quality of her dance company. iii) Managing  As the director of the company, Ms. Pearl Wong is responsible in coordinating and oversees the work of her staffs in the company. According to Ms. Pearl, it is important to allocate the right person to the right job. She analyzes the specialty of her employees in dancing and divides their job accordingly. She believes by managing her employees effectively, it helps to lead them to a path of efficient work and increases productivity. iv) Plotting of Future Expansion Possibilities of the Company Every decision the director make will bring a huge impact towards the company and the employees. (Sullivan, 2012) Even though it is risky to expand the company, however, Ms. Pearl Wong believed that a successful business expansion may lead the company to an exposure towards a wider audience which helps in increasing potential customers. Benefits of the Position To Ms. Pearl Wong, bringing up the young generation to let them show off their talents is already one of the benefits and happiness she could obtain in her career. Furthermore, having Korean instructors as her employees, it brings an international presence to her company and that helps her to learn more about the Korean culture and languages. In addition of that, it also gives her a new perspective and new ways to do things. Challenges The main challenge that Ms. Pearl Wong faces in her career is the changing customer preferences which is unpredictable. Customers’ preferences and expectations such as trends, economic conditions and the pace of their busy lives changes from time to time. (Miles, 2012) Ms. Pearl Wong has to keep herself up to date about the latest trend in dancing so that she could meet up the expectations of her target customers, which are the generation Y’s. She also adjusts prices for the dance classes so that it is affordable for her customers but in the same time, she needs to take into consideration of her profits and earnings. Therefore, these are the challenges she often face in her career. Job Requirements According to Ms. Pearl Wong, â€Å"Having a business of your own does not require a high level of education; instead, it requires passion, commitment and experiences.† Being just a graduate in SPM level, Ms. Pearl Wong explored and gain experiences from dance academies in different countries to learn their ways in doing the business. Years after years, she finally has her own dance company in Malaysia, which is also the first ever Korean Pop Dance Academy in Kuala Lumpur. Therefore, to her, it is all about the effort in learning and showing your passion in your career that counts. Personal SWOT Analysis i) Strengths My biggest strength is having good public relation skills especially in communication. I am able to communicate clearly no matter in writing or verbally. (Joseph, 2012) Besides that, I am always willing to learn new things in order to gain more knowledge and experiences. I also show full passion and commitment in my own interest and would spend time trying to improve myself. Last of all, I am able to think creatively and generate new ideas no matter in what I am doing. ii) Weaknesses  One of my weaknesses that often become the obstacle of my life is being lack of confidence. I often feel nervous and assume that I could not do well even before I try, this indirectly lower down my efficiency in work. Besides that, I have poor time management skills especially when it comes to completion of assignments and preparation for final exams. I always have this habit of completing my assignments at the very last minute which is one of my weaknesses that should be corrected. iii) Opportunities Being the Public Relation Manager and Event Coordinator in my club in University, I have the opportunity to organize events and meet people from different industries. Throughout the process of planning and organizing, I am able to gain a lot of new knowledge and experiences which would help me in my future career. Besides that, I am a part time trainee in Redmouse Dance Academy; therefore I am able to learn the ways to run a dance company. Of course, I am able to obtain extra knowledge in business through the current course I am studying in campus. iv) Threats The only threats I am currently facing are no specific training qualifications and no working experience which will definitely bring disadvantages to me in the future. Proposed Plan Short term plan For my short term plans, I would try my best to score my degree with flying colors. In the meantime, I would like to enhance personal development by being more active in participating activities and competitions in order to improve my self-confidence. Last of all, I must complete my degree program and graduate as an International Business and Marketing student so that I could equip myself with more knowledge and that will help increase the opportunities and chances others would offer to me in the future. Long Term plan For my long term plan, I would like to gain more working experiences at overseas for five years after completing my Degree Program as an International Business and Marketing graduate so that I could learn and explore more in other countries to get a wider view in business operations. After five years of working experience, I will continue pursuing my studies in Taylor’s Master in Management Program for 18 months to improve and upgrade myself so that I have enough knowledge to achieve my dream. After my completion in Master Program, I will continue working hard for at least three years and start my own business as an Entrepreneur of a dance company. Conclusion This interview has provided me a clearer view on my future career path and also increased my knowledge in the requirements of being an entrepreneur. Doing what I love to do and doing the best is always what I am trying to achieve in the future. I believe that my passion in dancing and managing will always be my motivation to study hard so that my dreams can be reached. Last but not least, I appreciate Ms. Pearl Wong’s help in spending her time to share her experiences with me throughout this interview.