November 29, 2005
Learning Plan, Again
I have spent an awful lot of time on my learning plan and I am worried about my overall grade. After the first part, I made corrections and fixed up some minor errors. However, the length of the paper just keeps increasing, and with the second part of the paper still to wrap up, I am worried I have written too much. After Professor Powely said the paper will be graded on brevity I began to worry even more. I had just finished correcting all the errors and adding vital information that was requested by our T.A. and the length of the paper increased by 4 four pages – now well over 20 pages total.
Overall, the learning plan has been a great exercise in regards to personal growth and future goals. I am glad I have taken the time to think about myself and where I am going; I know I have benefited from doing all this. However, it just seems that behind all of this great personal growth and satisfaction with examining myself and setting goals, there lies a grade. I understand that this is an assignment, but grading someone’s learning plan seems to be very subjective. I think I will do OK in regards to the grade, but whatever I get for a grade will not reflect the value the learning plan has added to my personal growth and development. Grading someone’s individuality and career goals seems a little silly to me.
November 18, 2005
That's Teamwork
This evening, our HR simulation team had our weekly meeting to take care of business. We made decisions regarding inputs and incidents for the 3rd quarter of year 2. When the simulation began, our meetings lasted anywhere from 1 - 2 hours. We had trouble figuring out specifically what we had to do, and we were still getting to know each other and what responsibilities each person would take care of. However, this evening was the most efficient meeting we have had yet. We accomplished everything within 30 minutes and the quality of our work was far better than anything we did in the fist year. We work well as a team and we utilize everyone's talents to get the work done in the most efficient fashion. I am happy with the progress our team has made over the past 7 weeks or so. Good work Four Seasons Hotels!
What About Us?
In today's class, we talked about our grades on the learning plans and more importantly our grades in general. The thing I found ironic about all of this was that we just finished discussion about feedback and its importance, and now we as students are not receiving the type of feedback we need in order to excel in the classroom. Many of us feel that we are in jeopardy as far as our grades go, and we are unclear about where we stand. As students we are constantly doing school work and trying our best to get good grades and when we do not get any feedback about how we are doing, that can build stress and concern. It is vital that we have a ballpark estimate of where were stand in regards to our grades. We need to get feedback, not just talk about.
November 15, 2005
Who Really Cares?
In today’s class we discussed performance appraisals and more specifically appraisals for professors and instructors at the end of the semester. Some of the problems involved with the manner in which these appraisals are conducted and put together were brought up in class. However, one problem that I see with the appraisals after thinking about it some more is that students do not feel there is any personal value or benefit of doing the performance appraisals. In addition to just completing the appraisal as fast as you can to leave the class early, students do not particularly care about the performance appraisals because there is no direct benefit to the students who fill them out. By critiquing a professor at the END of the semester, the students will add NO value to their personal learning experience because the class is over and done with. Therefore, there is no incentive for the student to take time and fill out the performance appraisal with diligence because they will not benefit from them whatsoever.
November 10, 2005
Got Feedback?
In today’s class we talked about feedback. One aspect we focused on is the manner of giving feedback and the means of doing so. As I sat in class I began to think about the Learning Style Inventories we took, and my outcome as an accommodator. As an accommodator, I am the type of person that needs feedback in my learning process. We discussed the types of feedback and the ways to give it; for me I just need to know how I am doing whether good or bad. In my experiences with sports and coaches, I have always been subject to both positive and negative feedback. What I have noticed is that everyone responses differently to positive and negative feedback and other people respond the same no matter positive or negative. I think I am the type of person that responds equally to either type as long as I respect the person evaluating me. The reason for this is because I want to make by coaches or boss happy and as a result I do whatever it takes to do so. Everyone responds differently and everyone needs different amounts of feedback and it is important to realize this.
November 09, 2005
Dream Big
Yesterday’s class was by far the most enjoyable class for me thus far in MGMT250. I have always enjoyed talking about goals and strategies to set them. A couple things really caught my attention during class when we talked about Everest goals and SMART goals. The Everest goals and the quotes from the men who climbed Mount Everest were very valuable and motivational. Many times we set goals and soon feel that they are out of reach, however, we need to constantly be reminded of why we set the goal and be motivated to achieve them even if we must go beyond the call of duty. Each day we should outer perform ourselves from the previous day. And by using the strategy of SMART goals we can have a path or step by step process of eventually accomplishing our goals - similar to the steps the men climbing Mount Everest had to take one at a time.
I have always enjoyed quotes of motivation and setting goals for myself, so that is why yesterday's class was so enjoyable. I now have a better strategy to use in order to attain my goals. Even though the learning plan seems so tedious and boring at times, every professional I have spoke with whether through relationships or interviews has said that it is a very powerful tool. So after all it should pay off!
November 01, 2005
Ethics In Search For A Job
In today's class, we focused on the ethical side of business including the interviewing and job search side of business. One of the unethical aspects of the job search process posted in the slides today was that you should never interview with another company once you have accepted a job. I understand that it would be a waste of time for the interviewer of the other company in which you will not be working with to interview you; however, it is a great way to practice one’s interviewing skills and network with other company's for future endeavors. And if you do get another offer, even though you have accepted the position form another company, you can always turn it down. It just seems that it is a good way to continue to broaden your horizons and learn more about the industry you wish to build a career in. This "unethical" act was one that I struggled to grasp in today’s presentation from the career center representative.