My time spent with the Buckeye Leadership Fellows Program has truly been a blessing. From the numerous learning experiences to the fun memories to the immense insight gained, this has truly been a remarkable experience thus far. I initially had no idea what to expect of this program- and I'm glad I didn't. I was able to enter the quarter and accept the challenges with an open-mind and enthusiasm. One of the things that I most appreciate about the program is that I have been taken out of my comfort zone on several occasions and forced to act. These have been great exercises for me and have shown me new behaviors, thoughts, and aspects of myself.
I also had the privilege of delving into the core of my being by working with other talented, driven, and creative leaders. I was truly humbled not only by being accepted into the program but also by working alongside some of the best and the brightest that Ohio State has to offer.Working with these students taught me a lot about team dynamics and division of responsibility. Initially, we ran into issues with communication in that we would overwhelm each other with emails, since we wanted to keep everyone abreast of our efforts and to solicit feedback. This inundation of information caused us to miss key information. To alleviate this issue, we attempted to do daily updates, but this quickly fell through due to the laborious nature of the task. Eventually, we divided responsibilities and this improved our communication since we would only need to contact others individually if his or her duties merged with those of a teammate. Thus, we had excessive communication at first, but this was quickly improved and our correspondences become much more efficient.
I am pleased that my group began the challenge by forming a vision not only for our tangible goals but also for what we hoped to gain from the experience, as well as the change we hoped to bring to the campus and to the lives of those cancer patients that our efforts would help. The nature of the challenge as well as the gifts and opportunities that we received empowered me and motivated me to put forth my best effort.I look forward to making a greater impact on the campus by paying it forward.
Going into the new quarter, my goals are focused on improving time management, balance and focus:
1. Set Goals- My performance increases dramatically when I set and achieve small and manageable goals for myself. These can be as small as making my bed everyday, and as large as discovering my purpose in life. My main goal for the quarter is to achieve a 4.0, without detracting from performance in other endeavors.
2. No Excuses- My main slogan for this quarter is to decrease the amount of excuses that I make for myself. I had long periods of reflection over the break and recognized that I am performing below my potential. My goal is to discover what it means to do my best. I fully expect to see drastic increases in my academic, extracurricular, social, financial, and personal aspirations.
3. Develop Network- One goal that I have for my involvement with the Buckeye Leadership Fellows Program is to improve my networking skills and to expand my professional network. I look forward to making my interactions with others more meaningful and to establishing relationships with mentors and professionals.
I am looking forward to a challenging and rewarding Winter Quarter!
Ernest: First off, I really like your description of the group communication breakdown. Speaking more generally, it has been very cool to see how each group operated and communicated, and moreover, how those intitial dynamics changed over the course of the project. Additionally, your goal of maintaining and expanding your network is spot on. I very much agree with your effort there, and will be utilizing the great experiences and resources that BLF has provided us thus far to further that initiative.
ReplyDeleteThoughtful post, Ernest. I'm curious to know if you've tried to initially quantify what "your best" in each area you listed constitutes. Perhaps beginning with an idea of what doing "your best" looks like, feels like, means for others, etc. would be helpful ways to begin to understand what steps will be most effective for you to start to perform at higher levels (that is not intended to be a value judgment on your current or past performances, either..). Just food for thought! :)
ReplyDeleteIf there's anything to say about you Ernest, it's that you are one of the most earnest people I know (That was a good one, admit it). This definitely shone through in your post. The level of sincerity and thoughtfulness you display is exemplary. I think it's great how you try to take as much as you can from every experience. Of your goals, my favorite is the first because it's something I do and continually work on. Everyone always focuses on big goals but I think it's more important to set manageable goals that will set the stage for bigger things.
ReplyDeleteErnest,
ReplyDeleteI think its great how your group overcame communication difficulties so well. I think we are alike in trying to improve from past performance, and develop a network. just like you I have been forced out of my comfort zone, but I think you have been able to adjust quicker than I have. You will have to share your secrets sometime.
Ps. Good luck on the 4.0, sincerely