The following question is from The Reflective Journal by Barbara Bassot, Part 1, Theme 1.5 Learning Styles.
“Think about your learning styles (Honey and Mumford, 2000). Which are your preferred styles? Which ones do you feel you need to develop?”
Who am I?
Learners are multi-dimensional beings. As humans, we have so many characteristics, preferences, and idiosyncrasies that it is impossible to pigeonhole. So, when I reflect on my own preferences, I can see shades of myself in each dimension (almost).
Activist?
There are seasons of life when I embody the activist. When I am starting to learn about something new, I am really enthusiastic and motivated to dig in. I tend to jump in with both feet, looking for any helpful resource I can find.
Reflector?
This is likely my comfort zone. I sometimes describe myself as a “post-processor.” In a meeting or learning experience, I may struggle to fully form my thoughts and find my words. But I love to take time beyond the experience to reflect and explore without the pressure of needing to come up with immediate feedback.
Theorist?
Not so much. While I admire others’ analytical skills and rational organization, those areas are not my strong suits. Perhaps this is an area of needed growth…
Pragmatist?
Sometimes. I attend conferences with a pragmatic learning approach. My preferred sessions are those that I can leave with specific solutions I can apply in my work immediately.
Conclusions?
I am a little bit (or a lot) of each of these. I think it would be informative and enriching to focus on each of these areas. Could I approach my next project with an awareness of these dimensions? Bring a little more theorist to my work/learning and rely a little less on the reflector? I’d like to try.
Bassot, B. (2016). The reflective journal. Palgrave Macmillan.
Honey, P. & Mumford, A. (2000). The learning styles questionnaire: 80-item version. Maidenhead: Peter Honey Publications.
As a child, I would look forward to diving into the Russell Stover box of assorted chocolates which a family friend frequently brought to holiday and birthday gatherings. My approach to eating the box of chocolates? I would use the map to locate my favorite candies: chocolate buttercream, strawberry cream, and coconut cluster. An hour or two later, I would revisit the box and see if any of my second-tier favorites were still available: maple nut butter, vanilla cream, or caramel, anyone? And, finally, there were the chocolates that I might never eat at all, even by the end of the gathering: molasses chews, fruit and nut caramel, and orange cream. Ewwww.
I find time management has a lot in common with that candy box from childhood. It’s easy to dive in and devour those tasks that are the most palatable: the ones that are quick, easy, neat, and satisfying to complete. But not everything is that simple. There is a lot that falls on our plates that requires much greater cognitive overhead. The less appealing jobs that require more time, planning, politics navigation, and ambiguous solutions are the ones that I tend to “leave in the box” far longer.
I am realizing that there are a variety of methods I use to avoid diving into those tasks: distraction, procrastination, and organization are three of my personal favorites. I can always find some other idea to explore (distraction); focus on something else that needs to be done first (procrastination); or organize/reorganize my to-do lists (organization) in the hopes of feeling more accomplished.
This, then, is the area I want to work on. How can I motivate myself to prioritize the less-palatable jobs and remain focused on them? Do I need smaller sub-goals? Do I need to reward myself for working on those jobs? Do I need a different approach to task management to ensure more evenly distributed time? Do I need to shift my attitude or perspective?
These are the questions I hope to continue to explore in the coming weeks. Maybe I should get a box of those Russell Stover candies to inspire my thinking…
🙂
Bassot, B. (2016). The reflective journal. Palgrave Macmillan.
The following questions are from The Reflective Journal by Barbara Bassot, Part 1, Theme 1.3 Motivation.
Live Life Happy via Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
I strongly believe in the tenet, “thoughts become things,” otherwise stated, “where attention goes, energy flows.” Let’s see where these thoughts lead…
What are your long-term goals? Whether you have a specific career goal or not, imagine you are talking to a friend five years from now; how would you like to describe what you are doing?
Five years from now, I would love to be in a role where I can facilitate conversation and action around meaningful change – within people and organizations.
What made you choose what you are doing at the moment? What do you hope to gain from it?
Opportunities presented themselves… My background in teaching and enthusiasm for learning new things brought me to the field of instructional design. I truly believe that most growth happens at the edges of our comfort zone, so I moved to my current job 5 1/2 years later to find opportunities to challenge myself in new directions. I hope that this job will provide opportunities for me to continue to explore and discover what moves me as a person and as a professional.
Where does your sense of achievement lie? What are you looking forward to most?
I am not a person who seeks personal recognition. I believe that I am a consummate team player. I am at my happiest when I can work together with a group to create something that helps other people. My feelings of achievement and satisfaction are most deeply rooted in intimate, personal moments when I recognize with another person or group of people that we have collaborated to create something meaningful.
What are the key areas where you feel you need to develop? What could hinder your development?
I need to trust myself more. In my current role, I have worked very hard to understand, and integrate with, the culture that I am a part of. But sometimes I do that at the expense of repressing some of my own opinions. I need to resist the urge sometimes to play “chameleon” and eschew blending in for expressing my own unique colors.
How could you overcome the barriers to your development?
I believe that this reflective practice is encouraging me to be very thoughtful about my beliefs and to express them as clearly and eloquently as possible. This type of practice can only help with recognizing and lifting my unique voice in the world.
Bassot, B. (2016). The reflective journal. Palgrave Macmillan.
The following question is from The Reflective Journal by Barbara Bassot, Part 1, Theme 1.1 Starting Something New.
“Describe your recent experiences of transition. Have you experienced any of Bridges’ (2004) stages? If so, which ones stand out in your memory? Are there any that do not seem appropriate to your situation?”
tran·si·tion | \ tran(t)-ˈsi-shən , tran-ˈzi-, chiefly British tran(t)-ˈsi-zhən \ 1a: passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another: CHANGE b: a movement, development, or evolution from one form, stage, or style to another
Fall Foliage by Hans via Pixabay
For much of my life, I resisted change. “Change is hard,” as the saying goes. There is a perceived sense of control, after all, that comes with familiarity and routine. But the passing of time and evolving circumstances in my life have helped me understand and appreciate that life is continually in transition. Nothing ever stays the same. Some major mind-shifting was required to move me from a space of fearing transition to welcoming it. But just as there is great beauty to be found in the gradual evolution of summer’s lush green foliage to the brilliant gold and auburn hues of autumn, moving from one “reality” to the next can bring a fresh perspective, unknown opportunities, and great joy.
William Bridges describes transition as being made up of three stages: endings, the neutral zone, and new beginnings. At the start of Summer 2019, I transitioned to a new position at Penn State. My experience included elements of all three stages, to varying degrees.
endings
I think it is impossible to begin a new phase in life without carrying an awareness of what has been left behind. In my case, I was leaving behind people, processes, and places that had become very dear and familiar over 5 1/2 years in my previous position. It was important to let the people I was leaving behind know how much they had meant to me. I picked up my pen and wrote goodbye letters to each of them. I found myself lurking on my old office’s Slack channel more often than I probably should have. And their texts and emails brought me comfort. This was despite the fact that my transition was one that I had initiated in the hopes of launching a new chapter in my life. But this period of honoring endings was very important to me and helped me gradually move toward the second period of transition, the neutral zone.
the neutral zone
The first couple of months of my new employment left me in a state of limbo – both literally and figuratively. My new office was shuffling workspaces, so I did not have a true place of my own for the first couple of months. During that limbo stage, my belongings from my previous office lived in boxes in my bedroom while I either worked from my cramped apartment or from a cleared out space in my boss’s office. I was learning what my new responsibilities would be but was not yet fully responsible for them. I had a whole new culture to begin to understand. The processes in this new space were similar, but the details were definitely different. Much of the summer was spent in a state of dis-ease.
Yet, I strove to find peace in the neutral zone. My yoga practice informs my approach to life – always searching for ways to balance the challenges with strength and grace. Gratitude also played a big role in padding the neutral zone. I reminded myself frequently of the many opportunities this new position had brought me. As I choreographed this “dance” through the summer of limbo, I found myself feeling increasingly more steady and grounded as I neared the start of the fall semester.
new beginnings
As the first leaves of autumn began their transition from green to gold, my transition to my new position gradually began to feel like a new beginning. I found my space, both literally and figuratively, in my new workplace. My understanding of processes and policies was deepening. I could walk through the halls of my building and encounter familiar, friendly faces. I felt like I was beginning to contribute meaningfully to my group. The transition from one job to another had moved into a more grounded space.
Moving through these stages of transition pushed me to the edges of my comfort zone. But I truly believe that is the space that provides the most opportunity for personal growth and development. We have a choice in these unsteady moments of transition. We can leave the dance floor, or flail around and grab for anything that looks familiar. Or, we can remind ourselves of our inherent strength and grace and navigate times of transition with gratitude and a commitment to being present with all that is – the difficult endings, the unsteady new surroundings, and the unfolding opportunities.
I say, let’s dance.
Bassot, B. (2016). The reflective journal. Palgrave Macmillan.
Bridges, W. (2004). Transitions: Making sense of life’s changes. Da Capo Lifelong Books.
