Assignment 7 Growing Leaders

I read a post on Tim Elmore' Blog Growing leader (https://growingleaders.com/blog/) and it talks about how he had a friend who regretted taking on some interns cause they were too busy worrying about posting to social media rather than working and learning. And so Tim recommended to his friend that he should approach the internships next year differently, let them know it is essentially a long interview,w here you learn skills and learn how the environment is for after you graduate. The top qualities in an intern, is teach-ability (hungry for knowledge), initiative (doing not just watching), responsibility (owning what you do) and energy (high energy and always actively engaged). I've already tried to implement some of these while working, last week I was in the hematology department of the lab and even though most of the tests they run are automated, I asked questions. One of the lab personnel, explained to me the process of clotting and how the process is a y-shape, starting either extrinsically or intrinsically and I was able to then learning to what she had just explained extrapolate that a hemophiliac can clot, if they are affected by a factor before the two branches meet if the bleeding is caused by the other pathway where they do not have the genetic defect. I was asked to put away a bunch of reagents they had just gotten a shipment of in, and I did, I put them away and made sure to put them in the correct spot, I took responsibility of getting it done and doing it right. For me this seems like common sense, this is something you are supposed to do, expected of you, you signed up and accepted the job so you have to do your best even if it isn't something you want to do because you gave your word.

Assignment 6: Work Ethic

The Occupational Work Ethic Inventory is a tool used by researchers to determine how most people work. It is even available online with the following link, http://workethic.coe.uga.edu/cgi-bin/new_owei/owei.pl. It asks a series of questions on how you feel you act while working, with seven different choices, going from never to always. And it gives you a score for three areas, Interpersonal skills, initiative, and dependability.
 I myself got slightly below the average of 5.75 interpersonal skills for males with a score of 5.71, which is what I expected. Because I do struggle with talking to new people and tend to shy away, but I have gotten much better than I used to be in the past four years and so being slightly under the average now is about where I expected to be. The second area it gives a score for, is initiative which I scored fairly higher than the average for males of 5.52 with a 6.01, which I feel is indicative, once I do become comfortable I ask is there anything I can do. I offer help even if I'm not sure what exactly I could do, and I am willing to do anything needed to be done, even if it is just replacing the plates for bacteria. The last area it gives you a score on is being dependable which I got slightly under the average for males of 6.07 with a score of 5.75, that surprised me, I felt as if I am very dependable and very rarely totally drop the ball, but apparently I drop it more often than I think by the answers I gave. Though still not a bad score, I would like to be able to take the test again and answering honestly improve that score, so I am going to try and make sure that I am more dependable in the future because that is one of the most important things in a workplace, your boss knowing they don't need to hold your hand to make sure the job gets done.

Assignment 5: Communication

Communication comes in many forms, and in many different situations the way we communicate differs. In a professional setting we use proper English and try not to use colloquialisms while with our friends we use slang. For each situation you have to understand how to communicate and what to communicate with whom you are speaking.
When you communicate with friends slang, and jokes and other little nuances are OK, we are allowed to speak improper English. You may have an inside joke and need to say two words and you will all bust out laughing, you don't need to be as respectful, you can poke fun and taunt each other in good nature. Though using that same tone you'd use with friends is not appropriate to use with your employer, you want to use a friendly tone but not the same tone as you use with a friend. You have to know your audience and what is expected of you. Though communication is not just tone, it is also your choice of words and your nonverbal cues, maintaining good eye contact, smiling, not crossing your arms, those are just good communication no matter who you are talking to. You also have to be able to write in the same way you speak, so when you are writing a letter or email to your employer it sounds just as proffesional as if you were sitting in front of them dressed in a suit and giving that interview again for the first time. When I am working and talking to my mentor I am going to make sure I am looking her directly in the eye, and asking questions when I am not sure and making clarifications when needed and restating to show I understood what I was told.

Getting Ready for your Mentor (assignment 4)

The article by FSU's Career Center covers what I would call common sense. But there are those who do not have that, it gives does and don'ts mainly focusing on that you should always be on time, attentive, take in as much as possible and when you don't understand something ask questions. They also cover that you should dress professionally and notice the culture of the workplace and try to assimilate. A good rule for dress code is to dress one step above the boss, since they set what is OK and what isn't, and it is always better to be overdressed than under dressed. I used that in my intern as I noticed everyone in the lab wears the lab coat and scrubs, I did the same it is the proper protocol. I also noticed that the lab managers keep their coats buttoned even though some of the employees don't, so I kept my lab coat buttoned. The article also talks about not sitting idle seek opportunities, the past week I was in pathology and when there was not a specimen the pathologist was working on, I watched the pathologist assistant as she prepared specimens to have immunostains ran the next day and asked her questions about each specimen she was working on. I learned more about the uterus in those three days I worked last week, than I ever expected or in honesty wanted to learn. the article said don't gossip which is logical but it sound don't talk about personal stuff, which I disagree with, it makes conversation and allows you to build healthy working relationships. So last week when I was in pathology and talking to the doctor and the assistants and they asked where I wanted to go to college, what I wanted to do and why, I told them, one of the lab techs even told me about a medical college in Georgia I didn't know about. But overall I would agree with most of the points the article makes and have put some of them to use in my own internship, even before reading it because as I said before they seemed common sense to me.

Leadership (What Not To Be) Assignment 2B

https://youtu.be/ZeW7VmUJhbA (link because video file too large to directly upload)

We all know those people we look up to those great leaders who take responsibility no matter what, they stick up for themselves and do whats right, they see the bigger picture and take action. Well Mr. Scumbags Moneybags is not one of those leaders, though the crew members of N and F News do seem to be the kind of people on can look up to.

Leadership (TED Talk) Assignment 2A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zarli7__Su8
JD Russo's TED Talk spoke to me in the fact that he is about my age, and he was able to understand that leadership comes from anyone. That indifference is what causes harm, that people leaving things alone not because they don't know but because they don't care, the self survival idea that plagues people to only worry about themselves. That people don't take responsibility, that people won't stand up for others, or for what they believe, or they attack what others believe because it may be different. He brings up how awareness is not enough, that people can't just learn but they must act on what they learn. I myself am very passionate about hunting, and wildlife management, I am constantly researching about the impact of our actions on the native wildlife. On our hunting property, my dad and I work the land trying to make the land better for the health of the animals, not just because we enjoy hunting because it is only right and by improving the health of the animals, we help the species, allowing future generations the same opportunities we have growing up. I also refuse to put out corn or any ground laid food, because through my research I have learned CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) transmission is linked to piles of food being laid out, so not only have i learned about CWD but I act upon it as well, and inform others that I know, and consistently talk to the game wardens in the area we hunt if we suspect poachers nearby, to keep the environment safe.