My Own Self-Awareness - Coursework Example

Self-Awareness Table of Contents Analysis …………………………………………………………………………………3 Insights about the Past and Present…………………………………………………..6 My Development Needs…………………………………………………………………9 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………10 Appendices Appendix 1 Action Plan For The Future……………………………………………….14 Appendix 2 Peer Feedback Assignment One Muboriz…………………………….15 Appendix 3 Peer Feedback Assignment One – Emma Delbarre…………………16 Appendix 4 Peer Feedback Form – Increasing Self-Awareness………………….17 Appendix 5 Peer Feedback Form – Increasing Self-Awareness………………….18 Appendix 7 Peer Feedback Form Week 10………………………………………..19 Appendix 8 Peer Feedback Form Week 11………………………………………..20 Appendix 9 Week 1 First Impressions Feedback…………………………………….21 Self Awareness Analysis Through this course, I have learned how to assess my own weaknesses and strengths with regards to how I communicate with those around me and the relationships that I have with them. Through the help of useful tools and concepts, as well as the feedback I have received from my peers about myself, I have managed to not only learn more about myself but also plan my own career strategy. The JoHari Window has been designed in order for individuals to find out more about themselves and their ability to communicate and form relationships with other people (Luft & Ingham, 1955). This method has been used in various self-help groups and other organizations as a heuristic exercise (Hase et al., 1999). After constructing a JoHari Window and reading the peer reviews about myself, I have found out that other people consider me as confident in the same way that I feel that I am. The opportunity to interact with fellow students in a classroom includes group activities and experiments where students have the opportunity to participate in the subject matter hands on. My classmates and I were given such an opportunity and I was reviewed accordingly based on their experiences working with me, as well as their impressions of me (Kemp & Seagraves, 1995). However, based on the feedback of my peers, I have been described as a shopaholic, of which I am not aware of. This I have placed in the ‘Blind Spot’ quadrant. My peers are not aware though that I am a bit mysterious, and there are certain things that I do not share to others by choice because I simply like to keep some things to myself. This may be the reason why my peers have described me as a person who can be more confident and who should be more open to the ideas of other people as well as interacting with them. I have placed this characteristic in the ‘Facade’ quadrant. Muboriz (see Appendix 2) has described me to have a calm and confident way of presenting myself in public. I have also been described to have good listening skills and a calm and reserved approach. According to Muboriz, I have also been described to be committed to accomplishing an assigned task since I came prepared beforehand, thus making me able to effectively collaborate with my peers, thus proving that my help can definitely be utilized for accomplishing team work. For the most part, I have been described as calm, but with the potential to express my views and ideas in a more detailed manner. Emma Delbarre (see Appendix 3) also felt that even though I had good communication skills and was attentive enough, I did not come off as confident enough since I failed to express more ideas with regards to the assigned task. I was also described as friendly, but quiet and shy at the same time. Moreover, Emma mentioned in her peer review that I was a helpful teammate since I was consistent with the work that was required of me, although I could have provided more input for optimum results on the presentation. Reem (see Appendix 4), on the other hand, felt that I had a good semblance of work, my studies and life and that I am able to manage my time properly. I was also described to be highly motivated even with challenges, and that I was creative when it came to expressing my ideas. To Reem, I also had good communication skills and that it was obvious that I worked hard to achieve my goals. However, just like the other peer reviews regarding my personality, Reem also mentioned that I needed to build more confidence when it came to dealing with other people. She felt that it my shyness may have been a case of anxiety. According to Mooza (see Appendix 5), I possess good communication skills which has helped other people to rely on me and confide in me. He has also mentioned that I have the potential to be a good leader and my leadership skills are good characteristics that would help me in work and in life as well. However, I need to be more trusting to people since I tend to give off the impression that I keep to myself and also depend on my own abilities. Mooza then suggested that it would be better for my personal growth if I was more open to the thoughts and opinions of my peers. Victoria Mitchell (see Appendix 6) says I talk mainly about the here and now but does refer to the past, such as her capacity to forgive people who have wronged her. She also thinks that I am certain when I talk about my faith, spirituality, and love, which I consider as my strengths. This is attested to by my strong views on faith. Moreover, she thinks I am open, friendly, and warm. She also thinks I exude kindness and generosity. The seminar feedback from Xhoana Pando (see Appendix 7) says that I am relatively confident and certain about myself and that I know my goals, and how to go about achieving them. She also adds my keen awareness on my feelings, and when I feel comfortable or uncomfortable. However, she also says that I am a bit shy and that I perceive culture as a barrier. She thus advises me to become less judgmental and more confident in approaching people. Although some of my peers have considered me as a confident individual, Eduin Pasos (see Appendix 8) considers me to also be quiet, reserved and shy. This may also be linked to his description of me as imaginative, and I feel that I may have given off the impression that I think too much. However, he also mentioned that I seemed confident and friendly, which I feel is a characteristic that may allow me to easily approach people and be approached I was also described to be professional and creative at the same time, both of which are characteristics that have been used by other peers to describe me as well. Insights about the Past and Present After the accomplishing the exercise, I have realized that I there are certain things about myself that I already am aware but which I have not fully acknowledged yet. One of my peers mentioned that I have difficulty adjusting to the ideas of others, and this sounded negative to me, but was constructive all the same because in the workplace, there will always be other individuals who may have ideas that are different from mine. I have already realized this since I am from another country with a different background after all, but prior to this assignment, I was not aware that such characteristics were already obvious to other people. According to Belbin (1993), successful performance is not only influenced by knowledge, skills and attitudes aside from the personalities that are contributed by the individual team members. Most of my peers considered me as a person who is easy to work with and collaborate with, yet they felt that I needed to be more interactive when it came to expressing my own thoughts and ideas. Again, since I come from a different country, and I have different thoughts and ideas that may not be ideal or favourable to everyone else, I think this sums up the reason why I may give off the impression that I am not giving my full potential to interact and communicate. As a person, I am the type who considers the judgments and opinions of others to be very important, and since I am relatively new to this country and this institution, I feel that making a good impression is very crucial to my peace of mind and general well-being. This way of thinking may also be responsible for my attitudes towards work. This kind of behaviour seems to go hand in hand with McCaulley & Martin (1995)’s idea that a student’s personality type is related to a particular work environment. One of my peers described me as being as being a hardworking individual with goals. I have also been described as someone who has good time management skills and good leadership skills. I think such characteristics stem from me being a perfectionist. According to Morgan & Barbour (2008), individuals who can manage their time well are individuals who like to multi-task and are able to work best during crunch times. This then seems to be my strength. From where I am from, I have been raised to always be punctual and to accomplish as many tasks as possible My peers have described me as a shopaholic, a characteristic which I have never been aware of. I am not certain whether this is a bad or good thing, but since they used the adjective ‘shopaholic’ instead of simply stating ‘likes to shop,’ it must mean that I tend to shop too often. I have never been aware of this, since I think that I shop at a regular rate and I usually only buy the things that I need. However, since I am in another country, maybe I have turned to shopping as my way of coping with the changes that are happening in my life. Judging from the feedback about me that was not so positive, I feel that my people skills are definitely something that I have to work upon. I feel that I may be too uptight with my own personal goals and own ambitions that I may tend to forget that I too need to interact with my peers, in order to build my social skills. Thus, while according to Furnham (2000), I am conscientious since I am determined to attend to my responsibilities and I am determined to succeed in my endeavours, I tend to forget the contribution of my team mates. I feel that I need to interact more with my friends, my family, my fellow students, my employers and co-employees, as well as myself. I feel that the reason why I may give off the impression that I think more of work and my studies than anything else. This is probably the reason why I may seem to be a bit distanced from my peers. In the workplace especially, I am always pressured to meet my requirements and accomplish so many tasks to the point that I think more of the expectations that my co-employees and employers have of me than what I think of myself. According to Lynch (1987), the MBTI can be utilized in developing decision making processes. I would consider my MBTI type to be technical. This goes hand in hand with what my peers have mentioned about me since I have been described to be professional in my actions and skilled in time management. The MBTI has been used in various studies to improve and innovate educational advices towards pursuing the correct career path (Crocket & Crawford, 1989). As much as possible, I try to make sure that everything that I do is done in an orderly manner, making me a bit obsessive compulsive. I feel comfortable when there are a set of rules that I have to follow, and I feel very satisfied with myself when I manage to accomplish everything the way it should be done. However, I feel that getting used to being too ‘technical’ may make me fall short of cultivating my leadership skills. My Development Needs Knowing myself and knowing what others think of me can help me in my career since working for an organization requires individuals to constantly interact with each other on a regular basis. I feel that by knowing my strengths and my weaknesses, I will be able to be aware of how to better communicate with people. I have been described to be quiet and shy. In the workplace where employees are expected to meet deadlines, and present presentations to a number of people require good communication skills and the ability to be expressive in terms of ideas, thoughts, opinions and suggestions. I have been described to be creative, and I feel that it would be a waste towards my own benefit and the organization’s benefit if I were not to speak up. According to Ross et al. (1999), I am a kinaesthetic learner, since I am able to excel in activities that require my creativity. According to some of my peers, they expected a bit more from me in terms of my input, but felt that the reason why I may be holding back was because I was not used to being in a new environment. I feel that being more conscious of how I project myself to others will allow me to build up my self-esteem by knowing how to work on my own weaknesses. From the course, I learned that the lack of self-awareness brings about a number of advantages such as failure to set goals, failure to make decisions when appropriate, problems with job related attitudes, leadership skills and work performance. Through this assignment, I have felt that I am more prepared to face my work, studies and life with a better chance towards self-development. I particularly want self-awareness to work for me in such a manner that it enhances my leadership skills. One of the peer reviews have mentioned that I have the potential to be a good leader because I am able to have control over a situation. Thus, by being aware that I need to work on my interaction with other people and my communication skills, I feel that I am more ready to prepare myself for leadership roles in the future. The Circle of Self discussed during the course made me realize the most important factors in my life. These are my health, my friends, my family, my job, my education and my house. Also important but not as important as the first factors mentioned are the children that I would like to have in the future, and the success that I would like to achieve in terms of my career and my relationship with those around me. I also consider travelling to be important and in the future, I would like to travel to as many places as possible before I begin to start a family. Being able to wear nice clothes is also important to me, and money as well. Desirable things that would like to have in my life, but are not as important include a nice, new car, and being able to be athletic in some sport. Judging from the factors that are most important in my life, I have found that I consider my relationships with my family and friends to be extremely crucial to my happiness and my satisfaction. It is also important for me to feel secure and that is why I also value my work and my education, since these two factors are what I have to depend on to build my life. Conclusion In this paper, I have outlined information regarding my own self-awareness and how doing such can help me in my career and in life. Through the reviews of my peers, I have found out that I need to work on my interaction with other people since I give the impression that I am shy and that I need to build more confidence with regards to how I present myself to others. This assignment has helped me pinpoint which behaviours I should work on, and what behaviours I should limit, both of which would be helpful for my self-development. On the basis of the identified developmen needs, I have crafted my action plan (see Appendix 1). References Belbin, R M (1993) Team Roles at Work, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford. Crockett, J B & Crawford, R L (1989) The relationship between Myets-Btiggs Type Indicator (MBTI) scale scores and advising style preferences of college freshmen, Journal of College Student Development, vol. 30, pp. 154-161 Furnham, A. (2002) Personality at work, London: Routledge. Hase, S., Davies, A., & Dick, B. (1999) The Johari window and the dark side of organisations. Southern Cross University. Kemp, I J & Seagraves, L (1985) Transferable skills - Can higher education deliver?, Studies in Higher Education, vol. 20,no. 3, pp. 315-328 Luft, J. & Ingham, H. (1955) ‘The Johari window, a graphic model of interpersonal awareness,’ Proceedings of the western training laboratory in group development. Lynch, A Q (1987) Type development and student development, InJ. Provost & S. Anchors (Eds.), Applications of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator in higher education, PaIo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. McCaulley, M H & Martin, C R (1995) Career assessment and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, Journal of Career Assessment, vol. 3, pp. 219-239 Morgan, A & Barbour, K 2008, An initial study to the personality types of undergraduate business students, Allied Academies International Conference. Academy of Educational Leadership Proceedings. Cullowhee, vol. 13, no. 1, pg. 33. Ross, J L & Maureen, T B & Schultz, R A 2001, Cognitive Learning Styles and Academic Performance in Two Postsecondary Computer Application Courses, Journal of Research on Computing in Education, vol. 33, no. 4 APPENDIX 1 Action Plan for the Future Based on the SMART goals, which encourage individuals to set self-improvement and development goals, I have also set aside goals for myself towards achieving the same objective. Following the SMART abbreviation, where ‘S’ stands for simple, specific or significant, I have decided to set a goal to be more of an extrovert. This shall help me enhance my interpersonal skills, as I get exposed to people from various walks of life. ‘M’ stands for meaningful and motivating, and in order to achieve this goal, I would like to surround myself with people who are extroverts, thereby hoping that I would be encouraged to interact and communicate more with other people through them. This shall also give me more opportunity to interact with them, know their views, and gain insights for my own development in the process. ‘A’ stands for assignable and actionable, and I intend to accomplish this task by joining organizations, volunteering to present in class more often, all of which are activities that encourage and require me to work in a team. These are additional opportunities for learning, which I must adopt to develop myself professionally and personally. ‘R’ stands for realistic, reasonable and results oriented. Since I have been described to be a goal oriented person, and this has helped me to achieve my goals in the past, I plan to really stick to my plan and make sure that I improve. It is also good to review my personal and professional goals to feel more drive towards their achievement. ‘T’ stands for timelines and the timeframe with which I should have accomplished the task I have assigned for myself. In order to develop my social skills, I have set aside a time period of 3-6 months, with which I hope to see an improvement already. With timelines, I will be keen on what I have already accomplished in terms of development plans. APPENDIX 2 Peer Feedback Assignment One Seminar Tutor Name Student Name … Aisha AL-Baker ……………….. Instructions to reviewer Please aim to give specific detailed feedback in an objective way. It will help if you can be precise about what you saw or heard. Make comments what you appreciated about the person’s performance. Also give constructive feedback about what they might think about changing. Please give your name at the bottom of the sheet if you are happy to explain your comments if needed. Reviewer’s Comments Professionalism – self-confidence and self-presentation She has a calm and confidante way of presenting herself. Communication Skills Good listening skills, calm and reserved approach Teamwork Has shown clear delegation to the task, in the first meeting had things already prepared. Good listening skills Makes good contributions to the team work Helpful Collaborative Technical Knowledge Overall Impression Collaborator Calm way of working in a team For the future reference, could be more communicative, specifically meaning that can express her idea more freely. Nut still Reviewer’s Name and email: Muboriz APPENDIX 3 Peer Feedback Assignment One Student Name:   Aisha AL-Baker Instructions to reviewer Please aim to give specific detailed feedback in an objective way. It will help if you can be precise about what you saw or heard. Make comments what you appreciated about the person’s performance. Also give constructive feedback about what they might think about changing. Please give your name at the bottom of the sheet if you are happy to explain your comments if needed. Reviewer’s Comments Professionalism – self-confidence and self-presentation Not very confident however should professionalism throughout the project. Participated to all meetings however didn’t input a lot of ideas. Might be due to lack of confidence.   Communication Skills  Communicated very well with the team, informed us of what and when she was performing activities. Attentive to other team mates Didn’t participate in actual brainstorming much.   Teamwork Helpful Consistent Friendly Shy Quiet      Overall Impression Overall Aisha was a good teammate to have, she was consistent in work. Although more input on the presentation would have been good, I think she did the best she could taking into consideration that she has not even been in the UK for a year. She was friendly and understanding.   Reviewer’s Name and email: Emma Delbarre APPENDIX 4 Peer feedback form – increasing self-awareness 1- Area where I think you have good levels of skills (with evidence) Excellent time management. She divides her time equally between her educational studies, her job, and her life. She has (work-life balance) High level of motivation. Use challenging projects to enhance her performance. Always use creative ideas when asked to present new ideas. Good communication skills. Excellent in verbal and non-verbal communication, and using those skills in an advanced way. Use goal setting theory. She sets her goals in a way that allows her to work hard on achieving it using the appropriate methods. Good use of technology. She works hard on developing her technology skills because she knows that it is an important factor in today’s world. 2- Area that I think you could consider developing more (with evidence) She needs to improve her ‘’Audience skills’’. She usually tends to avoid audience due to anxiety. APPENDIX 5 Peer feedback form – increasing self-awareness 1- Area where I think you have good levels of skills (with evidence) You have a good way to communicate with other and you have a special way to control others, even if you were wrong. This skill will help you in your workplace and your life also. The evidence is do you remember college days you are the one who I confident on. 2- Area that I think you could consider developing more (with evidence) You have to trust to others; do not depend on yourself in everything given the opportunity for others to say their thoughts and it helps in the workplace. The evidence is do you remember during the college days when we are working as a team you were liked to do every thing by your self and review all what other doing. APPENDIX 7 APPENDIX 7 APPENDIX 8 Read More