Creativity!

Being creative is definitely something that has its pros and cons; this was highlighted in the TEDx video.  I think it is important to be creative but this works differently. Some people dedicate their lives to being creative while others are creative every now and then. I think it is important to be able to be creative but you need to have the action after to actually form or implement your ideas.

It took me a while to think about the last time I was actually playing. I hang out with friends in Columbus but to actually be playing, it’s been a while. The last time I can think of was possibly before this semester even started if I really think about it. I love kids and when I’m home in Cleveland and at church I spend time in the children’s ministry where my mom teaches and I play with the kids. I’ve been home once over the semester and was able to play with my friends baby. It takes me being around kids to play it seems like.

When I think about creativity and generating a new idea I have been dealing with wondering what my role is. Many times I want to be the creative person and sometimes I can but the way I generate ideas changes. Sometimes I like being around others and as we talk I can be creative but it works best when I can just be in my own thoughts. I really learned that the point is that creativity doesn’t need to have structure. Adding play with creativity allows you to be free. While we were at CMA I didn’t feel any pressure or felt the need to perform a certain way. I didn’t feel competitive or a need to measure up in some way. I feel like I’m flexible and adaptable but I’m also very calculating. When I let this go, creativity can emerge better and it doesn’t matter if I’m in my own thoughts or with others.

There is no model that we are following with the Best Practices Manuel. We are free to do what we will. There is the pressure in that this will be utilized in helping MOF for years to come possibly. We are literally writing something that will be published and seen by many people. This drives us to want to do better and we have to be creative since none of us have done anything like this before.

I did actually have a lot of fun. More than I realized I would. I like activities and movement. This time at CMA we were hands own and I thought that was great. I appreciate art but I’m not obsessed with it so I like we mixed it up this time.  

Initiative

I believe that initiative is being willing to strive towards a goal. This striving shows that not only do you want to accomplish something but you are willing to take ownership of the first few steps on your own and you begin the contact.  To me this seems to be prioritized as a BLF area of focus because in order to be successful you have to be proactive. BLF is preparing us for success now and in the future. Now we are being exposed to areas and people that an average student at OSU would not be exposed to. BLF may establish contacts but it us up to us to show the initiative when we see particular areas we would like to pursue. This comes into play a lot with our challenges. No one is looking over our shoulders to make sure that we handle the challenges in any particular way.  With the ambiguity of everything it is up to us to be independent but know that we have support and help in various areas.

Overall I thought that the Young Alumni presentation went well. The biggest takeaways from it for me were to be humble, excel in your current role, understand what makes you happy and to be creative. In many ways it is easy to think that mundane tasks such as getting coffee do not matter much but someone is always watching you. You never know what connection will be thee connection that is going to propel you to an area that was great for you. I have heard this before but the panelists mentioned it again and that is something as simple as being willing to say yes to every opportunity you are presented with. Now of course this has to be within reason but as an involved student I am in the stage now of needing to be willing to say no to some things that I am exposed to. In my future career this may be different because the end goal is not to graduate it is to have a meaningful life and successful life full of purpose. 

Teamwork w/ Family, Friends and Fellows

It was funny coming into this “event” and there being a challenge involved. My roommate came with me and she has heard a lot about BLF, it was great for her to experience what it was like. There was pressure when we were first handed the paper with the challenge but there was excitement as well. Anne Marie had her mom and Anthony had his girlfriend so we had a pretty mixed team. Without Anne Marie’s mom we would not have been as successful in making our meal…or at least the soup. I don’t think any of the Fellows in the group were used to making soups that did not come already prepared in a can. It was really good working with each other in this way; I was surprised we had as much fun as we did.

We meshed well as a group and continued to check in with each other to make sure things were going well. Anthony’s personality definitely emerged. I love how he funny is; it’s very unassuming until you are around him for a while and can get to know him.

Overall I think we were more of an action based group. We did not do much discussion; instead we started and went from there. Once we knew what we were making we split up the tasks. Antony and his girlfriend took care of our main meal and the rest of us focused on the soup. We tried to all be helpful wherever needed. Our success was just rooted in wanting a meal that tasted good. We were not really competitive at all.

We really should have focused on planning more and sharing our ideas. With our entrée Anthony said he could make something with chicken and we went with it. For some reason it did not click that his meal would only include him making chicken and adding a bunch of stuff to it. There were no sides to go with it. We did not realize this until it was too late.

To me the biggest thing about teamwork is us all bringing the best of who we are to make the team better. I came up with this activity once that was called The “I” in Team.  People forget that as individuals we make up the team with our individual strengths and weaknesses make everything work.  This experience showed that even though we all may not be great at something (i.e. cooking) we can collectively come together and still produce something great.  Our challenges are not something that many…if any…of us have previous experience in. But we have enough experience in other areas as well as connections that can help us be successful.  This is what I would like to transfer into the next challenge; a deeper willingness to try all those connections and tie in my experience to the challenge. 

The Word and I

I came into the workshop with no expectations. It made me somewhat nervous that we were doing a critical thinking workshop because I know this can be something that I can be good at while at other times not so much. I had a great time at the meeting and really enjoyed it. With such a focus on art I learned to appreciate it more and take more time to look at it. Hopefully one day I will be more interested in the arts; especially art that is abstract. I am a very practical person that would rather get to the point as quickly as possible. A lot of times I do not appreciate art that I need to interpret or find some deeper meaning to.

Critical thinking is needed in ways that allow us to think outside of the box and allow your thoughts to flow without narrowing them down to soon. I am someone that will think about something and then quickly eliminate it if it does not seem feasible instead of just going with it. For all I know whatever team I have around me could take an idea I have and build on it, this workshop reminds me that I need to allow these opportunities to potentially grow into something.

Observe: This is what I wake up to and go to sleep to. (Bible, highlighter, pen and iPad/iPhone)

Describe: Studying the Bible is very important to me and something that I love to do. I find my joy, my peace…my everything in Christ and I love learning more about Him.

Interpret: Being an introvert it would make sense that I enjoy having some part of my day to re-energize. This is a portion of that time for me.

Prove: This picture to me symbolizes my entire day.  I could have taken a picture that represented a piece of my day but the Word is something that I carry with me no matter where I go. I can tell this by my thoughts, my actions and much more.

G-360

Getting verbal feedback from my teammates was really helpful. They shared some things that I consider to be blind spots. The very things I thought I was doing wrong they did not seem to have a problem with. An example was I think that I can be a lot more vocal with encouragement and praise. They shared that the felt I was good at being one of the first people to give positive feedback which was helpful for me.

I liked being able to give verbal feedback because it is more valuable in my eyes then the actual assessment. I did not type any comments into the space provided on the assessments so I am glad that we could do it in person. Only thing is I felt like we did not have a lot of time to discuss. I did not have any real negative thoughts as the challenge was going on about anyone but I knew we would share with each other at some point how it was working with one another. So it was good to get some thoughts out that I did not even realize that I had.

It is important to know how others view you and your behavior while in turn showing that same courtesy to others. Pride can easily get in the way and blind us of our true character. On the other end we can also be held back by how we view ourselves and the “role” we think we fit into. Sharing and giving provides a way to better gauge where you are to others and where you are with yourself by your own standards.

Wheels of Fortune!

Beth: Beth has always been the type of person that is a hard worker and is willing to do anything that she can to help out. One of her greatest strengths is her personality. She is willing to talk to anyone and she can do it effortlessly.

Ben: I have never worked with Ben on anything directly and I am glad this has given me the chance to. Ben is much more persuasive then I realized and he likes to try to think outside the box with new possibilities. Ben is great at being willing to go that extra step in order to complete a task or goal.

Blair: At the end of the day if something doesn't make sense Blair is going to vocalize it and make sure that we all get on the same page. With this challenge it is good that Blair has been willing to try to get out of her comfort zone and do what is best for the team.

Cameron: Cameron is great with checking in with everyone and letting us know when he is available to do more. When the rest of us can’t do something Cameron is more than willing to step up and do what he can.

For me one thing that I fall short in is definitely taking the time to let someone know that they have done well. As a group I feel like we are encouraging and applaud each other’s efforts but I could do more. Many times we get focused on the end goal so much that we don’t take the time to admire the journey that it takes to get there. I am proud of my team and I look forward to all that we will accomplish together.  

Church with Alexia!

I'm writing this from the perspective of being able to take someone on a cultural experience. As a group we ended up not all being able to do something but I was glad Alexia joined me at a church service. I am a Christian, in Cleveland I attend a Pentecostal church but in Columbus I attend one that is Baptist. Both churches are predominately African American. 

With cultural experience that you are used to most people take it for granted knowing the "norms" or what is socially acceptable. Kyle and Alexia asked me what they should wear. I realized that I should have included this when I first asked them to go. I take for granted knowing that I can go to church, particularly black ones and know what to wear. 

The day of I knew that I had to "warn" Alexia about what to expect once she got to church. Every week first time visitors are asked to stand and after that everyone fellowships and greets one another. I had to let her know that people were going to welcome her and everyone around hugs you regardless of if they know you or not. Something else is that amount of time were are in church. It starts exactly at 10:45 am and goes until about 1:15 pm. This is normal and a good time for me, I'm used to being in church longer. Something else that stands out is the excitement that goes along with service. From the choir doing praise and worship on to the sermon you are having a good time. Alexia was surprised everything wasn't monotone. Lastly with her coming I knew she wouldn't be the only non black person but I don't remember seeing Asians. It's funny that we noticed four other Asians that we could see. Overall I was glad she seemed to have a good time and wouldn't mind going again.