Week 2: Leadership

What have I learned this week about leadership? About the role(s) I play in groups?

I learned from this past week's activity with the "Which and What Game" and then later at the end of class when we were left alone to make groups that I seem to be eager to play the role of facilitator, where I can offer a marketable package of some of my most relevant skills.

What were the highest and lowest moments of my learning activities this week?

A low moment might have been during the "Which and What Game"  when I didn't think to call a time out for the group to regroup.  A highpoint in the learning activities was when I offered my services to help facilitate the formation of groups, and not only was very well received but also was successful in my goal of creating meaningful groups in an effective manner.

What was the most significant thing that happened to me as a learner this week?

I learned that I engage in particular roles more (or at all) than I previously thought, for example 'The Mudslinger'

What was the most surprising activity/personal response to my learning this week?

I was surprised at how well my attempt at facilitation turned out.  It turned out almost exactly as I wanted to, and I think people were generally fairly satisfied with the process and the results.

Where have I observed my strengths in action?

I used my learner to apply some of the new material we have covered in a meaningful way.  I used Strategic and Ideation to come up with a way to avoid the chaos and failure that I worried the grouping activity would produce and on the fly find a way by using a matrix to solve a conflicting detail near the end.

Of everything that I did this week, what might I do differently if I had a chance to do it again?

I would have called a timeout during the "Which What Game" and help the group regroup.

What is one thing I learned about groups and group dynamics this week?

The acitivity of groups and group projects mimic what happens in the real world where so often things fail because of the phenomenon of the tradegy of the commons, where group members do not connect in such a way that makes them feel responsible for what is going on within the group.  It happens so easily!

What do I feel proudest of accomplishing related to my learning/leadership this week?

I feel proud of how I was able to facilitate the whole class in choosing groups. I even improvised with math tools, using a matrice to solve a logistics problem.   That made me feel really good that everything worked out.

What do I feel most dissatisfied with about my learning/leadership this week?

I was slightly dissatisfied with the fact that I didn't come up with a 'great' group project idea.  I think maybe this is just because I've learned now through experience that making a project novel and significant is really really hard to do and not necessary the most appropriate time to try.