Friday, May 10, 2013
Detoxing (a necessary part of balancing one's life)
Relevant KASB capacities:
- Attitude
- Work ethic that allows one to accomplish goals while maintaing personal health and wellness
- Intrapersonal Skills
- Display choices and behaviors to maintain a healthy way of life
Reflection:
Work hard, play harder would be an ideal mantra to live by. My current motto is work hard, work harder. I tell people my social life has significantly declined this year. Although true, I do plan for social events every once in a while. One piece of advice I grabbed from an older professional was that in order to balance your life, you have to treat your personal life as a schedule, too. If you want "me" time, block it out in your planner. If you want to work out, do not schedule a meeting during that time. I'm getting better at allotting my time and priorities BUT I'm still not the best at it.
If I could, I would love to run or rock climb every day. As a past competitive runner, being a runner is a part of who I am. I feel a little incomplete without it.
I got into climbing about last year. I went for my first round and I absolutely loved it. That was in Fall 2011. Fastforward 3 years and here I am, your avid rock climber! Over time I have purchased my own shoes, chalk, and even harness. When I went home for the summer last year, I found a gym nearby and climbed almost 4 times a week. Point is, I love it and I don't plan on stopping.
My bittersweet life as a senior
Relevant KASB capacities:
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| The seniors of Alpha Xi Delta. |
- Intrapersonal Skills
- Ability to organize one's life and responsibilities
- Behavior
- Identify opportunities to lead
- Take initiative and action to engage in leadership in a variety of settings
Reflection:
My first two years in college were a struggle. I was dealing with personal and academic issues that led to a very unbalanced lifestyle. I wasn't doing well in school. I learned that meeting new people was actually scary so my fear and lack of confidence prevented me from joining other extracurricular clubs. I had so many hurdles I had to jump over that it set me back quite a bit (in terms of being involved).
In high school, I was the second most involved person in my graduating class. This was measured by the amount of cords each person received. One was given for completing requirements for certain clubs. I knew who my competition was and I knew I was doing better. There was only one other individual (cursed Emily Feinstein) who received one more cord than I did. Past her, I was the reigning champion. From my poor memory, I received 5 cords - Cross Country/Track, National Honor Society, Forensics (Speech & Debate), Mu Alpha Theta Tutoring, Student Council, and our very own Spring Valley High School Medallion (hitting a certain GPA). As I walked through the line of graduating seniors to take my place in front (as an Honors graduate with a last name starting with "C"), I received an overwhelming amount of compliments from my peers - mostly people I didn't even know! I heard side comments of jealousy and awe for the number of cords I wore around my neck.
The purpose of this story isn't to gloat. It's to illustrate how involved I am used to being and how much I love to do so. I get bored really easily so my remedy is to join as many clubs as I possibly can! My lack of involvement during my early college years led me to overburden myself my senior year. I am tired every day, I complain, and sometimes I think about if I took on too much... but the answer is always "but it's worth it."
Ability to organize one's life and responsibilities
I don't know where i would be if I didn't have a planner. This is my bible. If I don't have it, then I don't know what I'm doing. I color coordinate all my main responsibilities and prioritize what needs to get done with weekly To-Do lists. I also take the syllabuses I receive from each class and write ALL the homework, assignments, and tests so I'm not blindsided by a deadline.
Identify opportunities to lead
If there's one takeaway I can draw from my high school experiences about overloading, it was to make sure I overloaded on projects and activities that were really important to me. This year, I was lucky enough to be very selective of the organizations and events I participated in. I used to do a lot of research and fish around for opportunities, but just by knowing lots of people and having lots of conversations, I knew what was going around on my campus and how I could get involved. For example, I have been involved in my sorority (Alpha Xi Delta) and business fraternity (Alpha Kappa Psi) since my freshman year. I wanted to diversify my experiences so I remain an active member in good standing for both organizations and do what is expected of me, but nothing more.
On top of that, I know which clubs I wanted to take a leadership role in and which ones I could take a back seat in. I also made it a point to be on almost every listserv that I had a remote interest in (i.e. listservs for the Drama department, Husky Sales Club, Ad Club, Association of Women in Communications, etc. to name a few). Although I am not members of some of these organizations, I can either (a) learn about various opportunities I can be a part of or (b) forward them to someone I think would be interested.
Take initiative and action to engage in leadership in a variety of settings
This year, I have only three main responsibilities (past being a student) that I cater to.
The first includes an entrepreneurship class I am taking dubbed "Creating A Company." As the CEO of Sleeve Up!, I spend a LOT of time organizing, delegating, and meeting with people. I blog about my experiences here. I highlight anything to do with Sleeve Up! in orange.
The second includes my internship with Northwestern Mutual. I want to do sales after I graduate so I chose to do an internship where I could gain very applicable experience. As a paid internship requires, I do commit 10-15 hours per week. Most of my time spent is making phone calls in our downtown office or meeting with people around the Greater Seattle Area to discuss their personal financial planning. There are also required meetings/trainings every Wednesday and Friday at 7:30 AM. I highlight anything to do with Northwestern Mutual in pink.
My last BIG commitment involves the Senior Class Gift Council. Through being on the listserv for FIG Leaders, a First Year Program director forwarded us an opportunity to work at commencement. I dragged my friend with me and we worked all of graduation last year. As we watched the Senior Class Gift be presented by the Chair and Vice Chair, I told my friend Zola that I wanted to be her. From that point on, I sought for who to talk to and how to get involved. Essentially I found myself on the council through my own personal initiative as well as being nominated from a faculty member. At that point, leadership applications were open for all council members. I naturally applied for Chair and upon an interview, I was offered the position!
We are raising money for the UW Counseling Center and 100% of the money to goes to them in a lump sum. We named it the Class of 2013 Mental Wellness Fund. Currently we have a little over $15,000 raised - our goal is to break $50,000! I'm really excited because we're doing such a unique thing (in terms of gift ideas) while providing seniors a chance to give back. It's great. I highly anything to do with the Senior Class gift Council with blue.
Being a Freshman Interest Group [FIG] Leader
Relevant KASB capacities:
- Knowledge
- Self-defined understanding of leadership and ability to identify where one is as a leader in the context of their own definition
- Intrapersonal Skills
- Ability to engage in reflection and critical evaluation of self as a leader
- Organizational Skills
- Can identify potential in others
- Behavior
- Lead for the common good of others
Reflection:
A Freshman Interest Group (FIG) is an option for incoming freshman to take a cluster of classes in addition to a UW 101 class with the same group of people. They are usually blocked into "concentrations," so the pre-med FIG would include a mix of CHEM 142 and MATH 124, for example. When I entered college, I did not find a FIG option attractive since I figured I would already be meeting people in my sorority. I opted to take a full 15-credit load instead. Although getting ahead in credits was great (I came into college with 28 credits), looking back, I really do wish I had taken a FIG. Meeting new people isn't always the easiest, so you would think it is a no-brainer option to take when it is made easy. However, I did not, so the moment I learned of the opportunity to become a FIG leader, I jumped at the chance to do it!
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| During Freshman Kick-Off! |
The journey of becoming a FIG leader entails an extensive application process, taking a leadership class in the Spring, creating a 10-week lesson plan, and bringing it to actualization in the Fall. I was given a Communications FIG, so the clustered classes included in my course were COM 201 and ENGL 131. I had 21 students and I loved being able to teach them all!
Self-defined understanding of leadership and ability to identify where one is as a leader in the context of their own definition
The purpose of the Spring leadership class was to prepare all incoming FIG leaders for what to expect. Every FIG is different because of the students, so there wasn't a cookie cutter structure set in place. We were given a lot of autonomy as FIG leaders in context of what we wanted to teach as long as we hit 4 required topics. A couple of themes repeated during our time in the class regarding the elements of a good teacher and a good leader. One big theme was RESPECT - how do you earn it and how do you give it? We read a chapter from Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot's book, Respect, and led an in-class discussion on how we could implement her lessons into our classrooms. Below you will find the compilation of my lesson plans and my structure around leading my students to success!
Ability to engage in reflection and critical evaluation of self as a leader
In the middle of the quarter, I sent out a Catalyst survey to my FIG leaders asking for feedback. I can teach about all the things I want, but if my students didn't care or it didn't resound with them, the lesson would be lost. I found it super important to gauge their interest levels because it was hard for me to gauge how they really felt in class.
My biggest area of interest was talking about things they wanted to learn about and how they wanted to learn them (icebreakers, games, discussion, etc). I also wanted to learn if I was creating a community between the students so I was particularly interested in their answers concerning how close they felt to the rest of the group. After receiving these answers (below), it helped me better shape the rest of my curriculum. At the end of the day, I'm learning just as much as my students are.
Can identify potential in others
After successfully completing my time as a FIG Leader, I was a little bittersweet because I could not do it again as I was a graduating senior. I wish I had learned of this opportunity sooner so I could have done it again a second time to (1) reap the rewards of giving back and (2) change some things I did so I could do better. However, I was given the opportunity to recruit for the next batch of FIG leaders. I figured that this was the next best thing!
I spent a handful of hours sitting down with the First Year Program directors interviewing students. It was a completely new experience being on the other side. We discussed their experiences and if those experiences were a good indicator of predicting their potential to be a successful FIG leader. One of the biggest characteristics I tried to identify was passion. The significant difference between each interview was the energy levels of the ones who came in. I remember one student telling a mediocre story (in content) of making sure he got that A in class, but his storytelling was so great and enthusiastic, I could tell he was really eager to become a FIG leader. I figured if students were caring enough to prepare a story and to really get involved in the details, then that passion would carry over to giving back to the students.
Lead for the common good of others
Another quality I looked for in potential FIG leaders was if they were doing it for the right reasons. I had such a hard time deciding what I wanted to do when I first came to the UW - I really wish I had a mentor then to guide me. If I could do anything in the slightest, I wanted to impart my knowledge and wisdom to the future! An example of this are seen in the 1-on-1 interviews I conducted. I gave each of my students 20 minutes of my time to discuss how their quarter was going and if they had any questions for me. That's over 400 minutes or over 6 hours of my time dedicated to just talking to these students on a personal basis. Although I spent a LOT of time sitting down with them, I learned a LOT about everyone's individual situations. Not only did I feel like I knew my students a little bit better, I believe that the seed of respect grew a little more between myself and my students. What was even more flattering was that the 1-on-1s were not required for the classroom, yet I had no trouble of having every student sign up for a time slot.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Joining Alpha Kappa Psi
Relevant KASB capacities:
- Knowledge
- Self-awareness of personal leadership styles, strengths, weaknesses, stressors, and emotional and physiological reaction to stress
- Transitional (Professional) Development
- Develop a network of support for self and for one's organization
Reflection:
To give some background, Alpha Kappa Psi is known as America's largest and oldest professional business fraternity. Since our conception in 1904, AKPsi has produced many world-renowned leaders, such as Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, to name a few. As an out-of-state student looking for new connections, membership with AKPsi seemed like a perfect opportunity to jump right in.
I rushed AKPsi during the Spring quarter of my freshman year. I've had a lot of experience with leadership in high school, being president of National Honor Society, Historian on my Speech & Debate Team, Captain on my Cross Country and Track teams, various roles within Student Council including Junior Class VP and Student Body Treasurer, etc. I thought these "big fish small pond" experiences would be sufficient to carryover in my college experiences. With that, I ran for the Pledge Class President and won. My duties for the rest of the quarter were to act as project manager and oversee four different committees (Philanthropy, Social, Professional Development, and Fundraising) and ensure they hit their goals so our entire pledge class could cross into membership.
Out of a pledge class of 21 members, we crossed over 19 - and that was only because 2 other members dropped out of the process for their own personal reasons. Needless to say, the pledging experience was a rollercoaster. Bonding with 18 amazing individuals (who now by the way are doing crazy cool things) while putting in 15+ hours of work each week within an 8-week time frame while getting endless constructive (and not so constructive) criticism from membership. It's not for everyone, but the rewards now are so fulfilling! I have held the Social Chair position for a year, sat on the Fundraising Committee, and now I currently contribute through our Alumni Relations Committee.
Self-awareness of personal leadership styles, strengths, weaknesses, stressors, and emotional and physiological reaction to stress
The hardest part of pledging for AKPsi is that we are very selective upon who we allow to enter our membership. It is a brotherhood, after all, and membership lasts a lifetime. That's why we spend so much time perfecting the process with which we elect pledges into brothers. However, the caveat is that sometimes it may be a little too selective and as humans, we criticize and judge. This can sometimes be construed into being just plain mean (though the good intent is there).
When I took the role of Pledge Class President, I was held to the highest standard out of all the other individuals on my team. Unfortunately, my "big fish small pond" experiences did not prepare me for the standard of measures and expectations I was soon to fall short of. One of the biggest realizations happened during an event called "Midcourt." Essentially, all the pledges gather for a night to be individually interviewed by a panel of judges. They are asked to assess their own performance, the performance of others, their motivation, what AKPsi means to them, the purpose of heritage, etc. These questions are an attempt to bring self-awareness to the pledges of how they are actually doing throughout the pledge process and the purpose behind the . For me, it was a very rough eye-opening experience - that night, I realized I was nowhere near the type of leader I wanted to be. As a freshman Pledge Class President leading a pledge class of sophomores, juniors, and even seniors, there was an awkward pull between our status. I unknowingly did not have the respect nor the credibility from my pledge class because of my lack of age, lack of experience, and lack of confidence in my leadership capabilities. To be fair, they liked me as an individual, just not so much in a leadership role. During Midcourt, members asked questions left and right that made me realize I was a lot more passive aggressive than I liked to admit. I also didn't have much ownership in the things that I did. From this experience onward, I realized how important feedback is to grow as a person and a leader. Whatever kind of leader I am today... I can definitely be better. Learning more about myself as a person will help me understand what environments I thrive in, what skills I need to foster, or what have you.
Develop a network of support for self and for one's organization
Our membership at the University of Washington stands strong at sixty. Our chapter, Rho, is one of thirteen chapters in the Northwest Region and one of 236 in the nation. I only mention this because I am lucky enough to have access to one of the largest networks. I strongly believe that a large part of leadership is fostered through learning from others and their personal experiences. One of the greatest reasons why I joined Alpha Kappa Psi is because I wanted to cultivate relationships with the people I looked up to and wanted to be one day.
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| The Northwest Region |
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| Presenting during a workshop whilst cold |
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| Receiving an award for Rho Chapter from then President, Andrea Nemeth |
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Becoming a Communications Major
Relevant KASB capacities:
- Attitude
- Confidence as a foundation for the involvement in leadership and the ability to persevere in the face of obstacles and failures
- Committed to the equity of all people and quest for social justice
- Interpersonal skills
- Able to make persuasive arguments for ideas
Reflection:
Choosing my major has been one of the greatest emotional rollercoasters I have ridden at my time here at the UW. Although it isn't a new story, the greatest reason why my experiences differentiate from others is that my choice to become a Communications major was the first step to breaking down the wall of self-doubt I built so high around myself. It was a cornerstone choice that helped build the bridge towards a new mindset that enabled me to achieve success without fear.
When I entered college, I thought I was ahead of the crowd because I already knew what I wanted to major in. My interest in business spawned from reading Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad. The ideas introduced in that read were concepts I never encountered in high school. With this very minute background in business knowledge, I armed myself to become a business major. I saw the appropriate advisers, attended the right seminars, took the required classes, and even went out of my way to join a business fraternity my freshman year. Little did I know the UW standard structured around grades. I thought if I did everything right - I would get in. Soon enough, I found that young innocence and eagerness would not cut it at such a prestigious university. I learned (not quickly enough) that doing everything well was the key to success. Regardless of all the steps I took, I did poorly in my classes. To demonstrate just has poorly I was performing, my lowest GPA was a 2.56 at the end of my sophomore year and my lowest individual class grade sat at a 0.8. With the competitive business GPA being a 3.5, I had slim chances of being accepted, regardless if other areas of my application were above average.
Needless to say, the next couple of quarters were rough. I didn't know what I wanted to study and frankly, I didn't want to try anymore because my spirits were crushed. After visiting with the business advisers, I was told that it would be a waste of my time and the business school's time to apply again. They suggested I transfer to Bothell or Tacoma if I really wanted to do business. Another adviser even expressed concern that I would get in any major at all. This isn't exactly the best setup for success. It was worse because this academic failure was something new to me. In high school, I graduated in the top 10% of the class - I wasn't used to doing so poorly in school. On top of that, my entire family thought I was just joking around and extended no understanding or support at all to help me out of my rut - just criticism and doubt.
When people ask me how I chose to be a COM major, I tell them about one conversation. My best friend sat down with me in the Fall of 2011 after I was complaining about not liking Psychology. He was the first person to encourage me to take one quarter to experiment different classes. He asked me what I had considered before, and I told him Communications, International Studies, and Drama. Upon some research and a very nice sticky note he left on my laptop which I still keep, I took those classes to see if any of them would really be a good fit. I was initially scared of taking a "break" quarter to find out what I really wanted to do because I didn't think I would graduate on time, but looking back, taking a breather was one of the smartest things I could have done. Long story short, I fell in love with the COM department, the classes offered, the professors who taught them... everything. I actually went to class because I enjoyed it and my grades significantly improved.
Confidence as a foundation for the involvement in leadership and the ability to persevere in the face of obstacles and failures
Committed to the equity of all people and quest for social justice
Able to make persuasive arguments for ideas
One of the greatest reasons why I love the COM department is because of a select few classes that helped me see the world in a completely new perspective. After taking COM 289 - Communication and Difference, I realized that social inequality still exists in our world. Growing up as a Chinese female in a white and male privileged world has provided me with several lens to look out of. These assortment of lenses finally became apparent to me after this class.
I continued this quest for social justice by writing about it. The following quarter, I registered for COM 431 - Rhetorical Criticism. We were responsible for choosing an artifact and analyzing it using four different methods. I wanted to explore the concept of post-race in a pop culture setting so I used an SNL monologue featuring Jamie Foxx as the centerpiece of my analysis. Below you will find my favorite critiques of this piece - one using a narrative perspective, one with a conceptual perspective, and lastly, my final paper summing up a quarter's worth of analysis.
Monologue
Final Analysis
Narrative Critique
Conceptual Critique
Monday, May 6, 2013
Visiting Indonesia
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| My mother and I at my absolute favorite beach in Bali - Tanah Lot! |
- Attitude
- Willingness to take risks
- Zest or passion for life
- Interpersonal Skills
- Able to demonstrate empathy and respect for others
Reflection:
Willingness to take risks
Travelling usually acts as a life-changing experience for most people - especially to a country that is completely different from the one you grew up in. When the people, the food, the music, the architecture, the standard of living, the lifestyle of something completely foreign becomes salient in your eyes, it makes you question the very world you come from. In my opinion, I think that's the best metamorphosis a person can undergo. And if it's not a metamorphosis, at the very least people will take a second look at what they value.
Travelling usually acts as a life-changing experience for most people - especially to a country that is completely different from the one you grew up in. When the people, the food, the music, the architecture, the standard of living, the lifestyle of something completely foreign becomes salient in your eyes, it makes you question the very world you come from. In my opinion, I think that's the best metamorphosis a person can undergo. And if it's not a metamorphosis, at the very least people will take a second look at what they value.
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| My mom and I in traditional Balinese garb. |
Zest or passion for life
During my stay, I traveled to Malang (center), Bali (right), Yogyakarta (left), and back to my mom's hometown, Malang. There was a lot to do and see in two weeks, but we made it work. I had a laundry list of places and activities that I've been dreaming about, so I'm glad to say that I did them all! Among that list included riding on an elephant, walking around Borobudur, swimming in Bali beaches, and most importantly, trying the food that was native to each city. Among THAT list, I discovered I am a HUGE sucker for mie, rowan, and sop!
During my stay, I traveled to Malang (center), Bali (right), Yogyakarta (left), and back to my mom's hometown, Malang. There was a lot to do and see in two weeks, but we made it work. I had a laundry list of places and activities that I've been dreaming about, so I'm glad to say that I did them all! Among that list included riding on an elephant, walking around Borobudur, swimming in Bali beaches, and most importantly, trying the food that was native to each city. Among THAT list, I discovered I am a HUGE sucker for mie, rowan, and sop!
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| My mom's high school. |
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| Another beach in Bali - Kuta Beach. |
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| Having my wish come true at Borobudur! |
My biggest takeaway from this journey is learning to appreciate the value of people. Ingraining myself in an individualistic culture such as America makes me often forget my roots. Not to say one is better than the other, but I forget how collectivistic countries really do put the group - or family - first. My grandma, uncle, aunt, and two cousins cared for me like they have known me my entire life, even though this is the first time we had ever seen or talked to each other. They catered to my every need, waited on me hand and foot, just to make sure I was comfortable - even when we couldn't communicate in the same language! They wanted to make sure their granddaughter, niece, or cousin was fully taken care of. It was humbling to see such undying love. Furthermore, this trip made me see my mom more of a person and less as a mother. I finally understand where she came from and how it has shaped her to be who she is today - an important aspect that no one should overlook for anyone. Understanding people at a deeper level laid a path of caring for others for me. Especially in a career of sales, if I never forget to put others first, only good things can come.
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