The three most important things I have learned while attending Bethel University.

Richard A. Harris
6 November 2010
Ms. Emily Yttri
Bethel University
MOD 300

Abstract

This paper will discuss the three most important things I have learned while attending Bethel
University. I will talk about the amount of diversity in management styles displayed in the classroom that I was not aware existed. I will discuss the myriad of communications styles exhibited by each individual student and lastly, the transition from the very structured military life to the seemingly easy-going civilian life. Will be addressed. To conclude these findings, I will discuss and provide honest feedback on my methods of handling situations.

This paper will describe the three most important things that I have learned while attending Bethel University. They are: 1) there is more diversity in the workplace than I realized; 2) there are a myriad of communications styles exhibited by each individual student and 3) the civilian environment is vastly different than its military counterpart.

I have learned that instructors and their style of delivering material varies widely. The preparation and delivery of material is very different than I would have expected from students.
The military environment is very different in many ways from that of the almost casual civilian environment.

Prior to attending Bethel University, I was not aware of the many different management styles presented and displayed during role play exercised in class. The revelation was quite an eye opener. By way of example, details on each of the four scenarios were presented during class. The first situation was based on a supervisor bringing an employee into his office to notify the employee he was being terminated. Subsequently, the employee’s best friend went to see the supervisor to find out why his friend was fired. The friend departed the office by stating "I will go to all the employees and see if they think my friend should have been fired”. I felt that the supervisor performed an average job on handling the situation. Personally, I would have handled it a little differently by taking the necessary precautions after receiving verbal threats from the disgruntled employee. I would have taken steps to ensure the safety of not only the supervisor but also the safety of all company personnel. Security personnel should have been alerted of the potential danger from the unhappy employee. Employees would have been reassured that the decision to terminate is not one that the company takes lightly and the action was justified.

The second scenario was based on a manager counseling two individuals about an inappropriate relationship in the workplace. The manager scheduled a meeting for the two employees involved at the same time. Then without providing them an opportunity to give their side of the story, he accused them of having an improper relationship. The method I would have used to handle this very sensitive situation would have been different. For instance, I would have started out by explaining that there were rumors being generated amongst employees about an inappropriate relationship going on between them in the workplace. I would have further explained if the information was true, the relationship would need to end immediately during working hours or while at work. Further, if there was additional complaints an investigation would be forthcoming. The third scenario involved a supervisor counseling another employee for disturbing another employee. I feel the supervisor did an excellent job of bringing the violator in and finding out the root cause of the problem and providing a solution to fix the problem. As it turned out, all was needed was extra training to assist the employee on understanding what her responsibilities were for the position she was working. I would have handled it in the same manner. The last scenario involved me and another employee who was constantly being late for work. The supervisor brought both of us to the office and counseled us on our duty to get to work on time. A written warning was issued to each of us. The warning notified us that the next infraction would be grounds for termination. I believe this incident was handled appropriately.

Managers and supervisors can improve their skills in a variety of ways. As mangers become more aware of their surroundings and understand their employees and themselves, the better they will perform in their positions. Dawn Brewer states in Tips to Improve Management

Skills, “to have self-awareness and that self appraisal is as important as supervisory or team appraisal. The best managers are self self-aware and appraise themselves not just their team.
They strive to improve their own managerial skills and are open to feedback from their team on how they could improve as a manager. The manager's job is to serve the team" (May 2009).

The second topic, the myriad of communication styles that students display during presentations, as previously noted, was an eye opener. I categorize briefings in three different ways. They are short winded, medium winded and long winded. Each student had an assignment of presenting a three to five minute briefing on how each student has changed since starting classes at Bethel University. This presentation was presented to the professor and the students in the class. In my opinion, some students only introduced themselves and provided a minimal amount of information during their briefing. They appeared to be nervous and uncomfortable and just not used to being in front of people talking. These were the short winded individuals. The medium winded category is where I think most of the students fell. They did in fact provide detailed information on how they had changed since starting classes. I thought this group performed above average in their presentations. Although it was evident some students in this group may not have practiced as much as they should have to receive or expect a higher evaluation on their work effort. Lastly, there were the long winded individuals who could probably still be talking about how they have changed since entering school at Bethel. In my opinion, this group seemed to be a bit more interested in providing an effective briefing. They were seemingly well rehearsed In an article published by Social Anxiety.com, it states,
Performance anxiety within a public speaking context is based on worries about being noticeably nervous and losing control due to panic. Physical symptoms such as increased pulse, blushing,

breaking out into a sweat, nausea, and eye contact difficulty are common. A myriad of deeper negative thoughts run rampant such as, “people will see who I really am”, “I will humiliate myself”, or “people will not get to see my true ability”. "These are characterized by varying degrees of obsessive thinking. When public speaking anxiety and panic turn into avoidance, a special phobia is present. The more avoidance takes place, the more there is the risk of an avoidance personality disorder developing. (April, 2010). There was one student who far surpassed the time requirement of five minutes during his brief. He provided a huge amount of information but I suspect he was probably docked points from his grade for the infraction. As for me, I actually rehearsed several times to ensure that my time was appropriate for the presentation. I believe I used a total of four minutes and forty-eight seconds to complete my briefing. Throughout my career in the military I have utilized the army

briefing style for the past thirty years to brief audiences that included lower enlisted soldiers,

senior grade noncommissioned officers, junior officers, and senior military and civilian

personnel. I presently continue to use this style of briefing techniques during my presentations.

According to army doctrine there are four styles of army briefings. They are:

1) Information Briefing. The information briefing delivers information in a form the

audience can understand and use. It does not include conclusions or recommendations.

It does not require decisions.

2) Decision Briefing. A decision briefing obtains an answer to a question or results in a

decision on a course of action. It presents the recommended solution resulting from

analysis or study of a problem or problem area. Decision briefings vary in formality

and detail, depending on the level of command and the decision makers’ knowledge

of the subject.

3) Mission Briefing. A mission briefing’s goal is to secure a coordinated or unified effort

toward accomplishing the mission. It often involves the exchange of information,

the announcement of decisions within a command, the issuance of directives, or the

presentation of guidance.

4) Staff Briefing. The staff briefing may have characteristics of information briefings,

decision briefings, and mission briefings. The purpose of a staff briefing is to coordinate unit

efforts by informing the commander and staff of the current situation. The person who convenes

the staff briefing sets the agenda. Staff representatives each present relevant information

from their functional areas. Staff briefings may involve exchange of information, announcement of decisions, issuance of directives, or presentation of guidance. (August 1998).

The last important thing I have learned while attending Bethel University is the differences between the military environment and transiting and becoming a civilian in a totally different world. Initially, when I retired from the military I promised myself that I would take six months off from doing any work. Boy, was I wrong. Within two months I found myself looking for something to get involved in. I started teaching school as a substitute teacher which lasted for about seven months. After witnessing the lack of discipline in the schools at all levels I decided that teaching was not the right choice for me. Additionally, when I retired and got out of the military after thirty years I made a personal decision to myself that I would not seek employment in the military intelligence field. This was something I worked in for over thirty years and I thought that I would never want to work in the field again. As I was pondering my fate one day,
I ran into an old comrade I worked with during my active duty time in the service. He asked me what I was doing and when I replied looking for work to keep me busy, He asked me to send him my resume. Two weeks later I was scheduled to do an interview for a position with the government as a systems engineer. I accepted the offer for the position. It was a difficult transition from the strict rules and regulations of the military to the seemingly unstructured regiment of civilian life in this position.
Mike Strawbridge states, “When a change is forced upon you, you can choose to make the best of the new circumstances that you are faced with. Note that this is a conscious choice. Take time to learn any lessons that you need to from the events that lead to the forced change, but beyond that, let go of the past and focus on the future you wish to create”. (March 2007).

In conclusion, we learn many things in different manners. A tool I use to assess what I’ve learned is the how the military teaches new recruits the fundamental necessities to understand military operations. You as an individual need to find the method of what’s best for you to learn and retain information. The following are the techniques and methods used to teach military personnel: 1) Sight. This includes anything to do with seeing material and retaining it in some manner 2) Hearing. This includes anything to do with hearing information from listening to someone speaking or from an audio source. 3) Touch and Movement. This involves movement such as a Kinesthetic learner or a tactile learner. I have learned a great deal since enrolling in Bethel University. Especially from a civilian standpoint. Not that there is a great difference, but there are subtle differences. How individuals manage their lives may be different, but I can see that the result are basically the same in the end. People speak in public audiences quite differently. But, with practice I believe anyone can be an above average briefer or presenter of information. Lynne Lancaster writes, "One writer states, If you are unsure of a goal, just give it a try for a while. If it does not feel right to you after thirty days or so then drop it and move on to another goal. The great thing about goals is that you can begin again at any point". Retiring from the army has been a new experience for myself.
Even though I feel that the military has more structure, the civilian world is just as proficient. | | | | | |

References

Brewer, D. (2009, May) Have Self-Awareness: Self Appraisal is as Important as Team Appraisal. Retrieved November 6, 2010) from http://www.suite 101.com

DA PAM 600-67 & ST 22-2, August, 1998). Writing and Speaking skills for Leaders at the Organizational Level. Retrieved November, 2010) from http://www.MSL_201_l08a_Effective Army briefing.pdf

Strawbridge, M. (2007, March) "Dealing with Life Changes". Retrieved November 6, 2010, from http://ezinerticles.com