Thank you to my colleagues in 6165

I would like to thank all of my colleagues and Professor for your words of encouragement and insights as we went through this journey in EDUC 6165:Communicating and Collaborating in the Early Childhood Field. This class was very rewarding and enlightening I really enjoyed this class and look forward to continuing this journey. I wish all much continued success.

BLOG WEEK 6

This week we read about the five stages of team development: forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. Consider the adjourning phase for several of the groups in which you have been involved. Think about which aspects of the groups made for the hardest good-bye. Are high-performing groups hardest to leave? Groups with the clearest established norms? Which of the groups that you participated in was hardest to leave? Why? What sorts of closing rituals have you experienced or wish you had experienced? How do you imagine that you will adjourn from the group of colleagues you have formed while working on your master's degree in this program? Why is adjourning an essential stage of teamwork?

During the adjourning stage which the project has come to an end. I think the group of the reunion committee in which I was a part of the planning was the hardest goodbye. I believe this was due to many of the people who were on the committee we had not seen each other for twenty years and we had a good time talking about high school years and the fun we had . I believe high performing groups are difficult to leave especially when you have accomplished something great with this group and you have a feeling of success, proud of what the group has completed. We all felt that the 20 yr. reunion was a success.

Groups with the clearest established norms is considered the usual way of doing things. In groups that I have been a part of the norm has been a gradual process as you move along and everyone knew their specific roles the process moves more smoothly. The group that I was in that was the hardest to leave was he committee of the class reunion. We had all grown close and made reconnections. We made a joke that collectively we hadn’t talked that much in high school maybe here and there but reconnecting brought back old memories. We all just shared and talked about different events and highlights of our high school years. We had a talent show and someone brought a copy of the talent show we actually showed it during our goodbye breakfast.

Closing rituals I wished we had created were when we had our goodbye breakfast I wished we all could have established that we would meet at least once a year so that we would stay connected going forward and continue to work on the reunion year for the 25^th or 30^th year reunion, that way we could continue the reunion process. I believe I will adjourn from my colleagues from experience here at Walden University by continuing to stay connected with them after this journey.

I have enjoyed colleague’s feedback and encouragement. I have met some great colleagues and love the fact that they do not mind sharing ideas, information and experiences. Adjourning is an essential stage of teamwork due to it shows that you have bonded and made connections with people you have managed to complete a task with. It shows that you all were in the mindset for a common goal and were able to move forward through possible failures and mishaps.

 

Nonviolent Communication and Conflict Management

In this week’s blog assignment we had to think about any disagreements, or conflicts, we had recently experienced or are currently experiencing at work with a supervisor or colleague, or someone in our personal life. Share at least two strategies you have learned about that might help you manage or resolve the conflict more productively, and why these strategies might be effective. For example, could you suggest a compromise? Could you look for a broader range of solutions to your disagreement? Could you use some of the principles of nonviolent communication or the 3 R's to better help you resolve this conflict.

In thinking about disagreements or conflicts I have recently experienced at work recently we were all told that we had to bid for a schedule there were eighteen schedules to choose and we were told that the schedule’s we bid the schedule that was determined for us would be based on our ranking with the company and performance. We were given a deadline to bid and would know by the end of the month which schedule we were given. When we each got our schedules it was clear that what we were previously informed of was not the case at all, because some people got the schedule at least close to what they wanted and others got shifts that were clearly not based on their performance or ranking.

 Some people were definitely shown some sort of favoritism. Some people have chosen to separate themselves from the situation all together when our schedules take affect the end of the month allowing for themselves not to cause conflict with their managers. I understand that separating oneself from situations is a way to end a conflict which may not allow for a clear win or lose for either parties involved.

I myself would suggest a compromise of sorts allowing for people who were newly hired to have to take the shifts that had later start times versus the people who have tenure with the company to have the shifts of early morning times. I believe by this type of compromising both parties are being satisfied, allowing a win-win and not lose-lose. I know that this would be a cooperative strategy as well where both parties will benefit. The morale of the office would increase and people would be excited about coming to work and being productive.

In relation to being more effective in communication efforts what do you believe are ways to effectively handle conflict resolution skills in work environments?