Management: The Art of Getting Things Done Through People

Our sleepy Friday morning started with Management class with Randy Evans. We learned the four functions of management, common challenges for a manager, and characteristics of the best manager and the worst manager. In class we had different kinds of exercises. For example, we had to think back on our work experience to a time when our boss gave us an assignment and we performed either our very best or performed at less than our best or poorly.

-Why we performed well: teamwork, focused, interested in task, discussion/communication, getting feedback

-Why we performed poorly: unclear instructions, changing objectives, lack of trust, slow communication, different understandings

One of the most important parts of management is active listening -making eye contact, paying attention to our non-verbal cues, and paraphrasing.

We ended the class with a game. Four volunteers had to stand as close as possible to each other in a circle while being taped together. Eyes covered with a bandana, they had to work as a team and find three tennis balls in the class room. What made the search easier was the instructions of the students. They also got a nice prize for finding the balls!

After lunch we headed to the library where David W. Rausch held a lecture about leadership as a process including:

-How we should shift from “me” perspective to a “we” perspective;

-How to go from a leader to leadership;

-Why we look to a certain type for a leader; and

-Who a good leader is.

We learned that leadership is complex and multidimensional -it’s about “we” not “me”. There is a relationship that is centered on communication between the leadership and followers. Communication is always the key.

After that session, we took a True Colors Personality Test where a color tells your personality traits and what kind of a person you are. There where four colors: blue, gold, orange and green.

Our day ended with a swim in the Suck Creek. It was the most gorgeous thing I have ever seen. It was like the natures own spa. Amazing way to end the busy day.