Tag Archives: motivation

Pride and Prejudice

After last week’s feel good story, this week is going to focus on the other side of the emotional coin: struggles and frustrations.

As an educator, there is a particular situation which can be extremely difficult and painful to deal with. That is entitlement.

Online course, end of the semester, grades due in 48 hours, inbox flooded with excuses ranging from computer malfunctions to ill pets, and in the digital pile of alibis one has several attachments. Teeth grind, palms clench, eyes close as the message opens:

“I was sick so was not able to hand in the last three essays, I have now completed them. Please remove the 0’s and update my grade. I need to pass this class to graduate.”

There are only a few options available in terms of response, and though limited, the repercussions are numerous.

If blessed with a deity-like ability to forgive, grade the papers, update the scores, and accept that by doing so, both syllabus policy and self respect are thrown out the window.

OR

Stand firm, say no, and accept that by doing so, both inbox and patience will be pushed to their limit by messages of vitriol and accusation.

As an educator, the reality is there is only one choice that maintains the integrity that is expected of the position.

Say no.

By doing so it will feel like the other tenets of education (kindness, understanding, and a desire to see every student succeed) are forced to the side like sediment from a river.

I promise they are not.

In education, scenarios like this will arise. They will be difficult, and that gnawing guilt those hate-filled messages leave is just a shadow on a wall, a fictional monster created by the fingers of a student who just learned some of the most important lessons of life.

Anything worthwhile must be earned, not given.

To be successful requires personal responsibility.

The earlier these lessons are taught, the easier they are to absorb. Have faith that once learned, the inevitable outcome is a wiser, better individual. That is what education is all about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Difficult Situations: Black Panther Edition (Non-Spoiler)

 

Wakanda Forever
Me doing the Wakandan greeting. Wakanda Forever!

 

My husband and I have seen Black Panther twice. It was great and I walked away with many takeaways. Here was one of my takeaways:

When faced with difficult situations it is imperative that you do not face them on your own, but that you have people that you trust surrounding you, supporting you, and backing you up when you need it most.

T’Challa, the Black Panther, faced several problems throughout the movie, but one specific problem almost cost him everything. One of the things I noticed about the movie was that T’Challa had a circle of support when he faced the problems. There was his general/second in command Okoye, the love of his life Nakia, his sister Shuri, his keeper of traditions Zuri, and the list goes on and on and on. Ultimately, it was the efforts of the collective few that helped T’Challa face adversity in extremely dark times. T’Challa’s father encouraged his son to surround himself with great people, and you clearly saw the reason why.

When you are faced with a difficult situation rally your circle of support together for the support that you need. Facing adversity on your own can be exhausting and draining and lonely. I know, because I have chosen that route in the past. When I went through chemotherapy and radiation for non-hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2008, I only let a couple of people in. I felt my experience was my experience and that it was private and I didn’t want to let people in because I didn’t want them to worry. I wanted to protect others from the experience. I didn’t share the details of that experience with others until 2015 at the Ignite GCC event.

I have learned from that experience. Facing difficult situations requires strength from the self, but also the support of others. I pull strength from the self by focusing on optimism, positivity, spirituality, and a belief that everything will eventually work itself out. The strength I pull from others comes from my circle of support which includes the love of my life, mentors, colleagues, and friends. My circle includes people I trust, who support me, and have backed me up when I needed it most.

My question to you is who is your circle of support? When times are tough and uncertain and dark, who do you turn to? How do you get back up when life has punched you in the face and has left you on the ground watching and waiting to see if you dare to get back up again? Rally together a circle of support to help to rise after the fall. The encouragement you receive from your circle can inspire you, motivate you, reinvigorate you, and challenge you to keep moving forward.

T’Challa is a great hero. He has integrity and he represents all that is good in the world and the leader that many of us aspire to be. He also had a circle of support that really contributed to how he was able to face difficult situations. I encourage you to form your circle of support so that you can get through your difficult situation or be ready when the situation presents itself at your door.

 

Vicariously Dreaming

This week is all about dreams, and I wanted to break away from the abstract big-picture view I normally go with and talk about something personal to me.

Several years ago through the glories of the internet I befriended a young man named Danny who, like me, was passionate about writing. Very quickly I realized he had a gift for wordsmithing, poetry, and editing that all surpassed my own. From that common love we became what would be the digital equivalent of pen pals. We share stories, poems, and ideas, and the edits that ensue always seem to produce much higher quality work for both of us. It remains a symbiosis.

Over the years I started to get to know Danny on a more personal level. Like me, he suffered from asthma but, unlike me, his asthma continued into adulthood and served as a constant source of hospitalization and medical bills. Like me, he has a wonderful sibling who serves as friend as much as kin  but, unlike me, whose father is an evangelical minister, politician, and pillar of the community in which he resides, Danny suffered through multiple negative parental figures.

Danny enrolled at the University of Cincinnati, initially pursuing a similar English degree to the one I had pursued during my Bachelor’s. It was at this point that I started to give Danny advice on more than just writing. In him I saw limitless potential and the same drive and passion for writing that I had as an early college student. I was a much wiser man than I was in college and had clear hindsight on all the poor choices I made during my academic career that impacted my professional and personal life down the road. I encouraged him to take advantage of the opportunities that came his way and, although I believe he would have made the same decision in my absence, he eventually became a writer and an editor for Odyssey. With that accomplishment he conquered one of my greatest regrets from my own schooling, failure to have meaningful writing experiences outside the classroom. As he continued to write more insightful articles he built up a portfolio and a reputation for quality that even my current resume would be jealous of.

Even though Danny is only ten years my junior, I began to understand what it was like to have a son to feel pride in someone else’s accomplishments. To see him grow in skill and confidence seemed more rewarding to me than it was to him. Without knowing it, Danny was purging all the demons of my past mistakes through his own achievements. It was a wonderful feeling, but I was unaware Danny was still dealing with his own demons. Thankfully, unlike me, he would face those demons down on his own instead of through someone else.

In 2017, Danny came out to the world in a lovely article. I had known for a short period of time before, but I could tell it was a struggle for him to admit it even to me, the professor who loves to talk about how important it is to appreciate other points of view and will rant for an hour about critical thinking skills.

In 2018,  Danny will be receiving the prestigious McKibbin Medal upon graduation and is on the precipice of making some major life decisions, but I can honestly say no matter where his life leads he is already a wiser, stronger man than I could have even dreamed of being at his age. I am truly thankful for the inspiration and confidence he has given me by simply having the courage that he has.

Danny,

Thank you for helping a middle aged professor dream again.

Now go conquer life.

 

 

 

Week 4: The “One Thing,” and How to Influence Assumptions

Welcome back to Week 4 of “The One Thing You can do to Raise Enrollment,” a six week “how-to” series.

Data is a powerful thing: It can confirm our assumptions as well as confound them, as in the story I shared in WEEK 1.

WEEK 2 empowered us upon learning that, when it comes to students choosing YOUR classes (and thus GCC), leaving choice up to chance is not our only option.

In WEEK 3 we covered how reputation is the most important factor in influencing people’s choices, and the importance of making our achievements public to enable people to make informed choices.

This week, let’s talk about your face.

Face Facts: Numerous published studies provide countless evidence to support the fact that, when viewing a photo of a stranger’s face, it takes us less than a second to formulate an impression .

Assumptions about the character of the person pictured are formed quickly.  One Princeton University study published by the Association for Psychological Science is a great example:

“Willis and Todorov conducted separate experiments to study judgments from facial appearance, each focusing on a different trait: attractiveness, likeability, competence, trustworthiness, and aggressiveness.” The results? Of all the traits, trustworthiness was the one participants assessed most quickly.

We cannot escape the fact that photos influence choice, so we will harness this fact and use it to our advantage.

Fear not – the good news is, people want to see trustworthiness and competence in your face, not a glamour shot.

Consider the following photos of these notables: Albert Einstein, Delores Huerta, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Conrad Wolfram.

    

The reasons for not wanting to post a photo:
  • I’m not photogenic.
  • I don’t like the way I look.
  • My face will break the camera.

 It’s not about vanity. It’s about character. It’s time to embrace the powerful sway your photo can have upon a stranger’s choice.

The employee bio page is the most underestimated tool available to you. A photo of your face, backed up with a personal quote, your areas of expertise, and a list of your achievements works to establish YOUR personal reputation while raising GCC’s reputation.

By doing this “One Thing” you enable the public to make an informed decision to choose… you.

WEEK 4 Homework: Because you are your own worst critic, your homework is to recruit friends and family to help you sort through photos of yourself to find one that captures the characteristics of trustworthiness and competence. The photo chosen by others just may surprise you.

TIP: The size of the photo on your employee bio page is 280×280 pixels. Make sure the photo your choose is cropped as a perfect square.

For tips on how to choose a photo, read Lydia Abbots’ 5 Tips for Picking the Right LinkedIn Profile Photo.

If you can’t find a photo, a GCC photographer is available.

Come back for WEEK 5: The “One Thing” Before and After

“You’ll never get a second chance to make a great first impression.”

 

What’s Your Pur Pur?

 

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     During an interview with the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Oprah said that “Everybody has a purpose, so your whole thing is to figure out what that is, your real job is to figure out why you’re really here, and then get about the business of doing it.” I wholeheartedly agree with Oprah. Here is my purpose:

“Because I value professional development and personal growth I will use my expertise to empower, motivate, and inspire faculty, staff, and students.”

      I believe in my purpose. I think that it’s critical that we help faculty, staff, and students become the best versions of themselves so that they can succeed in their lives and touch the lives of others. Purpose is a motivator, and it pushes me to strive for excellence daily. I’m actively working towards fulfilling my purpose. I have a long list of how I’d like to fulfill my purpose in my office. I’ve provided an abridged version of my list below.

Here are my questions to you: What’s your purpose? What’s your purpose statement? Are you taking the time to figure it out? Have you already figured it out? How will you fulfill your purpose? Did you give up on it? Why did you give up? Was it fear/doubt? Have you taken the time to work through it?

Why is this important? Purpose provides direction and focus in a noisy distracted world. Purpose is important when you are facing adversity and uncertainty. It’s that shining light in the darkness that can help you to find your way out. Purpose builds strength, and it’s needed when it feels like your world is collapsing and caving in on you.

If you don’t know your purpose, you’ll find it. If you’ve found it, you’re hopefully working towards it. I encourage you to find it, to not to give up on it, and to fulfill it.

How I am actively fulfilling my purpose based off of my purpose statement (abridged list):

  1. Help faculty and staff become master teachers and become a master teacher myself. How?
  • Co-faculty Developer: I am currently the co-faculty developer for the Center for Teaching Learning and Engagement. I am also an active participant in the Faculty Development Council.
  • Faculty Professional Growth: I am committed to investing 36 hours per academic year to my professional growth, not because I have to, but because I want to. I’ve already accomplished that goal for the academic year.
  • The 10,000-hour rule: The rule focuses on how an individual could become a master at something with 10,000 hours of deliberate practice. I am practicing teaching. I have acquired 4,130 hours thus far. (The concept can be found in Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers)
  1. Become a Motivational/Inspirational Speaker for Faculty, Staff, and Students. How?
  • Blogging: I use this to serve others. I hope they benefit from it. Especially during the rough times. My goal is to post once per week.
  • Public Presentations: Participate in at least two community engagements per year.
 

Week 3: The “One Thing” and it’s Not Bragging

Welcome back to Week 3 of “The One Thing You can do to Raise Enrollment,” a six week “how-to” series.

Study after study has produced empirical evidence to support the fact that reputation is the most important factor influencing people’s college and class choices.

Without a strong reputation, colleges are unable to attract the resources necessary to build an effective educational environment. Institutional reputation attracts everything from the best professors and research talent to philanthropic donations and star students. Everyone wants to be a part of a winning team, and in education, that means investing in the best academic brand,” writes Joseph Torrillo, vice president of Reputation Management.

As employees, we cannot sit back and passively place our hope in the power of the marketing department alone to define and manage our institutions’ reputations. Why? Because no amount of marketing can trump a personal experience with a brand.

I love this definition: Brand equity “is the intangible asset of added value or goodwill that results from the favorable image, impressions of differentiation, and/or the strength of consumer attachment to a company name,” writes Michael Belch and George Belch in their book,  Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective. (if this were a paper, the attribution would read, (Belch and Belch p. 56) …go ahead, makes me giggle a little, too.)

When a student has a good experience with a GCC employee, a curious thing happens: The student does not say, “I love that GCC employee named Lupe.” No, the student says, “I love GCC.” A single good experience with a single employee packs a powerful boost to GCC’s overall reputation. Suddenly someone is singing praises of GCC to their friends, family, and strangers on social media.

However, experience is a double edged sword. When a student has a bad experience with a GCC employee, it’s not the employee they heap coals upon, it’s the overall institution.

Last week you spent some time writing a few statements that speak to your personal humanity.

This week your task is to… take a deep breath…
list your achievements.The purpose of this task is to make public any information that enables students to make an informed decision to choose you.

“If we are to achieve results never before accomplished, we must expect to employ methods never before attempted.” – Francis Bacon

The simple act of listing your areas of expertise and accomplishments in your Employee Biography page serves to significantly elevate GCC’s reputation on a local, national, and international scale.

It’s not bragging.  You ARE the secret sauce in GCC’s reputation! You have a history of proud moments, achievements and accomplishments that needs to come up in a google search.

A bio page with secret sauce includes naming your areas of expertise, credentials, a personal quote, and some information that reveals your humanity and proudest moments.

Here is an example:

Name: John Doe
Credentials: AAS, M.A.Ed, Ph.D.
Areas of Expertise: Experiential Learning; Community Partnerships

Personal Quote:  “I got my Doctorate at Yale, but I identify more with the students who come to GCC.”

Bio: Example 1: Four generations of my family have come to GCC to get their first college degree. Ask me why…
Example 2: If it were not for my 9th grade math teacher, I would not be where I am today. He never gave up on me. I want to inspire my students the way he inspired me, and see what can be achieved.
Example 3: I was the first person in my family to go to college, and I was excited and scared at the same time.
Example 4: My proudest moment was when…
Bulleted lists might include: education, awards, specialized training, published research/articles/books, grant funded projects, committees, pro bono work, volunteerism, boards served, etc.

Teach others how and what to think about you, and it forms a reputation in their minds for GCC as well. Take this time detail what you offer – leave no doubt in the reader’s mind that not only are you are a devoted educator, but you are a nice person to boot.

Reputation wields compelling, persuasive, influential power.

Your homework this week: Begin listing the ingredients that make up your particular secret sauce. These may include your personal areas of expertise and scope of services, awards, thesis topic/description, published works, patents, specialized training, published news about you, your motivation, what inspires you, the thing(s) you love most about what you do, and…

…(at least) one thing you want to be remembered for should you drop dead tomorrow. 

It’s Presidents’ Day weekend, established in 1885 to honor George Washington and Abraham Lincoln whose reputations for honesty and integrity still inspire us today.

This weekend, carve out some time to work on defining YOUR enduring reputation. Then come back for Week 4. The “One Thing,” and How to Influence Assumptions

 

Recovering Assessment Hater

 

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“Boring, lame, inconvenient, and unnecessary.” If you would have asked me several years ago my thoughts on assessment, this would have been my response when I was adjunct faculty. I abhorred assessment because I didn’t get it, but I didn’t get it because I was not educated in it. I had a resistance to it, and my resistance was rooted in my insecurities and my ignorance in the area.

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When it was that time of year for the assessment reports, I thought to myself WHY!!???, and I submitted my assessment reports, gritting my teeth, just wanting to get them over with, and out of my face.

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     It’s really hard for me to admit that I knew nothing about assessment when I started teaching as an adjunct. When I say I knew nothing, I knew NOTHING. I didn’t even know that the exams I had in my course were actually a form of assessment, that was how bad it was. When I started teaching part time, my knowledge of assessment was not a requirement. I met the qualifications on paper, I was handed a book and a syllabus, and off I went.

When I was hired as residential faculty I knew a little more. I had previous experience as a curriculum developer and I knew that I wanted to do better and I wanted to change my negative attitude. I had to be honest with myself by raising my hand and saying “My name is Tenisha Baca and there’s a lot about assessment that I still don’t know, but feel like I should know.” I knew that the only way to remedy my negative attitude towards it was to commit to taking the time to properly learn what it is, how it works, and why it’s important. So, I signed up for the assessment seminar at the Center for Teaching Learning and Engagement (CTLE), and my mind opened up to a whole new world of amazing in the following ways:

  1. Assessment is really not that big, bad, or scary. It’s simple and informative.
  2. I can do this, I can do a better job, and the CTLE can help me.
  3. If I’m all about student success, I need to do it and take it more seriously for the benefit of the student’s learning experience.

I applied it and I’m happy that I did. I have seen an improvement in my student’s exam scores, I revised the curricular areas where my students were struggling, and I have criteria that is clearer and grading that is more consistent. The commitment to assessment had a significant impact in my courses.

If you were like me several years ago, I encourage you to give assessment a chance and really look at the potential and the possibilities behind it. I see the value in assessment because of the improvements I have seen, not only in my students, but myself. Assessment is needed and our decision to take it on and do it right, or do it half way, or not at all, can make a huge difference in student success in the classroom.

 

See me. See You. See Possibility.


My cultural reflection/inspirational story is connected to Dr. Velvie Green, the former President of Glendale Community College. I met her when I was a student at GCC. I was hanging around the Communication Department and Jim Reed, the Department Chair, was giving our newly appointed President a tour of the department. Jim came around the corner and said that he wanted to introduce me to her. When she came around the corner I saw an African American woman standing in front of me. I had a moment of pause. I looked at this stranger and felt like I was looking at my future physical self. I couldn’t tell you what I was expecting, but I could definitely tell you that I was not expecting her.

I recognized something in her that connected with me on a level I had never recognized before. I recognized possibility in something that I would have never considered without this encounter, the possibility that I could become a college president myself. I saw a cultural reflection of myself on campus and it inspired me. For years I pursued becoming a college president. My pursuit brought me to teaching and I fell in love with it and changed course.

That day motivates and inspires me daily. It really showcases the importance of cultural reflection on college campuses. That day is one of the things that motivates me to bring excellence into everything that I do, because someone out there may see themselves in me through my work. They may see me and they may be encouraged to be excellent in their career. They may see me and see the possibility of a career path that they would have never considered for themselves. They look at me and think to themselves if she can do it, I can do it too.

I encourage others to think of themselves in the same way. All it takes is someone seeing themselves represented, right in front of them to inspire and motivate them to greatness.  Each encounter that you have on this campus could make or break someone’s hopes, dreams, or desires. Be mindful of the fact that you matter to someone and that they are paying attention to what you say and do.

I don’t know Dr. Velvie Green personally. She doesn’t know the impact she has had on me. I hope that she will come across this one day, so she can read about the difference she has made in my life. I am thankful and grateful that I had the opportunity to meet her. It changed my life.

 

Contagious Spaces

 

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My name is Tenisha Baca and I am Residential Faculty for the Communication and World Languages Department at Glendale Community College in AZ. I am also the Co-Faculty Developer for the Center for Teaching Learning and Engagement. Welcome to this post!

We’re always encouraging others in higher education, but there are moments when we need it ourselves. When we’re motivated and inspired it impacts everyone we serve. It’s contagious and I’m here to spread it.

One way to stay motivated and inspired is to surround yourself with items that cultivate that feeling within you. The best place to start is the office. We spend a significant amount of time in the office. We should surround ourselves with items that encourage us to be awesome in what we do.

My office is a haven of motivation and inspiration. I’ve included pics below. Here’s a list of some of my top motivating/inspirational items in my space.

1. Purple Heart Award: Award I received after completing chemotherapy. I’ve been a cancer survivor since 2008. It reminds me of what I overcame and it encourages me to encourage others that they can overcome what they are going through.

Purple Heart Award.jpg2. Picture of my husband and I: He strives for excellence in everything he does. It reminds me to strive for the same thing inside and outside of the classroom.

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3. Notes of appreciation on my wall: Over the year’s people have been nice enough to write me such encouraging notes. I keep all of them and it touches me to know I have touched others in my work.

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 4. Wonder Woman: All of my figures inspire me because I love WONDER WOMAN!!! Everything she stands for is something I strive for daily.

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5. Door of Inspiration: Place where I post people, sayings, notes, etc. that encourage me to be the best version of myself every day.

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Cultivating this space and mindset makes a difference. I pass these messages along to my students when they stop by my office and we have conversations about life. I also pass them along in the classroom. One day I asked a student: “Hey, have you found all of this motivational/inspirational stuff we have discussed to be something helpful to you?” He said yes “It makes me realize that I can do anything. And that I can work hard to get there if I put in the work.” That is a great lesson a student learned, not just for the classroom, but in life. Like I said before, motivation and inspiration are contagious and I’m here to spread it. Thank you for reading.