Week 8

Journal Entry 7

  Well, here it is. The final week of my class, and the last of my required posts. Sure, I might post a few more times independently, but once the workload of new classes hits, who knows if I'll be able to keep up with weekly posts? 

  Ah well, no need for pessimism! Instead, I'll focus on what I've learned! Learned optimism, individual strengths, life plans, and tons of other stuff that'll probably stay with me for decades to come! 

  Now, on to the subjects!

Discuss the findings from your Emotional Intelligence Test.

  I discovered that I hate spending an hour answering 140-something questions, just for the website to give me an incredibly brief summary and try to charge $10 for the "full results". That was one of my findings, at least. The one score that I did get said 85/100. I think that that's a good score, but I have no way of knowing for sure. I did score myself on the aspects in this week's emotional intelligence presentation, as suggested. Naturally, I didn't give myself any scores that were too low. Most of them were around the center of the board. Two of my higher scores (that I gave myself) were in adaptability and emotional self-awareness. Some days I might be easily upset, saddened, or angered, but I know when I am, and know to stop and think from a point of view outside myself when it happens. Also, being in a large family has given me the ability to just roll with whatever the family decides. Adaptability!

Discuss your stress level and plan to manage upcoming stress.

  Okay, so I was prompted to take this stress test from Ohiohealth.com.

I got back a "high" stress level, but then I realized that the wording of the questions confused me and made me put all my answers in backwards (e.g. hitting very true instead of very false, or somewhat false instead of somewhat true). I switched them around so that they were what I meant to put, and it came back as "moderate". I think I actually have had high stress this week, but usually it's down at moderate levels. I forgot to employ a lot of the stress techniques that I posted on here last week, maybe it would've helped to visualize each day beforehand.

Complete the OnCourse Journal Entry 30.

   In this activity you will practice identifying positive methods for reducing the stress in your life.

  

  Sounds good. I already had some ideas, but I'm always happy for more.

  Write about a recent time when you felt overwhelmed, sad, or anxious.

  Hmm... I felt pretty overwhelmed when babysitting my siblings while trying to clean the house the other day. I would've preferred to only have to do one or the other, but the house was getting unsanitary and I couldn't abandon the kids.

  Identify two or more strategies that you could use in the future when you experience this emotion.

  In the past, I've tried to not get stuck in that situation, either by keeping the house in good shape beforehand or by coming along on the trip and taking all the kids. That just produces stress too, though. Maybe if I were to try some of the tricks I read about, even though those are intended for test-taking. Mental cheerleading could encourage me, or visualizing my goals might help me to come up with a game plan and execute it. Also, putting some time-management strategies into play couldn't hurt.

  Alright, that's it for this week! I've learned enough from this session's class to drastically improve my life, and I'm pretty dang sad that this is my last assignment. I guess that the real assignment is to live what I've learned now. Thanks for reading, and...

 Don't forget to be awesome.

  -Joshua Blanton II

 

Week 7

Journal Entry 6

Hey, miss me?

  Last week I spent my would-be blog time writing a long-winded paper on the book, "The Idea of a Christian College". The book and the paper on it are both a good read, and very educational, but not all that entertaining. Since I missed a week, the entry number isn't the same as the week number. 

  That bugs me way more than it should, but it's my own fault for not writing a post. 

  Okay, on to the important stuff!

Wired Study Tips

This week, I was introduced to a wealth of study tips from Texas A&M University, and let me tell you, I feel wealthier. From "Why LeBron is Smarter Than Neil deGrasse Tyson", I learned that the brain is a part of your body. Who knew, right? 

  Let me hit you with some context here: your brain is not seperate from your body. Thus, having a healthier body results in a healthier brain. Being in good shape, eating healthy, exercising, etc. boosts your brain functions by one heck of an amount. That means that being good to your body also makes you better able to use the brain you've been given. Doesn't that just tear apart the concept that brain and brawn are opposite ends of the spectrum? Big Tony has the same potential of being top of the class as he does at benching 250. Little Melvin could do with some cardio now and then to bolster his coding ability, too. 

  The next good one I got was "Test Stress Reduction, the Navy SEAL Way". It gave me the 4 key stress control tips that Navy SEAL trainees are taught to get them through their BUD/S training exercises. 

  Tip 1 is goal setting. Not the "where do I see myself in 5 years" self-help kind of goal setting. We're talking on-the-fly short term goals, as short as you can get. "Just gotta swim 100 more yards", or in a college student context, "Just gotta write one more page". Any goal can be accomplished if you just take it one step at a time.

  Tip 2 is Mental Rehearsal. You can use your brain's ability to imagine the future to help you succeed, rather than live worst-case scenarios, when the stress hits. If you make a habit of envisioning yourself going through the process of what stresses you out, imagining yourself working through obstacles you might expect, and finally succeeding, you'll feel more relaxed and prepared when the actual situation is upon you. That's the idea, anyway.

  Tip 3 is Self Talk. Rather than talking yourself down, and beating yourself up for every mistake, you can use that same energy to make yourself a "mental cheerleader". A mental cheerleader is an imaginary version of someone who always has an encouraging word for you, and is always there to congratulate you for even the smallest victory. This keeps your optimism up, which is critical in high-stress situations.

  Tip 4 is Panic Control. Basically, deep breathing to slow your heart rate and pull you out of panic mode. There's not much to deep breathing, but remembering to do it can bring you back into focus.

  Well, those are the 4 key tips. I may have went on a bit too long about them, but I think they'll turn out to be pretty useful later on. I'd definitely recommend these tips to any college student who was in need of some help.

Learning and How the Brain Works

  Next up, I'm supposed to talk about something I learned from this week's study on left brain/right brain and various learning types. 

  First off, I'm a right-brainer. Also, the only one in my class, as far as I can tell. Apparently, that makes me a spontaneous deep thinker, intuitive and easily bored by facts and figures. Able to pick up on subtleties, but easy to lose track of time or direction. Does that sound like me? You can be the judge.

  Next up is learning styles. The names of the categories explain themselves pretty well, so I'll just get into it. 

  I'm a moderately reflective learner, as opposed to being an active one. I can see that pretty well. I'm an extremely intuitive learner, instead of a sensing one. Sensing doesn't actually mean being sensitive, it just means better with solid facts and data. I don't know why they called it sensing. I'm a pretty visual learner, but also leaning a bit towards verbal sometimes, too. Visual and verbal mean exactly what they sound like, just in case you were wondering. Finally, I'm almost in the middle between being a sequential learner and a global one. Sequential learning is learning the details, step by step, while global learning is geared toward the "big picture". Now that I know what styles of learning I favor, and have a bit more insight on how my own mind works, all that's left is to apply that into my life. I'm a bit surprised at my supposed level of intuition, but I guess I just never really thought about it.

  It kinda makes me sad that next week will be my last blog post required by this class. What will I write about now? Will I keep writing? Why do people always ask rhetorical questions in threes? Anyway, it'll be a bittersweet occasion.  Let me leave you with this:

"Desperation is sometimes as powerful an inspirer as genius."

Benjamin Disraeli, British Prime Minister

Week 5

Journal Entry 5

Hola, it's that time of the week again!

  It's been a busy couple of days, but there's no time like the present to do my blog post! Well, that, and it's due tomorrow. Yeah, there's always that. Moving on now...

  This week's post is about questions. Important, hard-hitting questions like, "why don't people bake bacon or fry fries?" and "in Star Wars, how did Anakin Skywalker grow so much between episodes I and II, when his lady friend didn't age at all?" because seriously, he was like 9, and she was like 17, then suddenly they were both around the age of 20 in episode II when they GOT MARRIED. 

  Whoa, tangent. Let's just stick to the powerful questions for the rest of this page or so.

Powerful Questions

  Okay, there are three big aspects to powerful questions: assumptions, scope, and construction. The linguistic construction of a question can either open our minds or narrow our view. For example, "how can we fix the problem?" is not nearly as powerful as "what can we learn from this problem?". The scope of a question has a major effect on its power, too. If the scope is too broad, it makes the question vague and unmotivating. If the question is too narrow, it limits the question's creative potential. If the scope is just right, it not only opens the innovative possibilities, but the promise of an immediate difference makes it encouraging, as well. The assumptions regarding our questions are also critical, since exploring them opens up any underlying beliefs or would-be givens about the situation. The more data we have, the more we can question, and the more we question, the more we discover about ourselves and the world around us.

Create three powerful questions you have about your future. 

  What will my career be in the future?

  This question assumes that I will have a career in the future. I think that's a safe bet. It's admittedly a little vague, but it's an important question that I find myself wondering often. I continue to ask this question because the answer to it will drastically affect my future.

  How will I work towards God's will in all that I do in the future?

  I think this is a pretty powerful one. It holds more questions than assumptions. How will I know God's will? Will I know God's will for me? What will I do to work toward it? How can I apply God's big plan for my life in the little things? The main assumptions in this question are that God has a will for my life, and there's something I can do to work towards it.

  How do I achieve success in anything that I set out to do?

  This question is again a bit vague, but then again, so are the guidelines surrounding these questions. It assumes that I can't already achieve success in anything that I set out to do, and that I value the ability to succeed. It also assumes that success is always possible, with the right tools and know-how.

Create three additional powerful questions that you want to explore during your courses at UC.

   How much can I learn from these classes?

  This isn't as much a question of their teaching ability, but a challenge issued to myself. How much can I learn if I really try? How much can I make myself learn? What can I take out of this? It assumes that I can learn something, which shows a sliver of humility and pushes me to learn anything and everything I can.

  What kind of person will I become if I go in this direction?

  I think everyone should ask themselves this question every once in a while. By "this direction" I mean that we should examine any direction that our life could take if we allow it to. Who we are is more important than what we know, what we think, or what we do. This question assumes that we may be heading in a direction that makes us into a different person than we are now, or that the option to become a different person is in front of us.

  How can I make the best of this opportunity (Azusa Pacific Online)?

  This question assumes that being in my current college is a great opportunity, and one that I should make the very best of. I believe that both of those assumptions are as true as any assumption can get. By seeing my current situation(and any situation, for that matter) for the fantastic opportunity it is, and consciously making an effort to maximize the potential of it, I can accomplish, learn, grow, and achieve more than someone who sees the world around them(school, college, work, etc.) as a mandatory waiting period between them and the "fun" parts of life.

Create three more powerful questions that you want to ask important people in your life.

  If I could ask you any three questions, what should I ask?

  This question could reveal what the person values, or an important lesson that they've been looking for a chance to teach. It assumes that the person would want to have questions asked of them, and that the person would have a substantial answer.

  What matters most to you in life?

  This question could reveal a lot about a person. Someone's priority number one could give you enormous insight on who they are, and why. It assumes that the person you're asking has something that matters more than anything else to them. 

  What is the number one thing that you think I should improve about myself?

  This question not only helps you to better yourself in an efficient way, but it also shows what qualities are valued by the person you're asking. It assumes that you have room for improvement, which may be slightly humbling to the question asker. It also assumes that you value self-improvement over personal pride.

Write a brief paragraph about the results of the Curiosity Challenge.

  The Curiosity Challenge basically means I was supposed to try something this week that I wasn't sure I could actually accomplish, and write about the experience.

  This week, due to an oversight, I realized that one of the biggest papers in my art class was due a day earlier than I previously thought. That meant that I only had one night to crank out an A+ paper on a work of art that I had never seen before in my life. What a perfect opportunity.

  Four hours, three Wikipedia articles, and two cups of coffee later, it was done. I'm still waiting on my grade, but let me just say that I didn't sleep much that night, so it better have been worth it. The experience? Exhausting, stressful, headache-causing, and oddly satisfying in a bizarre way. Am I glad I did it? For sure. I was worried for a bit, but I finished the paper, and I did it in one night. Would I do it again? Not a chance.

  My fingers are getting tired, and my "eyes are getting soft", as my parents used to say back in my obsessive gaming days. Guess that means it's time to sign off! Suppose I should credit The Art of Powerful Questions by Eric E. Vogt, Juanita Brown, and David Isaacs for about 90% of the powerful questions stuff before I go. Thanks for reading, and have a great week!

“The problems we have cannot be solved at the same level of thinking that created them."

-Albert Einstein

 

Week 4

 

Journal Entry 4

Hey, how's it going?

  Hard to believe that I'm already on week 4 of 8! Oh, and in case I forgot to mention, there's 8 weeks for this course. That means 8 weeks of blog posts. And I'm on week 4. Now the first part makes more sense, huh? 

  This week I'll be talking about strengths. My strengths, other people's strengths, how my strengths get along (and don't get along) with other people's strengths, and so on. It's gonna be fun! Not to mention deep and hard-hitting. Anyway, take a deep breath, and HERE WE GO!!!

  Vital Friends Map

 

 Okay, so maybe we won't start with the "strengths" part. Instead, it's the Vital Friends Map.

  It's a bold subject, so you know it's gonna be good.

  Apparently, there's these 8 or so categories in our lives that get filled by friends, or family, or whatever. Unfortunately, the "vital friends, family, or whatever map" isn't as catchy of a name, so they just stuck with "vital friends". Oh well, whatever works, right? Oh, and I should mention that often, one person fits into more than one role. Also, one or more roles are often left empty, due to not having anyone to fit that spot. I guess that's totally normal, though. On to the categories!

  Builder- A great motivator, someone who always helps you grow and pushes you to do more. This role sounds like a teacher or mentor type to me. This category could fit either of my parents, really. They both will make time for me, if need help badly enough to ask. I can be a bit stubborn about doing things myself, though...

  Champion- A loyal person, someone who will always follow and defend you. Very proud of your successes, and accepting of what you say without judgement. Kinda sounds like a "sidekick" to me, but I suppose that's not really a bad thing. My little brother David, through and through. He's always looking up to me and asking me questions. I feel like he's helped me to be a better person by striving to be a better role model.

  Collaborator- A friend who shares your passions and interests. Someone who seems to be on the same page with you quite often would fit this role. This one sounds a lot like my dad. We share a lot of interests, having lived in the same house for so long. We watch the same TV shows, play the same video games, listen to the same music, etc.

  Companion- This is the person that's always there for you. You know you could count on them for anything. They'd put they're life on the line for you, and you'd do the same for them. I can't think of anyone that would fit this category too well. I mean, besides the Lord.

  Connector- As the name suggests, this is the person that can connect you with anyone. They know all the right people, and can get you in touch with them. I'm generally self-sufficient when it comes to getting in touch with people. I can't think of anyone to fit here.

  Energizer- These are the fun friends. They pick you up when you're down, and they're the ones you go to when you want to enjoy yourself. This would be my friend Justin. We haven't talked or hung out in a long while due to distance and busyness with school, but I still consider him a good friend. If I get too overwhelmed, and find myself in need of a break from life, he's the person I call or text.

  Mind Opener- A mind opener will broaden your perspective. They ask the interesting questions that help you see things a new way. This could be my friend Delaney. Anytime we talk, it's always about some ridiculous idea or concept. Most of the time we're joking, but every once in a while, we stumble onto something interesting.

  Navigator-The Navigator is the person that keeps you pointed in the right direction. They're the one you talk to about your big decisions in life, and the ones you can trust to keep you on the right path. This sounds to me like my mom. She knows me better than most people, and never hesitates to give me advice on what to do.

  Okay, so those are the categories. Unfortunately for me, I tend to not keep many close friends. Usually no more than 2 or 3 at a time. Instead, I realized that most of these roles are filled by family members! Yeah, yeah, I know that sounds like a cop-out. I can't help that it's true!

  Anyway, moving on to strengths now.

  Strengths and Conflict

 

  Okay, so according to this Gallup StrengthsFinder test, there are 34 different themes that we have as humans(for example: adaptability, competition, discipline, positivity). Each of us have these themes in differing amounts, and are naturally geared for some. The test shows you which 5 you are the most naturally inclined to. Here are my top 5:

  1. Ideation: A fascination with ideas. Someone strong in this theme is creative, easily inspired, and able to find connections with things seemingly unrelated.

  2. Context: Someone strong in context often looks back to the past to understand the present and predict the future. They become more confident after knowing the history of something, and after understanding the ideas behind it.

  3. Empathy: The ability to sense the emotions of those in contact with you. A strong empathizer can put themselves in someone else's shoes, and see the world from their perspective. This helps them to understand others better, even if they don't agree with them.

  4. Strategic: Strategy helps you see through the clutter and find the best route. A strategic person can see patterns, and use them to play out potential scenarios to find the end result.

  5. Learner: People strong in the learner theme love to constantly improve themselves. The process of learning excites them, and they can't stand being stagnant.

  I thought they sounded a little bit like me when I took the test, but now at the end of the week, I can't seem to find anything that I do that doesn't correspond with one of these themes!

  I think that I work best with:

  Futuristic themed people, that can keep me from getting too wrapped in Context, and encourage my Ideation and Strategic themes, while keeping me focused on the end result. Activator themed people can also be a major benefit, getting me past the "planning" stage and into the "action" stage. They could also spur me on, despite any Empathy-based restraint. The one thing that I believe my talent set really lacks is motivation to act, and now that I can see that, I can do something about it. I also think it's important to stay around people that can keep my diverse talent set balanced, rather than push one or two so hard that I can't ever employ the rest.

  I have difficulty understanding:

  Woo themed people, who thrive on making large amounts of friends. What's the point in making so many new friends that you neglect the old? Also, the single-mindedness of the Focus theme is difficult for me to follow. Some people might say I'm easily bored, but I can't help that I think so quickly! I could also imagine myself frustrating someone with a Command theme, being the mental free spirit that I am.

  I could potentially have conflict with:

  People who have strong Discipline, Command, and Belief themes. The rigid structure and frequent obstinance that sometimes occurs in these themes is overpowering to my open-minded(some might say sketchy) Ideation and Empathy themes. In my mind, it's more important to be open, and care about the other person's opinion, than to be right. Also, the impatience that accompanies the Activator theme might clash with my methodical, Strategic way of going about things. If I could get along with an Activator, though, we would make a powerful team... 

  Okay, so I've identified my own strengths, my best team-ups, and my potential conflicts. Now all I need to do is be aware of the differences in our styles, and work to make myself less frustrating to them, and trying to be less frustrated by them. I also know which kind of people I would do best by surrounding myself by. If I can survive their go-getter attitudes, that is. Maybe all I need to do is get in touch with my own go-getter, so that I can better understand them. 

  Whoa. I have a lot of work to do. At least I'm a good empathizer...

  Now, here's a quote! Again, no idea who this guy is.  

If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence, you have won before you have even started.

-Marcus Garvey

Week 3

Journal Entry 3

Heyo, it's that time again! Time for more of my ramblings, in print!

This week is the week I finished my Personal Mission Statement. It's in bold because it's important. Also, I'll be discussing the goal I posted into stickK.com. You'll be able to tell what subject I'm talking about by looking at the bold headings above, in case you couldn't tell in the last few posts.

My Personal Mission Statement

Okay, first you can read it, then I'll talk about it. If you get bored and want to skip to the end, I put the end in bold so you don't miss it. Brace yourself, it's a doozy!

The Mission Statement of Joshua Blanton II:

I am at my best when I'm creating something cool or helping others.

I will try to prevent times when I feel unappreciated, overworked, or frustrated.

I will enjoy my work by finding employment where I'm needed, and know that I'm making a difference in the lives of the people around me.

I will find enjoyment in my personal life through making art, playing music, or even building things. Anything where I'm creating something new.

I will find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts such as art, music, creativity, wearing socks until they have holes in them, giving advice, cooking, listing positive qualities, reading people, recognizing actors from other movies they were in, organization, and learning quickly.

I can do anything I set my mind to. I will build my own galaxy. Because seriously, that would be awesome. And why stop there?

My life's journey is about learning some things, because learning is always something great to do when you don't know what else to do. Living life for God, because that's more important than being rich, famous, or successful. I suppose somewhere along the way, I'd like a family of my own. I'll leave that part to God, though. If I can always be happy with whatever I do, then it doesn't matter too much what I do! As long as it's God's will for me, It'll be a great life.

I will be a person who'd done more with his life than anyone ever thought possible. Who'd helped more, created more, accomplished more, and cared more than anyone had before him.

My most important future contribution to others will be that because of me, they never had to spend their lives worrying about money. That because of me, they always had a shoulder to lean on and an ear to listen. That because of me, they had someone they could depend on, no matter what..

I will stop procrastinating and start working on:

• Getting around to cleaning my room sometime.
• Working out a bit more.
• Writing more often.

I will strive to incorporate the following attributes into my life:

• Courage for God
• Imagination
• Insight

I will constantly renew myself by focusing on the four dimensions of my life:

• Eating healthy, exercise, and getting out in the fresh air once in a while.
• Regular Bible study, giving God control over my life, and keeping myself open to His direction for me,
• Constantly reading something new, designing something new, and staying well fed with new ideas and concepts.
• Staying in touch with friends and acquaintances, and keeping close with my family. 
  
  
  The end.
  
  
  Okay, now is the part where I talk about it. Actually, my fingers hurt from typing it out, so I'll just give you the quick rundown on what I was thinking. 
  There are 3 main values behind the whole thing. I love God, I love others, and I love to create. The rest of it is all the little extra bits that fill it out and give it life. There, that was quick, easy, and painless! Now, on to the stickK commitment I made.
  
  
  The StickK Commitment 
  
  
  So, I was required to create and commit to a measurable, self-improvement style goal with this website. I decided that if I'm ever gonna get paid for my writing, art, or music, I'm gonna have to get better. Hence, my commitment, starting today, is to draw 1 picture, write 1 page, or play music for 1/2 hour, every day. There's an option to wager money on your ability to persevere with it for a set amount of time, but I'm not rich. Also, I'm not a bettin' man, except at blackjack. It also gave me the option to set a "referee" to keep me accountable, but I don't like the idea of anyone wearing a striped shirt and whistle following me around all the time. Just seems kinda creepy to me, I guess. The final option I had was to publicize my commitment and gather supporters for my noble cause. This is public enough for me, thanks. I'll save my big push for supporters for when I need them most, once I nominate myself dictator of Blantonia. Yeah, that's me planning ahead. 
  What qualities do you think I have to stay committed to my goal, you may ask? I've got plenty of qualities, I answer proudly! For one, those are all thing I love to do! For two(?), writing and art are both big parts of both my classes right now, so I've been doing a page a day already! Finally, for three(?), even if I hated art, writing, and music, and art and music weren't required for my classes, I have some serious persevering power. Just look how long I've been breathing! Breathing is really exhausting too, but I've never quit! 
  Now that I think about it, maybe the first two aren't personal qualities. They sure do help, though. 
  
  Well, that's all the time we have for today! Remember kids, God made you special, and He loves you very much. Bye!

Week 2

Journal Entry 2

Heyo! Me again. 

  Just thought I'd give you some definitions before I begin.

  Permanence: the quality or state of being permanent

  Pervasive: existing in all parts of something; spreading to all parts of something

  Personal: belonging or relating to a particular person

Okay, now we can get started with item #1: reviewing my test scores! Doesn't that sound like fun? I hope you enjoy it. I know I will! :)

   The Locus of Control

The Locus of Control score shows you where you believe control of your circumstances, outcomes, future, etc. is located. Internally(you) or externally(outside forces)?

  

  I scored a 5 out of 13, which pretty much says that I mostly believe that I decide my own fate.

An internal Locus sounds like me, believing that I'm in control of my own actions, and therefore, my future(to an extent). Of course, God holds the plan for my life, but it's up to me to follow His directions or not.

  The Learned Optimism Test

 The Learned Optimism Test is a bit more complicated.

It grades you by bad and good scores in 3 areas: permanence, pervasiveness, and personalization.

In case the definitions weren't enough, I'll give you a little background on what these mean.

  Permanence relates to the belief that any good or bad thing is permanent, fixed, and unchangeable.

  Pervasiveness means that you think that your faults are fatal(or that your good points are all-redeeming), bleeding through into every aspect of your life.

  Personalization is the idea that things are caused by you, causing you to blame or congratulate yourself for the outcome of any situation concerning you.

 Also(as a side category) is the Stuff of Hope, which is the quality of finding specific and temporary causes for misfortune, which minimizes their impact on your self-worth.

  Got all that? Good.

  Now, on to the scores!.
  My Permanence was low all around, with good only slightly above bad, proving what I expected to hear: that I believe all failure(and victory) is temporary.
  Pervasiveness was in the average for good and low for bad, which tells me that a good victory will propel me forward a bit, and a failure will only slightly discourage me.

  Personalization was high for both good and bad, which i interpret to mean that I always take a circumstance personally, blaming or congratulating myself more than most people would. Possibly, this relates to my internal locus of control?

  Hope was actually slightly above average, which surprised me for sure.

  All in all, I got an average score.

  Not what I wanted to hear, but it sounds a lot like the truth. I was actually kind of hoping to be labeled as more of an optimist, but it is what it is.

  Now, on to the journal prompt! 

  In this activity you will practice the language of personal responsibility. By learning to translate

Victim statements into Creator statements, you will master the language of successful people. 

  Draw a line down the middle of a journal page. On the left side of the line, copy the 10 Victim statements found on this page and the next page.

  On the right side of the line, translate the Victim statements into the words of a Creator.

  

  Since I can't find a way to put lines down the middle of a page on a blog post, I've used a slightly different format. I've put the victim statements in italic, with the creator statements written directly underneath, underlined.

  Here goes!

• 1. If they'd do something about the parking on campus, I wouldn't be late so often.
• I've been having trouble getting to class on time. I'll have to get a parking space early in the day or take alternate transportation. 
•  2. I'm failing my online class because the site is impossible to navigate.
• I don't know how to navigate this site. I'll have to ask for help from someone who does, or take the classes in person.
• 3. I'm too shy to ask questions in class even when I'm confused.
• My shyness is a bit of an issue in this class, but I'd rather make myself look stupid by asking an obvious question than be stupid by never finding out the answer.
• 4. She's a lousy instructor. That's why I failed the first test.
• I'm having problems with trying to learn from this instructor, but there's always another way to learn something.
• 5. I hate group projects because people are lazy and I always end up doing all of the work.
• I have problems working with others in these group projects. If I can lay out their responsibilities for them, maybe it'll motivate us all to do our jobs.
• 6. I wish I could write better, but I just can't.
• I'm going to have to be a better writer to pass this class. I've got to improve sometime, why not today?
• 7. My friend got me so angry that I can't even study for the exam!
• I'm frustrated right now, but I'm at college to learn. If my priorities are in order, I can focus on what matters.
• 8. I'll try to do my best this semester.
• It's not enough to "try to" do my best, I have to DO MY BEST.
• 9. The financial aid form is too complicated to fill out.
• The money for college is right in front of me! It's tough to get to, but there has to be a way. 
• 10. I work nights so I didn't have time to do the assignment.
• I missed an assignment due to poor time management. In the future, I'll have to make the time I need to succeed at college.

  Write what you have learned or relearned about how you use language: is it your habit to speak as a Victim or as a Creator? Do you find yourself more inclined to blame yourself, blame others, or seek solutions?

  Remember to DIVE DEEP!

  I'm starting to think that blaming comes easy for me, whether it's blaming myself or others. I'm starting to  learn that blaming anyone(myself, even) gets me nowhere. What really matters is seeking solutions for my problems. Now that I've discovered my frequent Victim mindset, I can go about correcting it.

  Whoa, there's some deep stuff there.

  Not to mention quite a bit of typing and bulleted lists.

  Okay, that's about it for this week! Before I go, here's a reminder to myself: 

The key to a creator mindset is ownership, and a plan.

Week 1

Hi!

  My name is Josh, and before I start, this is a quick note to whoever it may concern.

This is my blog, dedicated to the journal entry prompts and self-observations required by my course of study in the 8-week class, UC101 Momentum. 

  While the words in this blog are definitely my own, these posts are done at the prompting of my textbooks, so I can't take the credit for any clever or hard-hitting questions that I appear to be asking myself. Though I wish I could, since there are some really good ones in this book.

  Thank you, that is all. Now, let's get started.

 

Journal Entry 1

 

  In this activity, you will take an inventory of your personal strengths and weaknesses as revealed by your self-assessment questionnaire.

Cool. I'm ready when you are, book.

  1. In your journal, write the eight areas of self-assessment and record your scores for each:

Accepting personal responsibility: 70

Discovering self motivation: 58

Mastering self-management: 60

Employing interdependence: 42

Gaining self-awareness: 59

Adopting lifelong learning: 67

Developing emotional intelligence: 61

Believing in myself: 66

  2. Write about the areas on the self-assessment in which you had your highest scores.

By doing the self-assessment, I learned that I'm more personally responsible and confident in myself than I thought I was.

  I deeply believe (66) in my ability to learn the skills required (67) to succeed in life. At least I can manage (60) to not be too disappointed (61) that my scores weren't higher, and accept responsibility (70) for it.

  3. Write about the areas on the self-assessment in which you had your lowest scores.

I also learned that I'm less interdependent and self-aware than I expected.

  Maybe I wasn't paying attention to the fact (59) that I wasn't asking other people (42) about myself. 

I hope I can motivate myself (58) into doing better in those areas.

And that appears to be it for this week!

  That was kinda fun. I learned some new things about myself, that's for sure. I think I'll sign off this week with a quote from this textbook. And no, I don't know who Eugene F. Ware is.

"All glory comes from daring to begin."

Eugene F. Ware