Here’s a poem that has given me a lot of Hope recently:
One of my biggest challenges coming up this quarter is I am not your typical writer. My thoughts are not linear or even set a direct path. That comes out in my writing more than anywhere else, because of the speed that it takes to get my thoughts out. I want to convey and help you to understand where I am coming from. So, ask questions, get curious! I love interacting with people and chasing after the answers. (All I ask is that we keep this productive and positive, as online it can be easier to feel that we can say things with a mean tone without meaning to. And I am just as much to blame as anyone else is.) I hope that all of you out there will be able to help me grow in this new version of Connection.
This week seems to have circled around scheduling and time management. I am pushing myself harder than ever to keep on task and within the given timelines, even when there are no assignments due. But for Entrepreneurship (ENTR), I have been using and testing out some of my web building skills. I have created several websites before, but all of those were more creative and personal than what we have to accomplish now. This blog itself was a long endeavor to get online and posted. The amount of writing for the rest of the website was also a long series of tasks to accomplish. But, I am over the moon with the new way of connection and creativity this will give me in the long run. I believe that this skill and quarter will push me to gather and develop new skills rapidly, as every quarter has. Therefore, I am glad to start this quarter off with a jump into the deep end of a challenge. It feels amazing to have something to push towards and work on after the anxious mess of a break I had.
I am also looking forward to seeing how this class pushes our networks to nourish and grow. In my life I have found that in times of uncertainty and fear, people tend to grow closer together, metaphorically speaking. The students and community that comes out of this time will be stronger and reach farther for their goals than who they were before this pandemic. Which means, I have loved the team meetings that I have been a part of, but would have loved to reach out more to the E1s. Coming into this community online is just one more piece to add to their anxiety, and I wish I could have found more ways to connect and treasure those looking to develop their skills.
Finally, I feel I have learned more about how to coach and mentor others. During the meetings, I wanted more than anything to chime in and become a member, but taking a step back and letting them hash it out themselves gave them a better answer. I want to learn more about listening, I want them to come to me, I wish to give them the confidence that they have accomplished their goals with their own strengths. It was amazing and powerful to be the person they looked to when they needed help, but it was even better when they found the answers themselves and grew as a team. I want to learn and grow as a coach in this new setting.
You have such an amazing outlook on this quarter and time of stress for our communities. I really do adore the poem you chose to add to this post; it was a very creative yet simple addition. It really did make me smile! My biggest take away from this post was that you have true appreciation and empathy for others. You explained your fears for the E1s while also discussing how you were there to guide them in these confusing times. Thank you for helping the new students in our community. It also stood out to me that you are ready to adapt to this online form of socialization. That can be a challenging thing to do but your faith in figuring it out is inspiring.
– Zosia Sherwood
I love that poem! It is so nice to be able to find joy in the simplest things. I’m really learning a lot about that during this confusing time. I also look forward to our E3 event, and do hope that we all grow closer throughout the process.
I absolutely agree with what you said about being a mentor, every time I’ve gotten the opportunity to be a kind of mentor for someone I’ve absolutely loved it. I’m also a fan of the poem you posted. I think the beauty in the everyday is something I think is more difficult and more important to see at times like these.
This poem reminds me of a few things. One, how our outlook is usually most affect by unrealized things happening in life and two, the idea that an object simply existing at the right moment can bring you joy and comfort. I want to bring this to light with how you discuss scheduling. How can you create little moments of joy in your schedule?
To share something personal, I had a few rough years growing up. As I tried to discover a solution, I noticed that if I had a certain “number” of happy things in my life that day, the rest didn’t affect me as much. So I made a list. A list of everything that currently made me happy, how plausible it was to have it in my everyday life, and how much time it took. I know this is a overly organized and methodical way to look at it, but to me it was like prescribing medication. Overdosing would be a lack of productivity and result in later stress. Under-dosing would be dragging through the day. I found my balance, and I update this happy sheet every now and then. It’s a good reminder that there are many, many simple things that bring me joy.