OGL 482 Pro-Seminar II Discussion Topic 3

Prompt 1: With respect to self-assessment data – briefly discuss the “Self-Assessments &
Reflective Writing” section of your e-portfolio (or equivalent), and what sorts of data were you
able to pull together (beyond what was assigned).

In my e-portfolio I included a group of assessments completed in my OGL 200 class.

These assessments helped determine our leadership style, our communication style as a leader,
and our compatibility ability as a leader. While there were many assessments we completed in
this course, these three were the most impactful in how I understood my leadership style.

I also included the assessment and reflection of the Jung Typology, the KTS-II, and the
Big Five personality traits assessments. While some of these assessments were familiar to me
before I took OGL 220, it was helpful to revisit them in order to understand how my personality
influenced my leadership.

With respect to any additional self-assessment instruments that you included (beyond what was
assigned), write briefly about what you learned about yourself (cite the new assessments you
took, and briefly describe your findings, and how those findings relate to how you see yourself
in the world).

In addition to the assessments from my past, I also completed the DISC assessment
and an assessment from ASU called TalentToday. Both of these assessments offered some new
insight into who I am and how I function.

The DISC Assessment assessed how my dominance, influence, dteadiness, and

compliance. This was an interesting assessment for me because while other’s have analyzed
similar traits, this one gave in depth explanations of how I function within these roles. This
assessment also provided a different perspective about how I interact with others.
I think the results hit the nail on the head: “You are socially oriented. You have a strong
self-motivation to get to know people in all walks of life and to nurture those relationships. You
have a natural enthusiasm for all types of ideas and projects - your own and other people's.
People are likely to describe you as gregarious, persuasive and optimistic” (DISC personality
results, 2018). This is also consistent with other assessments (and what I know about myself),
which is why I consider it to be accurate.
 The talent today assessment broke my personality down into “5 dimensions called
Clusters of Criteria: Communicate, Manage, Dare, Adapt, Excel. They cover the main personality
traits that employers seek in individuals” (TalentToday results, 2018). It showed me the
breakdown in a circular graph that spiked and dipped as well as provided detailed information
about what my scores meant. This assessment also provided a new perspective about myself,
My highest scoring category was “leading”, which the older I get and the more I understand
myself, the less this surprises me on assessments.

Throughout your personal or professional life, what have been the most useful self-
assessments tools for you, and why?

All of the assessments I have completed throughout my coursework have helped me

gain a bigger picture of who I am as a leader, what influences my actions and decisions, and
how I can work to improve my behaviors. A large part of who we are as people influences our
behaviors as leaders. That’s why these assessments have played such a significant role in my
degree program. Without them, I would understand less about who I am as a leader.

Prompt 2 Set-Up:

Download / print out and complete the Career Anchors Assessment (See instructions document
included with these discussion topic instructions). Actively review and consider your results.

Prompt 2: Discuss your primary and secondary career anchors. Any surprises? Make some
connections between your current work / life and your scores on the career anchors
assessment. What was your lowest scoring career anchor? Comment on your perceptions
about that (and the career anchors instrument, in general).

My primary anchor is Autonomy/Independence, and my secondary anchor is

Managerial.

It’s funny to me to look back on my career and see how strongly these two anchors
played a role. I was a preschool teacher for 10 years and I was able to have both
autonomy/independence and “managerial” opportunities in my classroom. I was able to run my
classroom and develop curriculum how I wanted to as long as I abode by certain guidelines.
And I was able to act as a leader using my managerial skills to problem solve, remain calm
during stressful times, and lead people (little people) towards a goal. The managerial anchor
transpired here in a more broad/general sense. In my job now, being a shift supervisor at
Starbucks, I have similar experiences: autonomy/independence in how I lead my shifts, and
managerial influence.

The managerial anchor does focus a little bit on “climbing the ladder of success”, but
that’s not the aspect that I see fitting my personality. This anchor applies to me in the sense of
looking “higher levels of responsibility, growing opportunities to serve in a position of
leadership, and increasing contribution to the overall success of the organization” (Career
Anchor Assessment).

As for needing autonomy and independence in my work, I don’t like to be held down by
rules. The more tightly and strictly I am bound to rules, the more likely I am to find ways to
rebel, or bend them. I need autonomy and independence in life and being strong willed and
free spirited is a big part of my personality. At first I was surprised that it was my highest
ranking anchor, but I see it now.

My lowest scoring anchor was entrepreneurial creativity. This anchor focused on

creating a business and thriving on risk. While at one point I had an idea for a hot chocolate
shop, it was never anything serious. This anchor is definitely not what drives, nor attracts me to
a career field. The entrepreneurial creativity makes me tired even just thinking about it.

Prompt 3 Set-up: (Ten Years Out Activity)

Prompt 3: Please respond to each of the following 12 questions – as you hope to be

answering them 10 years from today’s date). Be sure to give the questions some deep
thought, and demonstrate your engagement in the process by responding thoughtfully to each
one.

1. What is the date today? How old are you?

Today is July 13, 2028 and I am 41 years old.

2. Where and in what kind of environment are you living?

My husband and I are living in Washington. We initially moved here because of my

job, but now we stay because we love it. We has visited Seattle years ago when we
first started dating and both really enjoyed it. We live in a suburb of Seattle in a
small home.
3. What is your family situation?

I still live with my husband, no children, and our dog Cisco is on his last leg.

4. What kind of work are you doing?

I’m working for Starbucks in their partner resources (or HR) department.

5. Describe the institution/organization you work for.

I’m still working for the wonderful company that got me my degree in the first place:
Starbucks. They are an organization dedicated to community and having a positive
social impact. They also create a positive impact by taking great care of their
customers and their employees. While I had joined them in the customer service
industry for 5 years, I have now spent the past 10 years supporting their partners.

6. What does your work place look like? What kind of building do you work
in? Where is it located? Is the environment urban, rural, etc.?

As a partner resource employee, I actually work from home. Initially I started out
working at Starbucks corporate office in Seattle, but after several years of consistent
hard work, I am not able to conduct my work from home (considering it is primarily
over-the-phone work).

7. Describe a typical work week/day.

My work day consists of using telecommunications to communicate with partners
who have questions about their work, our benefits, etc. Occasionally I have to go
into the office for training or to submit paper work, but mostly my work is over the
phone and done at home.

8. Do you work standard hours or is your schedule flexible?

Working for the partner resource center is a daytime job. This makes for a more
rigid schedule where I am operating between business hours. I don’t mind not
having a flexible schedule because I don’t have children and my husband also works
during business hours. The schedule is a great fit for our lifestyle.

8. Describe your lifestyle.

 My husband and I both work 9-5 jobs, so we spend our mornings and our evenings
together. We are still following a healthy lifestyle eating healthy (and local), and
working out. We enjoy the social events in our community, and I am involved with
planning the local farmers market. Our lifestyle is laid back, slow paced, and
comfortable.

10. Do you have much leisure time and, if so, how do you spend it?

My job is a 9-5 type job, so I have a “normal” amount of leisure time. It’s more
steady and regular than working retail so I get to spend more evenings with my
husband. We spend our leisure time together hiking, exploring our town, and
playing board games.

11. What is your current financial situation?

Working for Starbucks Corporate pays better than working in their retail stores.
Because of this, my husband and I are in a very comfortable financial situation and
are on track with our retirement plans.

12. Are you as happy as you thought you would be? Why or why not?

I am very happy with where my husband and I are at. Our lifestyle is enjoyable, we
are both graduated (my husband with his masters degree, now), and have jobs that
we feel fulfilled in. We are still following a healthy lifestyle, which is important to
me, own a home, and are pretty settled in life. We have enough leisure time to
spend time together focused on our relationship, and make enough money for me
to visit my family in Texas 3 times a year.

My values are being implemented in my career by helping others, and in my

personal life by being able to focus on family (my husband, and family in Texas).
My passions are being met both in my career and in extra-curricular activities, and I
can enjoy my life without having to worry about my job, school, or finances.

Reference:

DISC personality test result. (2018). Retrieved July 13, 2018, from
https://www.123test.com/disc-personality-test/id=f6HPTVGATLFVEK6&version=

TalentToday results (2018). Retrieved July, 13, 2018, from

https://app.talentoday.com/users/lindsay-snowden/personality