When I started this spring semester, I honestly didn’t

know what to expect when taking the Professional

Performance class with Mr Cole. As the semester
continued, I was able to apply the lessons to my life in the
most valuable way. Two of the lessons we covered this
semester stuck out to me one being “It’s All About You
(Professionalism)” and the other “Personal Financial
Management”. Not to say that I lacked in the areas of the
lesson, but I benefited from them.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “The only person you

are destined to become is the person you decide to be”.
Personality is defined as the combination of characteristics
or qualities that form an individual’s distinctive character.
As a child, my grandmother always said, “Manners and
respect will carry you through the world” and to “Treat
others the way you would want to be treated” and through
the years that has always stuck with me. The first lesson
we covered for the season was “All About You.” This
stood out to me because it covered everything my
grandmother quoted to me as a child and more. It focused
on how we value ourselves as individuals and the
influence it has on ourselves and others.

These few objectives coincide with professionalism in the

workplace between yourself and colleagues or those in
management. It all circles back to the person you were
raised to be and the influences you were impacted by
whether positive or negative. However, this too contributes
to the networking and relationships that are forged in your
everyday life or your professional one.

“Personal Financial Management” This lesson was more

than beneficial, it was applied to my life in so many ways.
Apart from being self-explanatory, this lesson taught me
how to control my finances when it came to spending. A
budget is defined as a detailed financial plan used to
allocate money for a specific time. I always budgeted, but
when the lesson touched on the things that I could do
without, I was able to double my savings. Going through
the lessons I noticed that all of them tie into one another.
They apply to our everyday lives one way or the other.
 Mr Cole did an amazing job when came to the lesson. He
found different ways to incorporate the lesson for me and
my peers to grasp the information. Although, some of it
was straightforward. Games and quizzes helped those of us
who learn through visual, auditory, or kinaesthetic
(physical). He made the class lively. As a clerk, I have
developed self-awareness though it’s hard when dealing
with different personalities, but I’m pushing daily. With
self-awareness, you must get to the root of things that are
going on in your life. Once it’s implemented, you can have
better control of your emotions and how you respond to
others.
This spring semester has allowed me to analyze my
journey to develop emotional growth and development. As
a child I was impacted by more negative than positive
friends and by being able to recognize the kind of energy
and personality I was around, I had to let those friends go.
I knew I needed something positive to look up to, I had a
vision of where I was going in life, and the like-minded
friends, I was around made it quite easy to see the light at
the end of the tunnel. The friends I’ve had for the past 15-
plus years are more than friends they have become family,
and I thank God every day that I chose a positive life
rather than a negative one. This semester for me has been
most impactful because I was able to apply the lessons that
I needed to my life. I intend to keep applying and
practicing all that I’ve learned not only for my professional
life but my personal life as well.