Keeping Cool while Consulting
I enrolled in ENTI 407 in the Haskayne School of Business expecting to learn about technologies that are useful for start-ups, but I never expected that I would learn things about myself as well. Entering the first lecture of the semester, I was surprised to be one of the only 2nd year students. I expected the course to be challenging, especially considering that it is designed for senior ENTI majors. I am grateful that I chose to work hard in this course. Not only have I learned more about self-discipline, but also self-confidence and having confidence in others. In the first lecture I met two fifth year students and felt nervous that my work would be compared to theirs. In reflection, I explored the “What, so what, now what” reflective model by Natasha Kenny, Director of the Educational Development Unit, Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, Calgary, AB (2014). I also actively keep a journal to reflect on my personal and academic life.
When my friends and family ask me about how school is going, I always mention this class. Why do I like to talk about this class the most? What is different about it? Many things are different, to be honest. From the labs, to watching people present, to completing consulting meetings over zoom, I learned a lot to say the least.
I enjoyed our labs at the start of the semester, especially being pushed to be creative with the assignments. We were handed a skeleton, and we were required to not only put the muscle on the bones but dress it in clothes and give it a name as well. I was surprised that many of my peers were uncomfortable with this freedom. Not many people know what to do without set guidelines. For example, I can think back to the time when we had to build a new online marketplace for something relevant. I am thankful that we had clear instructions for completing the technical work for setting up the marketplace, but I loved having the freedom to design the logo and create a real purpose for the marketplace.
Watching everyone else’s individual presentations helped me realize that it did not matter how old everyone is or even how much experience they had doing presentations in Haskayne. Some people stood out to me while others almost made me doze off. Those that stood out had well-prepared slides and engaging content. They were excited to share their research with the class. It was at this point when I decided to quit comparing myself to others. Instead of worrying about how my presentation compared to the other ones, I realized that the unique qualities of each presenter are what made our class great. I did not expect the students in the class to be interested enough in our projects to ask insightful questions. I did not expect myself to be one of those students asking other students about their work.
After the presentations, my new burst of confidence helped me feel more comfortable expressing my ideas and thoughts to the group during our consulting project. Something I love about my group is that we really care about each other. When people in our group informed others that they may need extra time to complete their portions of work, everyone was understanding, especially with the COVID-19 situation happening. There was one exception to this when it became evident that one of our group members was not completing nearly as much work as the rest of the group.
When one of my group members was not attending our online meetings and failing to complete work, I was frustrated. I am now exploring the “What? So what? And now what?” reflective thinking model to aid in reflecting on what happened:
What? What happened? What did you learn? What did you do? What did you expect? What was different? What was your reaction?
One of my group members was not working as hard as the rest of the group when we were notified of the option for the class to be credited instead of receiving a letter grade. I asked the student to complete specific tasks and targeted him specifically in the group chat. Although I expected some of my group members to lose motivation due to the COVID-19 situation, I still hoped that everyone in my group would feel comfortable voicing their honest opinion on the group project.
So What? Why does it matter? What are the consequences and meanings of your experiences? How do your experiences link to your academic, professional and/or personal development?
This mattered to me because it felt like my group was not working to our hardest potential. If one person can get away with incomplete work, why not everyone? When I mentioned this student by name in the group chat I knew that there may be a consequence if they got defensive. My fellow group members may not have agreed with my action.
Now What? What are you going to do as a result of your experiences? What will you do differently? How will you apply what you have learned?
If I could go back, I would have had a separate conversation with the student and be more direct and honest about my thoughts. Doing this would ensure that the student understands the reason for my frustration and doing so would help to improve my conflict/resolution skills.
To conclude, this class granted the freedom of experiencing real-life entrepreneur situations. These experiences were nerve-wracking at first, but I have noticed an overall increase in confidence in myself and my classmates. Most importantly, I am grateful that I made many new friends in this class. Thank you Kris Hans for teaching us this semester, and I hope to reconnect with everyone in the future.
References
Kenny, N. (2014, July 30). The what? So what? And now what? Of critical reflection. Retrieved from http://connections.ucalgaryblogs.ca/2014/07/30/the-what-so-what-and-now-what-of-critical-reflection/
Kobzar, A. (2014). Renoir-Inspired Drawing. [Photograph].
Maeda, A. (2019). Amelia haskayne photo. [Photograph].
