Citizenship involves the team as whole, working towards a common purpose of doing good for the community. The word “community” I use loosely as that may be use to refer to different groups. Each member of the team should come together as a whole to put out the best product necessary.

So What

Without good citizenship, a community cannot work. Is the individual responsibility of each person to realize what should be done for the community as a whole. This is the time where like-minded individuals and non like-minded individuals put away their differences and work together. Without a strong central bond, the entirety can easily crumble.

Now What

Citizenship is something that I feel I do well, but can work on continuously. I don’t know that it is possible to always be a good citizen. In my eyes, citizenship means being selfless at all times and putting others before you 100% of the time. However, I believe that in many situations you should put yourself first. It is hard to say that you should never think of yourself. That is just my interpretation of citizenship.

This value is somewhat self-explanatory. Commitment is a necessity for success. You cannot truly be successful if you are not committed to what you are doing. There needs to be a focus, drive, passion, and a sense of energy towards fulfilling the task at hand and achieving that goal. I believe commitment can also be taught, not necessarily through an educational setting, but through a personal drive not to give up. Sometimes people don’t initially have that within them, but a self-examination and “commitment to commit” can change that around.

So what

Without and individual’s commitment towards the task at hand, the outcome could fail. Even one person in a group of one-hundred can hold the other ninety-nine back. The individual should be finding a sense of pride in the task they are doing, if not then maybe the role for that individual needs to change. However, I believe everyone can always find some sort of motivation as some place within a team.

Now what

This, I believe, is my strongest value within the social change model. I always take pride in the work I do, no matter what is it. Sometimes, I take too much pride in small tasks. I don’t find that to be a bad thing, but I tend to take things a little personal in some instances where I shouldn’t. Commitment has never been an issue in me and I will continue to make sure it never becomes such.

Congruence takes the role of consistency in this situation. More specifically, consistency within oneself. This means that an individual will usually do the same thing, with the same ideas and values in mind every time. Actions, thoughts, and discussions are always taking on the same tone. I think this is something that can be taught. While it is something and individual should work with on their own, you can be educated on how and in what manners to act consistently.

So What

Congruence is a good stepping stone in the right direction towards eliminating controversy. When others have a good feeling in the way you might react towards something (hopefully positively), it makes it much easier for them to go ahead and put out ideas in and open and honest way. It is then the responsibility of all others to continue to act like they usually would, unless something out of the ordinary happens. There can always be exceptions.

Now What

Congruence is something that I feel I am strong with. Typically I notice that I will react certain ways in certain situations. They may not always necessarily be the right reaction, but that’s something that is more easily changed than inconsistency.

This value takes a more individualized point of view. Consciousness of self is all about remembering what personal values and beliefs are and knowing to always keep those in mind when making decisions and taking actions. This is something that cannot be taught in any setting, but rather realized through life experiences. It may sometimes take even years to understand your own values.

So what

In relation, this value is more of an ethical point. Sometimes a decision you make can be controversial in terms of a should or shouldn’t this be done. An individual should remember, before all else, what they stand for and would this decision being made sit on their conscious for time to come afterwards. Always stay true to yourself above all else.

Now what

Fortunately I have not run into this issue too many times thus far in my life. It is easy to say that you will always do what’s right and what you believe in. However, what will actually be done when in the heat of action? I like to think that I won’t have a problem doing what I believe in, its just hard to make that kind of promise when you have not experienced it.

In most environments, there will be disagreements. But its how you deal with those disagreements that matter more so. Everyone must understand that all people are different, and therefore different viewpoints on just about all situations are going to come about. What cannot happen is that a simple disagreement turn into something more. Each person has the right to be heard and to defend his or her statement without fear of ridicule. After such takes place, it is then time to collaborate and decide what action to take.

So what

This value is specifically important to a team being able to work together. Sometimes a lot of disagreements can lead to individualism, which is not necessarily a good thing in most cases. Teams need to avoid this by being able to learn how to react to situations with other team members that they may not be so keen on. The more positive the reaction, the easier it becomes to move on from the situation. The initially negative reaction may lead to negative results depending on the way the rest of the situation is handled.

Now what

This is another value that I have starred. I tend to have a strong personality when it comes to the ideas that I have. I have been stubborn in the past with these issues, however I have learned how to go about the situation without coming off in a negative manner. Because of this I’ve noticed a big difference in my ability to negotiate and communicate with healthy debate. This is something that I continue to strive to improve.

Part of realizing that what you are doing is worthwhile is knowing that everybody else is also striving to produce the same thing. Each person on the team should be working towards one goal, one common idea that has been set to be achieved at the beginning of the project. This is another easy thing that is learned through life experience.

So what

We may strive to do our best for ourselves, as is human nature, but we will strive for better when we know that everybody else is working just as hard for the same thing. When I am working on projects, I try to think about what would be best for the rest of my team, regardless of what team I’m working for at the time. I know that I my teammates and co-workers would be working just as hard for me as I am for them. In turn, that makes the work I do feel like its worth something. If I can do my part, and the rest of my team can do their part, then the end result will be good. Remember the saying “individual parts are never as good as the sum of their whole.”

Now what

Moving forward, I have put down a mark on my list of “needs improvement” by this value. I have a tendency to get frustrated when I feel like I or my co-workers are not putting in the time and/or effort during certain projects. However, I know that they are always thinking about the same end result as I am. With this knowledge, I need to remember that working together patiently will end better than separately and angrily.

Collaboration could easily be the most important value of the social change model, that is, if you had to choose one. Collaboration takes place within a team and among all individuals. This is something that is easily learned, not through the classroom, but through living and learning. In my experience, it is easily noticeable when a team has done well collaborating and when they have failed to do so. The results will show.

So what

The wheel of every team begins and ends with collaborating and is only successful when this is done and done well. Collaboration, more commonly known as simply communication, takes place best when each person is taking on his or her specific role. In the end, all roles must come together for one common goal.

Now What

Already, I have been making an effort towards applying this value of the social change model. I require that all officers on the club golf team be in the loop on anything. That is, anything that I do, or any of the other officers do, a simple update should be sent to all so everyone knows what is next on the horizon. I have also made it a point of concern within my job at HokieVision to see that communication between students and staff is better. As an office as a whole, we put out great content, but I feel it can be improved when everybody who is a part of the office is in the loop as the what’s going on and what to expect moving forward.

So What: These classes opened my eyes to different styles of leadership. Before being introduced, I was very narrow-sighted on the term “leadership.” I believed a leader always led by example, and was always look up to by either peers, subordinates, or both. The RLC taught me that was just one style of leadership, and that there were many, many more ways to lead than just what I had experienced.

Now What: Because of the experience freshman year, I have been able to retain the information I learned, as well as some of the opportunities given to apply such leadership styles, and create my own style that incorporates many different styles and techniques. Creating this style, and experiencing more new ways has given the power to lead in many different real-world aspects even as a college undergrad. I am lucky to have had this opportunity.

What: Freshman year I began working as a student intern at HokieVision. I quickly found a niche in the broadcasting industry through the job and continually wanted to learn more. My junior year, I was anointed the technical director for all football games and ESPN3 broadcasts; only the 2nd time a student had been given this position (the last one to do this is now the department’s senior director). Senior year, I was given the role of a graduate assistant, a role that is not taken lightly in the office and has come with much more responsibility.

So What: Through being an avid learner of the system and industry, and being given the opportunities and trust that I have been given by my superiors, I have found that the other students in the office quickly have looked at me as more of a role model around the office. On countless occasions, I have peers approaching me for help, questions, and concerns. I have even had my superiors approach me with questions because they know that I like to research all kinds of situations and may know things now that they have not had time to learn.

Now What: With greater trust comes greater responsibility. I have quickly found myself to be a role model within the office and now have eyes on what I do. I’ve learned that I have to keep the same work ethic, if not an even greater one, that has gotten me to position I am. If I can lead by example, that will increase the productivity of the younger students and put them on the right direction to continue to improve the quality of our department.

What: One of the most influential events during my time at Virginia Tech has been my involvement with the Club Golf Team. As a sophomore, I was elected treasurer of the team where I was in charge of the day-to-day financial operations and reporting of the team. Beginning my junior year, and into my season year, I served as the president of the team. This, obviously, the most important role on the team as I was in charge of every aspect of the team. Tryouts, roster spots, tournament coordination, financial operations, merchandising, you name it and I was the ultimate decision maker.

So What: This experience served as a turning point in my leadership abilities. I went from being a very administrative and logistical leader, to becoming more of a empathetic and democratic-type leader. Taking into account the feelings and the ideas of the group of people being led was a much more effective way to lead the team rather than making decisions based on what I thought would be the best.

Now What: While I learned a great amount of democratic leadership these past few years as leader of the team, I also learned that there is no one perfect way to be a leader. It seems like leadership is a very situational-based philosophy. The best way to be the best leader is sometimes by trial and error and other times by past experiences.