A511.4.3.RB_SchreterPaul

                The idea of tying together the theory of motivation and managerial traits has certainly been an interesting one. Motivation can be defined as moving a subordinate’s unacceptable behavior into an acceptable one and then turning that acceptable behavior into an exceptional one. Traits on the other hand describe qualities in a person and how they play a role into making a manager more successful.

                Whetten and Cameron explains a simple motivational theory in their text. It is said that “discipline should be used to extinguish unacceptable behaviors. However, once an individual’s behavior has reached an acceptable level, negative responses will not push the behavior up to the exceptional level.” (Whetten & Cameron, 2013) This shows that if I am to try to motivate the truly lazy of subordinates, discipline is going to have to be necessary to get them to be more productive. After that point though, “only through positive reinforcement do employees have control over achieving what they want and, therefore, the incentive to reach a level of exceptional performance.” (Whetten & Cameron, 2013) So in order to achieve great accomplishments, learning how to properly motivate and reward someone is key.

                This ties very well with one of Yukl’s trait theories about achievement orientation. Achievement orientation includes the “need for achievement, willingness to assume responsibility, performance orientation, and concern for task objectives.” (Yukl, 2013) By having a drive or desire to accomplish great things and to achieve an exceptional performance, one will be in tune to what needs to be done to accomplish this drive or desire. Desire alone isn’t what’s going to make a manger more successful, however it is the stepping stone that gets the foot in the door. Tie this desire for achievement with the motivational theories from Whetten and Cameron’s text, and success has a much higher probability of actually happening.

                I consider myself to be very achievement oriented in the sense that I strive to be as productive as possible with the tasks that I am given. Unfortunately though I’m pretty low in the ranking structure and so the amount of power I have limits the amount of motivational carrots I can hand out. The teams that I lead are very small and very rarely get above 4 people. However perhaps by showing I can take what I have and prove great leadership skills at this very low level, then selection for higher ranks, and thus more responsibility, will shine its line through the tunnel.

References

Whetten, D., & Cameron, K. (2013). Developing Mangement Skills. New Jersey: Pearson.

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in Organizations. New Jersey: Pearson.

A520.4.3.RB_SchreterPaul

The first thing that Andy mentions that people work for is interesting work. (Mulholland, 2011) I fix fighter aircraft avionics systems for a living, so I would say that the job itself is inherently interesting. Every day I go out it’s a different problem that I have to fix, so I never know what I’m going to get. By not doing the same mundane thing every day, I believe that this job has become much more satisfying than any other job I’ve had.

The second thing that Andy mentions that people want is the expansion of their skill set. (Mulholland, 2011) Throughout ones career in the Air Force, proper education is one that is afforded to every enlisted personnel. Upon sewing on that first SSgt. Stripe, members enter what’s called Airman Leadership School where they learn to become good front line supervisors. Upon sewing on higher ranks, other types of management/leadership schools are mandatory. There is also the opportunity for off-duty education through the use of Tuition Assistance and the GI Bill. This is something I’m taking advantage of by registering for this class. So the Air Force does do a good job, in my opinion, in affording the opportunity to expand a person’s skill set.

The last little bit that Andy mentions is that employees crave recognition. (Mulholland, 2011) A program called the Bellow-The-Zone (BTZ) program gives Airmen the opportunity to sew on their next rank 6 months earlier than all of their peers. I worked real hard when I arrived to my first duty station and I was one of few that got selected for BTZ. I sewed on shortly thereafter and I felt more motivated than ever to complete the mission.

One of my own personal motivators to keep me going with my job is a sense of security; not job security, but life security. The military provides a very generous retirement package for those that put in 20 years of service and this alone helps fulfill one of what I like to consider as a Maslow hierarchical of needs. By working hard and putting in my 20 years of service to my country, I will in turn make sure that I am well taken care of for the rest of my life.

Alderfer mentions that one basic need for a person is growth. (Whetten & Cameron, 2013) By providing a clear path of what I need to do to get promotions, I am motivated by setting my own goals to get these promotions. Working hard isn’t mandatory for everyone, but the idea of growth and life security work hand in hand to making sure I give it my all. The further ahead I go in my military career, the bigger the retirement package is for when I get out.

The final motivator for me is the fact that I am able to establish a relationship with my clients. This can be defined as something that “involves an ongoing personal relationship between an employee (the producer) and the client (the consumer).” (Whetten & Cameron, 2013) In this case my clients are the pilots that depend upon me to give them good aircraft to fly. By being able to talk to them directly and build upon a relationship, I am able to see the direct results and get feedback for the job that I do. It can sometimes be said that a happy pilot makes for a happy maintainer.

References

Mulholland, A. (2011). The Three Things We Work For (Money Isn't One of Them). Retrieved from books24x7: http://library.books24x7.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/toc.aspx?site=BW9SX&bookid=43753

Whetten, D., & Cameron, K. (2013). Developing Mangement Skills. New Jersey: Pearson.

A520.3.1.RB_SchreterPaul

                There are many different ways to make decisions in one’s life. Some make quick emotional decisions, others may make slow rational ones. In this blog I’m going to reflect upon my own decision styles, talk a little bit about the opposites of my decision style, and what benefits there are to making the opposite of my primary decision style.

                There are a few words that can be used to describe my decision-making style. The first of these words would be rational. When it comes to making most of my decisions, I try to rationalize the best decision to make. This shows that I try to make decisions based on sound reason and logic. Another word that might describe my decision-making style is fair. I try my best to be impartial to everyone and give everyone a chance, even if I’m not a very big fan. I do this because I think it’s the right thing to do.

                The words that I chose to describe my decision-making style have some opposites as well. The first opposite word would be emotional. To be emotional would be to throw logic out the window and to do what I feel I should do. Another opposite word would be greedy. Rather than be fair for everyone I should disregard those that I don’t like and only work with those that I do. A certain personal eye opener these two words are.

                I can definitely see some benefits to using the opposites of my decision making styles. The first of which, emotional, helped me obtain my girlfriend and thus a happy relationship. Sound, rational logic would have had me avoid her (not for personal reasons, more for logistical). So to be emotional make have its benefits to bringing happiness. The other opposite word, greedy, can also have its benefits. Doing what I want to do with little regard to others may also bring me more happiness because I don’t have to be fair to those that I don’t like. However, this can also backfire and cause more harm than good in the long run. While I might be happy in the short term, the long term would be something much more miserable.

                So to quickly reflect, I discussed some words that go into my decision making style, some opposite words that go into my decision making style, and what I think about these opposites. There are certainly some benefits to using these opposites and it really has got me thinking about the subject. Whether or not I can change the way I make core decisions is up for debate, but I can at the very least be more aware of how I make them and think about whether or not going for an opposite decision making style would be best.

A520.3.5.RB_SchreterPaul

                Supportive communication “seeks to preserve or enhance a positive relationship between you and another person.” (Whetten, 2011) There are a number of ways that Whetten describes to preserve and improve communication while at the same time getting a point across that if not done carefully, could come off as hostile and negative. Two ways that I can integrate supportive communication within my present position is thru better congruence and more validating.

                Congruence is one of the ways I can better improve my own communication. Congruence can be defined as matching when is said to what it portrayed. I have made pretty drastic mistakes in the past thru my work and when confronted by my superiors, I usually give off a demeanor of someone that doesn't care. The problem is I don’t know how to properly express my own concerns or feelings or even how to say sorry. This leaves a disconnect with how I feel about something and what is being portrayed. One way to improve upon this is by trying to express my concerns, although I do fear that it will seem artificial and further provide an in-congruence with my feelings and what is interpreted. Practice makes perfect?

                Another way to better provide supportive communication is thru validating the presence of others. Validation can be defined as a “willingness of a person to communicate an understanding that the other party may possess additional data and other alternatives that may make significant contributions both to the problem solution and to the relationship.” (Whetten, 2011) I can use this in my own life and position by asking my subordinates what I think about decisions that I make. This will give them the opportunity to express what they think and allows me to be more open to better solutions.

                Both congruence and validating are two ways to improve upon supportive communication. While there are many ways that I can improve upon myself, these are just two examples on what I could be doing now. Not only do I think this is great advice to becoming a better leader, but I think it’s great advice to a better life.

References

Whetten, D. (2011). Developing Management Skills. New Jersey: Pearson.

                

A511.3.3.RB_SchreterPaul

                “Influence is the essence of Leadership.” (Yukl, 2013) Managers get someone to do something because of their power, their rank, and their position. Leaders get someone to do something because they want to do it. To reflect upon this chapter I’m going to talk about power and influence and how these two have played a role in my workplace and my life.

                Power and influence aren’t synonymous so it is important to define them separately. The way Yukl defines power is that it’s the “absolute capacity of an individual agent to influence the behavior or attitudes of one or more designated target persons at a given point in time.” (Yukl, 2013) “Absolute” is a key word because it shows that the agent has full authority over the target and that the target really has no choice but to listen. Influence on the other hand Yukl defines as the “[involvement of] motives and perceptions of the target person in relation to the actions of the agent and the context in which the interaction occurs.” (Yukl, 2013) What this means is that while an agent might not have any real authority over the target, the target might still do something because they benefit in some way. A personal example for each follows.

                Both power and influence play roles in my work life and personal. I have what’s referred to as Expert Power which is where “task-relevant knowledge and skill are a major source of personal power in an organization.” (Yukl, 2013) For example at work when I bring a new guy onto a job, I exercise “Expert Power” because I am the leading expert for the job and the target essentially depends upon me to get the job done. Influence in the form of personal appeals plays a huge role in my life in the sense that it “involves asking someone to do a favor based on friendship or loyalty.” (Yukl, 2013) For example I asked one of my work buddies to pick up the keys to my flat to give to a friend. I have no power over this person, but he still helped me out as a favor based on our friendship. These are just two simple examples on how power and influence play in my life.

                To reflect, I’ve defined both power and influence and how the two words play a role in my life. Managers get people to do things because of their power; leaders get people to do things because of their influence. Everyone can be said to exercise power and influence in some fashion and being able to recognize the difference is key to becoming a good leader.

References

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in Organizations. New Jersey: Pearson.

A520.2.6.RB_SchreterPaul

After deploying to an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia and about to start school, I realized that I really needed to adjust my time management skills to accommodate a new schedule that will allow me to do well at work, well in school and well in my personal life. Working on up to 80+ hours a week and taking on two classes is quite the feat, one that hopefully will not be my demise as I would owe the government a lot of money in Tuition Assistance costs and further delay the everlasting goal of getting my Masters.

Prior to the semester starting my schedule looked something like this: 14 hours away from the tent to go to work, work, do turnover, and come home. 2 hours to shower, workout, talk with the girlfriend. 8 hours to sleep.

To get everything done in my free time would be a near impossible task. Thankfully our one day off a week came back as soon as the semester started (we had no days off for an entire month prior), which allows some breathing room to get work done. However I needed to improvise a little bit and sacrifice a few things to manage my time more wisely. Sleep is absolutely necessary to not only have the focus for my work but for school as well. Showering and talking with the girlfriend are necessary for personal hygiene and human reproductive purposes. Working out on the other hand, I realized I can make time for during my work hours.

My job entails an equal demand of physical and mental labor. The day to day aircraft parts that I deal with are very heavy and have to be carried back and forth for what I estimate to be a quarter mile each way. This in itself is quite the workout. In addition, during the trouble shooting portions of the aircraft there may be wait times on up to 10 to 20 minutes for the system to time in. During this time I try to fit in burpees, pushups, crunches, and planks. By turning my work into a workout, I free up about an hour each day for school.

On occasion we may also get maintenance down days where we don’t fly any non-mission-essential aircraft. If all the aircraft are fully mission capable, then time at work can be used towards finishing school. The mission will always have to come first, however if time permits, little efforts towards school can be made here and there.

By managing my time in this way, I feel like I have increased my locus of control. If everything goes as planned and I finish this semester with a passing grade, my internal locus of control would say that I was in full control of my destiny and shaped my own future. However if the mission were to ever take priority, or if something drastic happens in the world, this would be an external locus of control that could potentially cause me to fail (an outcome I hope to never see).

This is the plan that I developed last week and is one that I am currently implementing into my daily routine. The fruits of these labors are still yet to be determined, but one where I remain quite optimistic that I can get done.

References

Whetton, D., & Cameron, K. (2011). Developing Management Skills. New Jersey: Pearson.

A520.2.3.RB_SchreterPaul

A recent conflict resolution that I participated in was in fact, very recent. The conflict was with my girlfriend on what to talk about as my conflict for this very blog entry. I ran an idea by her on talking about one of our very early conflicts in our relationship, however she didn’t like the idea because it was too personal. I consider her an equal partner, so an agreement was essential in keeping a good relationship.

Much like the example used in the Conflict Resolution - Part 2 video, I expressed my intent and my goals and intently listened to my girlfriend express her concerns about the path I was going to take. Since we were at an impasse, a win-win middle ground was the only solution that had to be found. No other participants were in on the negotiation, so we were the only two that I had to worry about.

Since I needed an example for my school assignment and she didn’t want me to talk about our personal life, I instead brought up the very conflict we were having. A conflict so frivolous in nature that I get my example that I can use in school and she gets the privacy that she wants. The result was win-win and all parties were happy.

References

Conflict Resolution - Part 2. (2008). Retrieved from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vga7bhGd5dI&feature=youtu.be

A511.2.3.RB_SchreterPaul

Supportive leadership covers “a wide variety of behaviors that show consideration, acceptance, and concern for the needs and feelings of other people.” (Yukl, 2013) Developing an environment that fosters positive interactions amongst peoples allows for lower turnover and higher job satisfaction. Some of the behaviors that either I exhibit or have noticed within my work environment are showing concern for another’s personal development, coaching fellow peers, and providing support when another person is upset.

Showing concern for another person’s development is a behavior that I exhibit in my work environment. Brand new Airmen that come out of technical school are provided with many opportunities to not only have incredible Enlisted Performance Reports but to also sew on the next rank much faster than all of their peers. A major contributor towards earning a good report or to sew on the next rank is to pursue personal education, especially one that gains them their Associates Degree from the Community College of the Air Force. I highly encourage these Airmen to be ambitious about their goals towards achieving their degree to not only help them in their careers in the military but also the civilian life outside of the military. I even encourage those higher than me to achieve the next step in their education, which in most cases this is a Bachelor’s Degree from an institution of their choice. Within the enlisted side of the military, personnel with Bachelor’s Degrees becomes a rare sight.

Coaching by peers is another behavior well facilitated by the leadership of my organization; in fact it’s vital for the development of the organization as a whole. Brand new Airmen can’t be expected to know their jobs right out of school, so most of the training they do over the course of the first year is on the job training. Coaching and mentorship is provided so that they can not only learn how to do the job, but to do the job right. The breadth of knowledge required for my job is also incredibly large so to know everything is completely in-human. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses and so the leadership mixes and matches every one of all specialties to further develop everyone on duty.

Providing emotional support for someone who is anxious or upset is always something that I’m ready for. A while back I provided voluntary emotional support for those with feelings of distress, despair, and suicidal thoughts for an organization called Samaritans in the United Kingdom. I have been able to take my experiences with this group and apply it in the work setting by showing empathy towards other people’s frustrations with their work and personal lives. I am also a Victim Advocate for the 380^th Fighter Wing, providing emotional support for those who survive a sexual assault. Simply by being there for someone, no matter how big or small the problem, these individuals can lead a much more productive lifestyle both in their personal lives and at work.

                By showing concern for other peoples personal development, by coaching both my peers and those under me, and by providing emotional support when required, I believe I have shown some examples of supportive leadership. While there are always areas to improve upon and to further grow, simply by showing some effort in helping others has led to a much more supportive and productive environment. Leadership is never about a single individual, but the collective growth of all others.

References

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in Organizations. New Jersey: Pearson.

A511.1.3.RB_SchreterPaul

“The difference between good and great, is just this much,” a quote from one of my previous commander. Leadership and management are often intertwined with one another and sometimes confused. While I’m still learning to differentiate the two, I’ll start out by explaining what I see in leadership, what I see in management, and how I see the two working hand in hand.

Leadership can be thought of as inspiring people into doing what they want to do. Simon Sinek’s TED talk explained this as being the “why” of something. (Sinek, 2010) For example one might say, “Our ground troops are taking heavy fire and only our jets are fast enough to save them.” This phrase alone will cause maintainers to feel the need to do something and act. There’s a quote in Yukl’s book, “leaders are people who do the right thing” as opposed to doing things right. (Gary, 2013) Giving people meaning in what they do gives them a sense of ownership over their actions. They don’t act because someone tells them too, they act because they want to.

Management can be thought of as getting the job done. In Yukl’s book a quote mentions that “managers are people who do things right” as opposed to doing the right thing. Figuring out what it takes and what resources to get the job done. In the realm of military aircraft maintenance, the expediter is often seen as a manager. They assign jobs to troops and tell them to fix it. Management isn’t so much about the “why’s,” but the “what’s” and “how’s.”

Tying the two together, leadership and management, is what creates greatness in a society. Simon Sinek explained that when trying to sell something to people, you must start with the “why” they need to do something followed by the “what” it is they have to do. (Sinek, 2010) Going the other way around and people lose interest because they no longer take ownership in the particular vision. One of my old commanders always said in his role calls, “the difference between good and great, is just this much,” as he holds up his hand to show the difference is less than an inch. Everyone is already good at their jobs and do good work, but in order to achieve greatness, all they have to do is put forth just that little bit of extra effort. Jets were breaking left and right and we had a mission to get done. By inspiring us to achieve greatness, we all took ownership in such vision and put forth that little bit of effort to achieve what needed to be achieved.

There is still a lot to learn, but this was my basic idea of the differences between leadership and management. The two are different in their own ways, but it takes the two to actually be effective in doing grand things. The next question then becomes, how doing I put this into practice with what I’m going now?

References

Gary, Y. (2013). Leadership in Organizations. Ney jersey: Pearson.

Sinek, S. (2010). TED. Retrieved from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZoJKF_VuA&feature=share&list=PL42F8562DCD3CCEA8

A520.1.6.RB_SchreterPaul

Different aspects of my self-awareness have changed with regards to the five core aspects since I’ve first began my MSLD program. To what extent these aspects were influenced by the MSLD program or life in general is up for debate, however I certainly am more aware of my own self being.

Kohlberg presents a story to which a man has the opportunity to save his dying wife if he were to steal a drug. Prior to just a few years ago I would have frozen up with the idea on how I would react in this situation. Today however the value of which I place on family is much clearer than ever and I now realize how I would react.

After taking the cognitive style indicator test, it certainly opened my eyes in a way that I say, “oh, this is so true!” The two aspects that I rated highest were Planning Style followed by a close Knowing Style. Creating style scored lowest for me and I can understand why. The basic translation that I interpreted out of this was that I prefer clear and structured learning styles as opposed to something more ambiguous.

My attitudes toward change are still a bit hazy for me. In past experiences when change occurs I tend to obey but with slight efforts of rebellion. How I’ll deal with change in the future is anyone’s guess. I imagine I’ll be hesitant at first, but I will always make efforts to adapt.

After taking the core self-evaluation test, I learned that my idea of self-regard has an influence on other aspects of my life. The feelings I have for myself are rather neutral, but I’ve learned that having a positive self-regard can have a positive impact on my success.

When I took the emotional intelligence test it appeared that this was a category where I am most weak. I can agree that most of my life I was aloof towards others feelings, let alone my own, however after being able to practice empathy with various volunteer activities that I take part it, understanding the concept of emotional intelligence and how I rate on a scale becomes more clear.

A520.1.2.RB_SchreterPaul

                After taking the self-awareness survey, I realized I score well below the mean for nearly every test in the book. The way I see it is that I have a lot to learn and improve upon. I have taken related classes in the past and I quickly noticed that there is a distinction between what I would really do and what I believed I should do.

                For some of the tests I thought I would have scored quite well, especially in regards to Emotional Intelligence because this was a hot topic in a lot of my classes back in Uni, however this was in fact one of my lowest scoring ones in the book. This makes me believe that there is a disconnect between what I learn in school and what I actually put into practice (well, at least in theory because the situations the book puts you in are all imaginary).

                There really is only one way I believe to make use of this information and that is to view this as an opportunity to be open-minded and learn new things. That being said, I also realize that learning things in theory is one thing, putting them into practice is another. I hope to be able to take what I learn and apply the different elements into my day to day work environment.