Managing Rhymes

I'm not much of a poet
Haven't got that kind of time
But when I think of management
It makes me wanna rhyme

Plan, organize
Lead and control
It sounds like such a chore
But all you need is a goal

Observe different cultures
Stay close with your values
Keep an open mind
And find your muse

Lead with a vision

And communicate what you know

Remember to be ethical

It's the way to go

Whether we're dropping some eggs
Or building with blocks
Teamwork is key
To beat the ticking clock

Got problems? Find some solutions
Use power to influence a bit
Invest, imagine, incubate, and improve
That's all there is to it!

My goal is not physical

Not really socialization

In the end it's all

About self-actualization

From day to day we manage ourselves
With so much to do and so little time
Let's try to manage together
You give the reason I got the rhyme

Blog Blog Blog

When Professor Kurpis said, in the beginning of the semester, that everyone had to have a blog for this management class, I did not like the idea at all. I knew that meant that we would have a lot of writing assignments throughout the semester, and I would have more work to worry about. Plus, I don't exactly enjoy writing about things I learn in school. After I wrote my 1st blog entry (about culture), I realized it wasn't so bad. I actually kind of enjoyed it, but I figured the entries would get tougher. As I kept on blogging, I was able to express myself in different ways through the topics that were assigned to us. Even though I did kind of like it, I was hoping he wouldn't give us so many to do. But every time I start writing a new post, I really get into it, and it's never so bad. I think the fact that we have to comment on other peoples blogs is a good idea. It gives us a chance to get to know the personalities and ideas of our classmates.We can compare the views of different people and gain various perspectives. It also gives us a chance to make new friends. Every time we do a class activity, we usually get assigned another blog topic, relating to that activity and how it relates to a certain topic of management we learned, or will learn. Blogging about things like that really lets someone give their point of view and understanding of the subject matter. I think that a lot can be learned from the professor's blog as well. He's had more than enough experience in the management world, and it would be smart to get as much knowledge from him as possible. This blog allowed the students to control 20% of our grade, which is an easy 20% to obtain. All we have to do is write about our ideas; there are no right or wrong answers. I'm not sure if I'll continue blogging after I'm done with this management class, but I think the blog should remain a component in this class because it allows the students to be creative and speak freely. It's a good way to express oneself in any way possible, and it could serve as a decent stress reliever.

Steady and Conscientious

In management class, the professor made us take a leadership/management diagnostic test, which would more or less tell us what kind of leader or manager we are, or will be. After the "test," everyone had to interpret their answers, and decide which of the 4 categories they fell into. The categories are: dominance, influence, conscientiousness, and steadiness (DiSC). I was mostly steady, with conscientious in 2nd place; therefore, I am Sc. According to the sheet that was given to us, for steadiness, "Emphasis is on cooperating with others to carry out the task," and for conscientiousness, "Emphasis is on working conscientiously within existing circumstances to ensure quality and accuracy." I think that, for me, this test was partially accurate and partially inaccurate. I do like it when people are cooperating and getting things done, and I am very patient, helpful, and overall stable. I like things done the way they should be, but I feel that that only applies when I have a set of instructions and a deadline. I think being very steady is kind of boring. I don't think of myself as boring, predictable, and non-creative, but more toward the opposite. It's true that I'm not very outspoken and bold, but I am when I have to be. For instance, in group projects in school, I usually always take charge, try to make our presentations visually creative, and manage problems, whether it be with the group members or the project itself. I like motivating people when they need it (like if a friend is upset), and I'm generally a very happy and positive person. I would like to think of me as more of an Is (influence and steadiness) because I love an enthusiastic and fun environment, and I like getting things done. I think this test is a good way to determine people's management "types" because it makes you pick from a variety of characteristics, and then matches you to the "type" that best suits you. I can see these tests being used for marketing purposes, like determining how a person's personality affects what sort of products they buy. As now a marketing major, I think of these things. For now I am on the fence about my results, but I think that in the future, I can make myself become exactly how I want to be.

I Have a Vision

Many times when I lay down on my bed to think, or when I day dream during classes, I have visions of my future. It's a future of which I'm partially certain and partially uncertain of, but hope that the uncertainty will only give me motivation to take action to ensure certainty. I have a total of 4 goals (as of now) that I wish to achieve after I graduate from Baruch. The 1st is to get a job in an entertainment/media related business, whether it be a talent agency, a record label, an advertising company, a theater, etc. To make this a reality, I plan to do plenty of research on this industry, and join clubs and organizations at Baruch so I could network and maybe develop a few connections. My 2nd goal is to get into a good graduate school so I can get my MBA. To achieve this, I'll have to make sure that I get good grades and have a high GPA as an undergraduate at Baruch. This means I'll have to be serious about projects and exams in my classes, and study everyday. I'll also have to have some work experience, hence my 1st goal. My 3rd goal is to get as much experience performing as possible. Singing is my one true passion, and acting has been my new interest for a while now, which is why I'd love to share them with other people. I plan to put my resume out there through talent websites, or send them to certain agencies. I also plan to audition for plays and concerts in school, or for other opportunities I'm able to find out there. My 4th goal is to write and compose a song. When it comes to writing lyrics or making music, I know very little; all I know is that I love to sing and I love to listen to music whenever I can. I'm currently teaching myself to play guitar, and I think that in order to improve any further, I need to start taking actual lessons from a professional. Through this, I hope to learn more about music theory, and become more familiar with different notes and chords. Who knows, maybe someday my song will be heard by more than just a few, and will be the cause of many more songs to come. My goals may or may not be listed in order, but one thing's for sure, I won't just sit around waiting for them to happen.

Can We Figure This Out Already?

The class results for our first management exam came out to be rather disappointing, so the professor wanted to give us a chance to change this. He decided that if the entire class could vote on a way to improve our grades, and what type of format we wanted on our next exam (by the end of the class), he would let us have our way. So it started off with people just calling out ideas, until 2 people decided to take charge and be the leaders, who would write down the suggestions and keep everyone in order (like who would talk). People called out ideas, disapproved of ideas, added on to certain ideas, etc. Some people really had a "compete to win" behavior, and really just wanted their ideas to be the ultimate decision, but others were quite compromising, and took those ideas and made it so it could be fair for everyone. Some people wanted a curve, and others wanted extra credit or to drop the lowest grade. The decision of the format for the next exam was worse. Some people wanted to keep the essay part, or short answers part, some wanted to get rid of it, some wanted only to have true and false and mutiple multiple choice questions, and so on. Some people didn't talk at all, and I was one of them. I had a rather accommodating behavior. In all honesty, I couldn't care less because I was in a good position when it came to my grade on the exam, and I didn't have a problem with the format of it either. So I just let everyone else fight it out while I listened and absorbed, and thought that everyone had pretty sensible ideas. It started to get a bit frustrating, and it seemed like we would never get a 100% vote on a suggestion. If I were to handle this, I would emphasize the fact that if we all didn't agree on something, we would get nothing at all. I would also make sure that only one person spoke at a time, to avoid chaos. Other than that, I don't think I would change the way the class went about making the decisions. In the end, compromises and negotiations were made, and the professor asked for the final vote. The decision was made that we would all receive a curve, an optional extra credit assignment, and a drop of the lowest test grade (between the 1st and 2nd) to help our 1st exam grades. The other decision, regarding the exam format, was that we would keep the current format, but with the essay being optional. Overall, the class was a success and everyone was happy...more or less.

Sorry Pebbles

Earlier this week in my management class, the professor told the class to get into groups of 5 so we could work on an activity. The activity involved planning a way to use 8 straws and 2 feet of tape to secure an egg in such a way that when dropped from standing on a desk, it wouldn't break. As a little motivation, he said that he would give us 10 points towards our grade if we were successful. That was enough incentive to actually want to put effort into this activity. So my group and I started with step 1 of the planning process: Define your goals and objectives. We understood that we would be given 25 minutes to plan out and draw a way to wrap the straws around the egg so, as required, at least 50% of the egg would be seen, and so the egg wouldn't break when dropped. We also understood that we would be given 10 minutes to actually put together the contraption, and name the egg (which we named Pebbles) and have a paper with the drawing and names of the group members on it. Step 2 of the process is: Determine current status compared to objectives. We knew that we'd have 8 straws and 2 feet of tape, but we didn't exactly assign everyone in the group a specific task. We didn't establish an individuals strengths or weaknesses, or who would do what. I guess we didn't think that to be very important, or we all just assumed that everyone was equally skilled. That lead to step 3: Develop premises and several alternative strategies. Everyone in the group thought of ways to wrap the egg up in a safe way to ensure it from staying in tact. We all threw out ideas, made drawings, critiqued each others ideas, and eventually agreed on one idea, and kept another one as a backup. The 4th step of the planning process is: Analyze alternatives and make a tactical plan. We planned to make a sort of square base with 4 straws, with the other 4 straws attached to the base (standing) and bending over to cradle the egg in the center. Our backup plan was to sort of imprison the egg in the straws so it would be properly shielded. So we made a decision, and knew how we were going to carry it out. However, once again, we didn't assign certain jobs to everyone because it was assumed that the person whose idea it was would direct, and the rest would all help with the assembling and taping. This all lead to the last step: Implement the plan and evaluate results. My group and I were rather unsuccessful in this step. As soon as the 10 minutes started, so did we. When it came time to tape the egg to the straws in the center (to cradle it), it didn't seem to work out very well. Everyone then got a bit nervous, and a couple of members of the group decided it would be better to resort to the backup plan. Unfortunately we were unable to finish putting it together, and what we had turned out to cover more than 50% of the egg. Even though my group was disqualified, we got to drop Pebbles, who was tragically cracked in a terrible fall. My group had very good communication and decision making skills, but our execution lacked. If we had distributed the work and had given a certain job to everyone, and maybe even had spent more time on how we would put together the egg securer, we would probably have successfully accomplished our goal. Regardless of that, I think this experience has taught all of us in the class what it takes to plan and implement based on that plan, and now, how to improve on that in future situations that require planning.

This May Seem Strange...

I've experienced many different cultures in my life through the people I've met and the few places I've been. I was born in America, which has always contained a vast amount of cultural diversity. When I think of this country I don't think of just one race, ethnicity, or culture, but of hundreds of them. People from all around the world come here to live the American dream, and many succeed.
My parents came to the US from India and brought with them all of their beliefs and traditions, which they later taught to their children. They taught us to respect our elders, say our prayers, help those in need, and become successful in life. They introduced us to Indian clothing (such as saris and langhas), Indian food (such as roti and curry dishes, but no beef), and Hindi movies and songs of Bollywood (the Indian Hollywood). These songs and movies have become half of my knowledge of music and movies of any kind, that I forget not everyone knows about them when I talk to my non-Indian friends. Once I started school, I was introduced to more and more to American culture, such as American stories and characters, English songs, and having lunch at 12 pm. The idea of having a boyfriend was not really an option for me because I wasn't really allowed , and thought that the only romance I would have in my life would be between me and my husband. Over here, it's perfectly normal to have had a few boyfriends or girlfriends before marriage, and parents have no problems with it
I've pretty much had an equal experience with both these cultures. However, as I got older, I started becoming more Americanized, which is why I'd feel more like a foreigner every time my family and I went to India to visit our relatives. Most women there walk around wearing Indian attire and braids in their hair. Marriages are usually arranged, but I think people there are slowly starting to step into the 21st century. Sales people are out on the streets trying to get people to come in to their stores and check out their selections. Since cows are considered sacred, they walk around freely on the roads. People there are rather monochronic. They take their time with tasks, and do one thing at a time. For example, at stores, the salespeople will sit you down, get you something to drink, and show you one by one anything you should consider buying. Then, the same person will charge it and pack it up. Also, a lot of people there have chauffeurs (if they have cars that is), and house maids, whereas in America, usually only the really rich have them. There is no real sense of proxemics in India. As long as no one is being molested, or sexually harassed, personal space is no issue, whether someone be real close up to your face, or far away from you.
I have many friends of different cultures (besides my own). For one thing, they all eat dinner at 5 or 6 pm, when I'm accustomed to eating at around 8 or 9 pm. They call their parents mom and dad, whereas I refer to them as mummy and papa. I have a muslim friend who doesn't eat pork, and has to pray 5 times a day. I can eat pork, but choose not to, so that's not weird to me, but I honestly don't think I'd remember to pray 5 times a day. Many of my friends speak another language besides English, and I'm always interested in learning how to say certain things in that language. I hope to learn a lot more about their cultures, and many others from the people I work with in the future, and/or if I ever get a chance to travel around the world.