The Collaborative Leadership and Community Building class was very different from any class I had ever taken in that the entire semester I was working as part of a team. On the first night we were divided into teams and by the second week, we had developed a team charter. Working as part of a team required an interdependent relationship amongst team members as well as accountability to one another. We had to learn how to communicate effectively, trust one another, ensure that all team members contributed, and resolve any conflicts. The most challenging part was that my team was too agreeable and rarely had any differences of opinion. At times, this made it difficult to have a significant discussion during the weekly team meetings.
Each week, we would be in one of three roles during the team meetings: facilitator, participant, or recorder. As the team facilitator, I would print out a copy of the discussion guide and that’s week’s PowerPoint presentation. I would send a group text message as a friendly reminder of the readings that needed to take place prior to class so that we would all be prepared to discuss. I also made sure to bring one hard copy of the assigned reading or the textbook just in case someone was not able to do the reading. During group discussions, I would ask open-ended questions to encourage dialog and keep all team members involved. If I noticed a team member was not contributing, I would ask their opinion of the subject matter being discussed. Our team worked a little too well together and did not have any disruptive behavior that needed to be managed. I wish that our group had some differences of opinion resulting in more engaging discussions. We were just too agreeable. Even when it came to discussing topics that would be considered ‘controversial’, we were all in agreement. Overall, I feel that my approach as team facilitator was effective. The feedback I received at the end of the night was very positive. The only suggestion my team had was that the group facilitator should also bring snacks for the team. As a participant, I was aware of how much I was contributing to the team meetings and would scale back if I felt I was talking too much. I would feel myself slipping into the role of the facilitator when the dialog was not flowing and there were moments of silence. That is something that I was used to doing at work. Ensuring that meetings were effectively run and had a good flow. It was challenging at times to not revert to those old habits of co-leadership. I learned that moments of silence are not something negative. Sometimes people just need a moment to reflect. I also learned to listen to understand, not to provide a response or solution. I feel that I should have participated more in the class discussions. I was too fearful of giving the incorrect answer. I realize that the classroom is the perfect environment to practice and learn from mistakes; however, my fear of being wrong was just too great. I really regret not having voiced my opinion more as a participant. Going forward, I will be making more of an effort to speak up during class and participate in discussions. I am considering joining Toastmasters to help with my fear of public speaking. Our group worked so well together, that I did not want to be the one objecting to decisions made. For example, when selecting our community, I really wanted to choose the city of Salinas and focus on the problem of public transportation services for disabled residents. Even though our solutions were hypothetical, I felt that this was an issue that could be addressed in real life and resolved through engaging with the Salinas city council. One of the team members is from Hollister and was very passionate about the lack of recreation and entertainment for youth in her community. In the end, I gave in to groupthink and just went along with the majority of the group. In managing multiple classes, a full-time job, and a family life, I just wanted to get along with my classroom team members and get the assignments done. Surprisingly, I felt that the role of recorder while being a participant was the most challenging as it as handling multiple roles at once. I found it difficult at times to capture the important content and the decisions made, while at the same time engaging in the team meetings. When I have been the recorder/minute taker at work, I am usually allowed to use a voice recorder. That way I participate fully in the meeting and take the minutes later. I wanted to do that in the classroom but felt a bit embarrassed as I would be the only person recording the meetings. Plus, it would double the work as I would have to later listen to the recordings to type the minutes. Fortunately, we worked very well as a team. If I was not able to capture something as it was being said, my team would repeat the information. I would also summarize what I had documented to ensure I had not misheard something and had documented the information accurately.
As a team, we worked well together. On the first night we set up a group text message to communicate with each other and we also set up a Google drive to collaborate on projects and share information. Our very first group text message and addition to the Google drive was a picture of the facilitator and recorder sign-up sheet/schedule. The group text message was utilized in part to keep everyone informed of tardiness or absences so that we could reassign the facilitator or recorder role for the week. We all participated in the weekly team meetings and did a good job of ensuring equal participation. We did not have any disagreements. Which personally, I wish there had been some difference of opinion among us just to have a really good discussion. I feel that in not having any difference of opinion, we missed out on learning first-hand about conflict resolution, giving negative feedback, and overall conflict management. Our conflict resolution was reaching a group consensus. We all seemed to share the same values, goals and had a respectful attitude towards one another. We worked together so well that we even decided to color coordinate our attire when it came to both oral presentations.
While we did work exceptionally well as a group, there is always room for improvement. We could have utilized class time more effectively to complete our assignments in class. By the end of the night, the team members just wanted to go home. Taking advantage of class time to work on assignments was the last thing on some team members minds. We also could have been more present during class time, instead of being distracted by our electronic devices. Overall, it was a good experience and my team performed very well. We all communicated effectively amongst each other, trusted that each team member would do their part, equally contributed to all team assignments, and didn’t have any conflicts to resolve. By far, this has been one of the best teams I have ever worked with. I can only hope to continue to work with them as I proceed in the Collaborative Health and Human Services major.