Networks, Sources and Engagement to Date
Most of my networks and sources are Internet based. I considered myself to have quite a good range of networks and sources before I started the course but after working through this module they both have increased massively. I am using 'Linked in' much more effectively, I have joined lots of groups on there where debates are frequent, news is a focal point and it is just good for 'collective intelligence'.
I do find I need to be more focused at times. I start out focused but can get easily distracted by a new debate on 'Linked in' for example. I have so many networks of interest now, my mind is constantly being summoned, so that is something I need to work on. I tend to start out with a plan of action of where I need to go and what I need to do to find out the particular information or work I need to do at that time but can become absorbed in a comment someone has made on a blog for example and then it can lead somewhere else therefor it ends unplanned. So this goes hand in hand with focus. Focus is where I need to improve.
I think that my engagement was good at the start, I was able to blog frequently, research lots however (I'm sorry to keep harping on about this, but) since being back at sea things have become so much harder. Trying to balance work with study is difficult, especially when you don't have readily available Internet. I like to set a good block of time to read, study and write because it takes me time to get everything set out and focused. Whilst on the ship I have half an hour here and there so I can't focus as well in that instance. I have found my study very helpful however in my new job, especially the reflective practices. I have just passed my crisis management and human behaviour exam and through out the training I really did use different reflective methods and even brought it up when we had group discussions. I could really relate it back to my professional practice which made me feel I'd achieved something.
Ideas, Concerns and Sharing
I have similar concerns as my fellow students. We have a Facebook group where we can chat and through comments on the blog we can establish mutual reservations, it is mainly "am I on the right track?". I feel a lot of this course is down to you and your interpretation and I worry about interpreting things all wrong which I think has been a common concern for others too.
I had a Skype session a while back and a fellow BAPPER was having the same problems as I with communication and being stuck at sea, so that was reassuring to know I wasn't on my own, but I still worry that I am falling behind a little bit because I am detached from my networks and sources. It is clear that this is a huge part of our course and I just hope I can struggle through. I am home in a month so then I can return from the dark ages.
I do find that sharing ideas gets the brain working. I have it all the time where I think one thing then somebody will make another valid point which then changes my thinking or even trigger something that opens up yet another idea. Sharing ideas is great because it allows them to grow bigger than they ever could keeping them to yourself. It is that whole thing about collective intelligence, sharing experiences and knowledge, for example I had an idea for a piece of choreography and then my colleague made a suggestion and it was a small tweek but it just made the whole thing better. When you share ideas they can snowball into something great.
I shared a YouTube video on my blog for one of the earlier tasks in the module and was extremely pleased to receive a comment from a fellow student telling me how it had helped her. I felt really satisfied that something I had found and shared had helped her. It is also important not to forget that someone else had put it out there and it helped me first. I wonder how many people that initial person who put it up has helped?
Critical Reflection
Like I have mentioned in previous blogs I have started a new job so this means at the beginning I had a lot to learn. Things went wrong, things went right but by employing the reflective practice theories I have managed to improve massively. There is still more room for improvement and with the aid of reflection I will get there. I am feeling much more confident in the new position now. I have also been made 1st in charge of a muster station should we ever be in an emergency situation. It is a lot of responsibility hence why I had to do the crisis management and human behaviour training course I mentioned earlier.
Whilst studying reflection and trying to be critical I had a conversation with one of the nurses onboard about reflective practice and how she uses "Gibbs reflective cycle" because she finds it easy and helpful. All of the medics onboard use reflective practice so it is good to hear their ideas and strategies of putting it into practice.
Reflecting critically does help you realise what matters and what direction to take next. I am dealing with people a lot in this job. We have been on a cruise around America and we have come across a few obstacles, one being a fire onboard which resulted in us going to crew alert and I am the newly appointed 1st in charge of muster station B. I thought I would panic and be all over the place but I wasn't, I was focused, calm and ready to take charge, I was quite proud of myself afterwards. We have had a few other issues too which have frustrated the passengers, all unavoidable but one particular passenger was very rude to me, so during the conversation I critically analysed (in my head) what she was saying, the reasons behind it and then from other angles, it all ended amicably. I was pleased with the way I handled the situation and later reflected on it again to see if I could have handled it differently but using the methods I have learned I don't think I could have handled it much better.
After researching the different types of reflection, I find it comes down to the situation that you are in to which method you choose, there is no right and wrong way, it is personal and if it helps you to learn and improve then that is what matters.
Professional Networking
I think that we all use different aspects of each theory in professional networking. I would like to say my favoured one is affiliation but all depends on the situation, the relationship you have with a person and how useful they are to you. Unfortunately it would seem that you have to play "the game" to succeed and if you are not willing to play, life is going to be so much harder in achieving your goals. I dislike this idea of "playing the game" but it is so prominent in today's society, I wonder if it was like this 100 years ago, I'm imagining it was. I'm unsure to if it is instinctive human behaviour or learned behaviour?
This course has definitely got me thinking more critically and analysing things which is good, I am now questioning things a lot more and not just accepting theories. It has opened my mind to new things that have helped to achieve much more in my professional practice. I feel more confident and assertive which sometimes I struggled with before in certain situations.
