Journal #6 October 17, 2021
For this journal, we read the following chapter and answered a series of questions and assessments about the chapter. This chapter focused on influencing: power, politics, networking, and negotiation. There were three assessments to complete and a one-minute self sell.
The results from the “Use of Political Behavior ” assessment proved to show that my overall political behavior is in the exact middle of political and non-political. This makes sense because I do not feel as though I have either low or high levels of use when it comes to political behavior. The second half of the assessment was used to determine the use of my political behavior within four categories. It showed that when it comes to the use of “developing good working relationships and being a loyal, honest team player,” I have a higher average in than compared with “gaining recognition” which I averaged the lowest in. These make sense because I believe that having good working relationships is important because it allows for effective communication and collaboration. As for the recognition aspect, this also makes sense because I value the work and being able to complete the task compared with needing recognition. The results from the “Networking” assessment proved that I’m leaning towards ineffective networking skills. I am a full time student and have not been able to make many social work contacts, but hopefully I will be able to continue developing networking skills as I enter my senior field placement internship. Not surprising by these results because I have not really had the opportunity to go into the field or attend conferences. The results from the “Negotiating” assessment again were relatively low. It showed that I was closer to ineffective networking skills because I have not had a lot of practice in terms or negotiating.
Overall, I learned that I need a lot of practice in terms of gaining negotiating and networking skills. I have not had the opportunity to do either of these much because I have not experienced much of anything in the social work field. I would like to improve my skills more in the networking aspect because having those relationships and connections can give you more opportunities and advance my career just because they know who I am and what my experiences are.
My one-minute self-sell would be that I’m currently in my final year of undergraduate and obtaining my Bachelor’s degree. I have had the privilege to intern with Elk Hill Spring Garden’s girls group home and eventually CAVAHelps. Both agencies specialized in counseling to their clients facing difficult challenges and mental health issues. The career I’m seeking is in the mental health field. I want to go back to obtain my master’s degree and become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. The question would be “What does a typical day in your life look like when out in the field?”. This could be useful as I enter the social work field because it allows me to give my background and future career options quickly and effectively so that the listener does not become disengaged. Also, it gives just enough information for the listener to start the conversation and network quickly.