Personality And Professional Developmental Planning Education Essay

Personal and professional development planning is a consequence of successful structured and supported procedure undertaken by any single or group of single. It is their acquisition, experience, public presentation and their action program for the attainment of their personal, educational, societal development. Now it ‘s a common pattern by the authorities and organisations to develop and implement the personal development program for their employee and interest holders. Which in bend would be good for the organisation or authorities? The purpose behind the doctrine of personal development program is to construct upon the capacity of single or group how they are larning, reexamine it, program it and do rectification if required. The motivation behind the personality development program is to happen out the concealed unleash potency of any single or group. To promote the single towards the positive acquisition thought the life. Recognize and value yesteryear and present accomplishments. Identify movable accomplishments and personal competency Measure the failings & A ; strength in scope of competencies Form clear development aims Set up a development action program Roll up together grounds and information for a personal profile Collect grounds for a portfolio of accomplishment Clarify personal and professional ends There is a celebrated stating from George Elliot â€Å" It ‘s ne'er excessively late to be what you might hold been. † George Elliot. There is no terminal to stop procedure for personality development as per my position, although it ‘s a uninterrupted acquisition result which helps an single to execute better in his or her current work and duties. Develop accomplishments and competences ; recognize 1s possible and calling pick and personal development. The types of calling are available today for more complex and variable from the traditional calling watercourses. Possibly person needs to compose their ain calling enchiridion because regardless of the calling picks one should necessitate to take the calling for oneself by sing his/her strength and failing and their entire personality appraisal. I remember my female parent suggestion towards taking a occupation for me. Harmonizing to her the occupation I should take should be interesting to me it is of critical of import. I think most of the clip about this whenever I plan for my hereafter. Actually I had a desire to go a character like my male parent who has been a function theoretical account for me. He has run his ain successfully for a long clip. The ground behind this idea was really easy because my male parent is a successful man of affairs so he gave me everything whatever I demand, merely because of this I want to be become like him. However as I am turning up my idea is altering for certain still I want the occupation related to concern but now I made my vision narrow down and specifically that I will make concern related to manner industry. I have decided about my calling by giving a idea on my female parent words and uniting my involvements, gustatory sensation, strength and failing. To go a man of affairs is my d esire nevertheless I like manner and I want to be an built-in portion of my life. A station of manner trade name selling manager is good suited for me and it fulfills all my desire, I set it as my calling end for now and future. In the committedness towards making my end I need to strategically analyze myself have a clearly consciousness, subject and scheme. To do everything ordered and to be achieved an single personality program is really necessary.Personality Development Opportunities:To do any program executable the first pillar is self consciousness. It is really critical for the attainment of the coveted calling. I can specify my developmental schemes and subject merely after cognizing my strength and developmental country. However in instance of mine I am reasonably guaranting about my strength and developmental countries. My strengths are dutifulness, cautiousness and artistic involvement, but I need some betterment on the country of cooperation, activity degree and imaginat iveness. By cognizing my developmental country and focussing on those and capitalising on my strength I think I can better myself comprehensively. Some of the basic manner which found common in leaders and higher degree directors are: Integrity Cognition Communication Honest Decisive Role mold Duty Listening ExperienceAppraisal of Personality:Several Self- appraisal trials have perform to measure the personality. The web page www.queendom.com and www.prenhall.com has been used. Following are the result of the assorted activities performed for appraisal.Facts about the basic personalityThe personality of any persons is categorized fundamentally in five general classs. These five features are written below against each class my mark is mentioned. These characteristic make up human nature and behaviours Characteristic My Mark Extraversion 12 Agreeableness 13 Openness to see 7 emotional Stability 13 Conscientiousness 12 A mark between 12 to 15 suggest high grade of the characteristic, 7 to 11 is scored by mediocre individual while below 6 is comparatively low into that class. As per writer if person scores high Markss in the conscientiousness factor than it means the occupation public presentation of the person would be significantly impressive. The high mark on extraversion factor suggest that I do n't waver in sharing my position with other couples. A moderate mark on emotional stableness is good plenty. The low mark on openness to see suggest my involuntariness to the new things and experiments it may foretell that developing attempt on me could non be productive ( Formy-Duval et Al, 1995 and John, 1990 ) .My Jungian 16-type personality AssessmentWith the aid of these tools a personality can be assessed based on four wide classs. This test tells about the single whether one is S denote feeling or N denote intuitive, T denote believing or F denote feeling, E denote extroverted or I denote introverted, P denote comprehending or J denote judging. There are in entire 16 type of personality can be identified. My personality has been assessed as FESJ. It means I am extravert individual with holding good interpersonal accomplishments while judging the state of affairs and doing any reasonable move ( Marcic & A ; Nutt, 1989 ) .Appraisal of Core ValuesCore values are the set of dwelling ethical values which relates the civilization and orientation of any single or organisation. In the rating of my nucleus values I have narrowed down the 18 listed values. The top nucleus values of me are Integrity and Authenticity. The above top two nucleus values which I put on top most precedence have been mentioned. These are the values which are inbuilt in my nature and I pattern these into my twenty-four hours to twenty-four hours life. I anticipate that my leading manner would besides be derived from unity and genuineness ( www.ethicalleadership.org, 2009 ) .Attitudes toward workplace diversenessThe Exam attempts to happen the attitude of the testee towards the workplace kineticss. The trial taker could be classified as either pessimistic or optimistic non in isolation but on the footing of Markss scored by them in the test. The higher the mark the higher the optimistic position of the individual, the lower the mark the individual is more pessimistic. Mark varies from -35 to +35. I was able to hit good plenty in this test. I scored 22, which suggest that I am an optimistic individual and cognize how to work in diverse workplace ( Hostager & A ; demeuse, 2001 ) .Position on the Nature of peoplePhysiologist Mcgregor Douglas has proposed a theory on the behaviour and manner of employee. It is known as bureau theory or Ten and Y Factor theory. This theory says there are two type of people in the universe one lazy and disinterested in work they need a supervisor to reexamine their work ( Type X ) on the other manus there are people those are responsible and go getter they merely need the undertaking ( Type Y ) ( Haire et al, 1966 ) . Type Y people are reasonable and hardworking they merely need the way remainder they will make themselves they do n't wish to be monitored and supervised. The hiting form of campaigners in this theory varies from 8 to 40. A higher mark suggest the disposition of the trial taker towards the x type people. A mark less than 16 suggest the individual belong to y class. I scored 18 in this trial which suggest I flexible in my perceptual experiences and good balanced between the bossy and team playing activities.Emotional intelligenceEmotion intelligence is every bit of import for any single as it has been found most of the leaders lead their follower by their emotional intelligence. They understand the sentiment of the other individual and so answer consequently. It is one of the greatest humanistic disciplines which is inherently born quality though there are treatment that it can be learnt besides. Emotional intelligence ( EI ) can be defined as the mixture of the Competencies and the accomplishments that have shown to act upon the character ability to win over the environmental demand and force per unit area. Peoples those are on higher side of emotional intelligence have the ability to accurately justice, evaluate, express and modulate the emotion and feeling of others every bit good as theirs ( Goleman, 1995 ) . The test fundamentally tests the five dimensions of the testee which step how much a peculiar individual is self managed socially horned, empathic, self motivated and self cognizant. The tonss vary from 10 to 50. Higher tonss suggest with high EI. Most of the leaders Like Abraham Lincoln, Barak Obama, Aristotle are high on their Emotional intelligence. I score 41 in this test. A higher emotional intelligence predicts that in future I could be successful in managerial and leading places. I am possessing the proficient and interpersonal abilities ( Goleman, 1995 ) .Developmental Aim:Short-run Developmental Objective ( 1-6 Month ) :In Order to accomplish my coveted end of the life ab initio I build upon cognition. I will analyze every bit much as I can. I will make good in my category to construct my foundation strong. I will read as much book as I can so that I will distribute my thought procedure and heighten my believing sphere. I besides need to fall in assorted carbon monoxides cur ricular activities to better on my concerted accomplishments. Last but non the least I will seek to understand the planetary cultural so that I will be able to pull off and understand planetary civilization while working.Average Term Developmental Objective ( 6-12 Month ) :As shortly I finish the short term development aim I need to work on my preparation degree. Now I need to larn how I can better my personality non merely by reading books but besides from the society. I need to pay attending every small thing in society occurrence. I need to believe about other s I need to complete my prep and other things every bit shortly as possible. I besides need to collaborate with nine to heighten my cooperation degree and increase my activity degree. Finding a occupation in the campus could be a good move. In summer holiday my program is to fall in wood coal picture and dance categories so that I can construct more solid foundation for a calling in manner designing.Long Term Developmental Path Goal ( 1 – 3 Old ages ) :This is period where greatest stress must be given towards an single betterment. Till now I have gathered the cognition from the books. Now it is clip to analyze how the selling and fiscal portion plays into the concern. How the theories learned from book applies into the existent concern scenario. How can I turn the cognition into the action with accomplishments and easiness would be the chief intent for my betterment in these three old ages of my developmental planning. Although I need to absorb the other classmate sentiment about me what are alterations they observed within me. I need to larn from the experience of my instructors.Decision:In decision, in order to accomplish every end in my life, making an single personal development program is really of import. It non merely can assist me to cognize my existent place specifically but besides can allow me believe and make every action logically and orderly. Bing a selling manager in an internat ional manner corporation is non that easy. However, I ‘m certain I can accomplish my end by following my plan measure by measure. Because of my involvements, difficult work and continuity, I believe there is one twenty-four hours I will hold a large calling in the manner country.

Friendship: Interpersonal Relationship and Friendships

Friends and Friendships in Emerging Adulthood Carolyn Manager Barry* Loyola University Maryland Stephanie D. Madsen McDaniel College â€Å"I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour. â€Å"l These lyrics began each episode of the popular sitcom Friends. The trials and tribulations of these six â€Å"20-something† friends captivated the American public for a decade until Ross, Monica, Joey, Phoebe, Chandler, and Rachel eventually transitioned to adulthood at the shows closure.Perhaps the shows popularity was due to having some truth in the fiction: (a) friends can be a proxy family for young people, offering invaluable advice, support, and musicianship; (b) friends can be of the same or opposite sex, but these two types of friendship work differently; (c) friends may engage in casual sex, but may also become involved romantically; (d) friendships are central to the lives of emerging adults, especially those who are single and not in a serious romantic relationship; a nd (e) friends help people to figure themselves out and influence their behavior, potentially for both good and bad.As is the case with all TV shows, there is also pure fiction in this sitcom: these six friends lived in the same apartments in the same city ND often held down the same Job for over a decade. Instead, instability is more the norm among realize emerging adults. Also, most American young people get married and become parent's in their late ass rather than the ass (as the sitcom depicted). So while close friendships are critical to emerging adults' happiness, search for their identities, and true loves, friends become less important once they've figured out the big questions of life and â€Å"settle down† in marriage, parenthood, and careers.Still, for emerging adults, friends can fill the growing gap between the time when they leave he families they grew * Carolyn Manager Barry is an associate professor of psychology at Loyola University Maryland. Stephanie Madsen is an associate professor of psychology at McDaniel College. 2 Changing Spirituality of Emerging Adults up in and when they establish families of their own. Can Men and Women Be Friends? With persons of the same or opposite sex. Children need same-sex friendships in order to develop into socially skilled, moral, and empathetic adults.From the teen years on, it is common to make friends with both sexes, and these friendships can be f good quality, as seen in Rachel and Joeys friendship?they regularly shared problems, offered support, and simply enjoyed each other's company. Still, people most prefer same-sex friendships throughout their lives, and it is less common for men and women to be friends beyond college or after one friend marries. Friendships between men and women differ in some ways from those between people of the same sex. Men's friendships with women are more emotionally intimate than their friendships with men.And heterosexual men often seek friendships with women to w hom they are sexually attracted. Not surprisingly then, approximately Alfa of opposite-sex friends in college report that they have engaged in sexual behavior, which has the potential to hurt the relationship. However, many college students believe that sex enhances a friendship's quality and helps them to consider whether they want to remain â€Å"Just friends† or move on to something more. What Are Friendships Like? There appears to be some truth to the old adage â€Å"birds of a feather flock together. Certainly we saw this portrayed in the six characters on Friends. All shared the same ethnicity (European American), enjoyed the same activities (sipping coffee at Central Perk), and had similar levels of social skills (though Joey seemed more adept at getting dates than Ross or Chandler). Such similarities offer a common ground that strengthens friendships and helps them to endure. Women's friendships are often communal?offering companionship, intimacy, emotional security, and affection. Friends Rachel and Monica supported each other with late-night chats.Men's friendships emphasize competition and are more gigantic? providing help, a reliable alliance, and self-validation. Friends Joey and Chandler 3 competed in videotapes from matching recliners. Still, men and women value friendships with all of these features (perhaps placing greater importance on the communal). From the teen years on, intimacy becomes the hallmark of friendships and is related to how close we feel toward our friends. Emerging adults' friendships are even more emotionally intimate than their friendships of Just a few years earlier. Relationship quality depends not only on what you give friends, but also what you get.In addition to the healthy dimensions we described above, friendships can also have negative aspects, such as frequent conflict, power inequities, and antagonism. Women's friendships, in particular, can fall prey to co-rumination, where women obsess over problems in t heir lives in conversations with friends instead of taking fruitful action. In one episode of Friends, Chandler sought support from the girls following a break-up; they urged him to talk about his feelings (adding, â€Å"if you want to lead to depression. Thankfully, positive friendship qualities can help buffer negative ones.Friends focused on one particular cultural and ethnic group. Likewise, current research on emerging-adult friendships largely ignores cultural influences on friendships, though important differences exist. For example, different ethnic groups seek different friendship qualities. Asian Americans emphasize an amicable exchange of ideas, African Americans seek acceptance and respect, Latino Americans highlight the importance of relational support, and European Americans focus on meeting individual needs of each friend. How Do Friendships Change across Emerging Adulthood?Given the many transitions that emerging adults face, it is not surprising that their friendsh ips change as well. Transformations in friendships and friendship networks relate to life stage rather than age. So knowing that a person is 20 versus 26 does not ell us much about their friendships. Instead, knowing whether they are romantically involved or have children is much more informative than age alone. Friends are frequent companions, getting together at least once a week for no specific purpose (for example, gathering at Central Perk Just to talk) and less frequently 4 for events such as movies, parties, and concerts.Friends find less time to get together as they progress toward adulthood. Despite these overall changes in approaches to friendship networks, emerging adults keep their individual patterns of interacting with friends. So a very social or very shy teen will adopt the same approach to friendship networks as an emerging adult. The small friendship network on Friends remained stable over 10 years?not at all typical of most emerging adults' networks. Instead, emer ging adults become increasingly flexible in whom they include in friendship networks and how they maintain these networks.They grow more accepting of opposite-sex friendships, even keeping former boyfriends or girlfriends on as friends. European American emerging adults' friendship networks become more diverse (especially if they are exposed to more diverse social networks through allege or work), but the networks of African American, Latino American, and Asian American emerging adults become less diverse (especially if they invest in activities and groups linked to their ethnicity). Relative to the rest of the lifespan, friendship networks are the largest during early emerging adulthood and get smaller later on in emerging adulthood.Although women have more close friends than do men on average, men's and women's friendship networks are of equal size. Still, the friendship network on Friends did illustrate the density that is typical of emerging adults' friends. It is common for man y network members to share common links (working at the same place, living in the same building) or even to be friends with each other. People tend to form relationships with others in their same social situation. True to life, the characters in Friends shared roughly the same place in life when their group formed.They were single, had no or few childcare responsibilities, and were still searching for meaningful careers. More on the side of fiction, the friendship network of these television friends did not change in response to their own life changes, as is happily. Friends seldom featured the workplace, but many emerging adults find friends there as they explore career pathways and settle into adult work roles. Career stage influences the lives of single emerging-adult men, especially.These men often have large 5 friendship networks preparer, but have few friends who provide emotional or instrumental support; the time constraints inherent in beginning a career bring friendship net works down to a more manageable size. Career transitions don't seem to alter single women's friendship networks in the same way?women maintain ironsides networks during their careers that are similar in size to those they had while in their late teens and early ass. The characters on Friends had many romantic involvements, and whether emerging adults are single, dating, or married affects friendship networks.Single and dating people are strongly attached to friends, naming friends as their top companions and confidants. In contrast, romantically involved emerging adults change the time they spend with friends. Early in their relationships, emerging-adult couples spend more time with friends to introduce them to their new romantic interest. But as the relationship gets serious, the couple withdraws from the circle of friends. This was shown in the final season of Friends. By then Monica and Chandler had hooked up, fallen in love, and gotten married.When the group of friends gathered to celebrate Earache's daughter's first birthday, Monica and Chandler instead opted to sneak away for a romantic weekend alone. Typically, withdrawal is selective, with couples spending less time with peripheral friends and more time with friends who support their relationship. A few Friends characters became parent's, an event that typically happens at the end of?or even after?emerging adulthood. Although their tight friendship network remained stable, parenthood normally reorganizes friendship networks.New parent's report fewer friends following the birth of a child, and fathers, especially, report less satisfying and supportive friendships than they experienced beforehand. Family members generally do not try (and in truth feel that they should not try) to influence who emerging adults' friends are or what they do with these friends. And friendships don't often influence family relationships. Instead, some emerging adults view their friends as â€Å"being† family. Sexual-mi nority emerging adults whose families reject them sometimes adopt a family of choice from a network of supportive friends.Other emerging adults do this too, as shown when Friends characters spent Thanksgiving together instead of Joining their families. Likewise, it is common to hear emerging 6 emerging adults sometimes consider family members (especially siblings or cousins) to be friends. For example, Ross and Monica were siblings who offered each other companionship and emotional intimacy. Finding close ties among family members provides a ready source of support, but being more involved with peers helps merging adults weather some transitions better (for example, moving away from home).Friends and friendship networks also influence romantic relationships. For example, emerging adults often find new romantic partners within their existing friendship networks. This meaner that the diversity found within an emerging adult's friendship network influences the likelihood that he or she will date someone of a different race. Friends complain loudly when too much time is spent with a romantic partner (but they are likely to support the romantic relationship if they know the boyfriend or girlfriend well).Friends' support (or lack of support) for a romantic relationship affects the couple's level of commitment to the relationship. Perhaps knowing this, emerging adults are sometimes selective about the friends to whom they introduce a new romantic partner. Friends can influence break-ups, but they do so infrequently. Couples don't stay together for the sake of their friends, even though there can be a high cost to breaking up with a romantic partner when they share the same friends. For example, throughout the series, Ross and Rachel had an on-again, off-again relationship.Each time they broke up, it disrupted their friendship network. Why Do Friendships Matter to Emerging Adults? From toddlers to old age, we have friends. But why are they so important in the lives of emerging adults? First, friends support emerging adults' identity development. Friendships provide feelings of worth as well as opportunities for story telling and frank discussions about religion, life aspirations, moral dilemmas, and relationships. Certainly, friends' banter at Central Perk not only rehashed the weeks events, but also tried to make sense of the world around them.The intimacy forged wrought these heartfelt discussions not only helps with finding oneself, but also nurtures close friendships. Second, friendships contribute to how emerging adults feel about themselves; feeling good (or bad) about your friendships coincides with feeling good (or bad) about 7 yourself. Emerging adults who rarely spend time with their friends are lonely. But spending time with friends who validate their feelings brings happiness (perhaps this explains why Joey was perpetually happy, despite not having much success as a which are useful during the many?and at times anxiety-inducing?trans itions that merging adults face.Third, friendships support emerging adults' understandings of how relationships work, and, in fact, many discussions center on these ties. Friendships provide occasions to see things from someone else's point of view. This, in turn, helps emerging adults to think through issues more critically and carefully. Fourth, friendships offer companionship?both in person and from afar?during what can be a lonely time. Over the past decade, emerging adults have increasingly relied upon cell phones, testing, instant messaging, and social networking sites like Faceable to communicate with friends.Online friendships can be good ones, especially when they last long enough to develop into emotionally close and supportive relationships that supplement existing friendships. On the other hand, having 800 â€Å"online friends† is not equivalent to having friends you see regularly. In the coming years, maybe we'll know what benefits online-only friendships serve a nd when it is that technologies improve?rather than undermine?friendships. For now it is safe to say that most emerging adults use technology to enhance existing friendships rather than to replace them.Lastly, friendships involve intimacy and interdependence, and the development of these skills supports ongoing and future romantic relationships. Same-sex friends regularly discuss their romantic relationships?especially problems. Given that men find the most intimacy in their friendships with women, these friendships probably help them to develop emotional intimacy skills they'll need for other close relationships. Can Birds of a Feather Shape a Flock? Emerging adults report that friends affect their major life decisions.In fact, friends' behaviors affect emerging adults' positive outcomes, including church attendance. Friends' behaviors also influence more negative outcomes (e. . , those with aggressive 8 friends are more likely to abuse their romantic partners). Besides friends' be havior, the quality of the friendship matters, with â€Å"better† friendships promoting positive adjustment and reducing problem behaviors. We don't yet know whether these effects are due to choosing a bird with similar feathers or birds shaping each other's behavior? likely it is a bit of both. What Does Friends Teach Us about Friends?Friends went off the air in 2005, but through DVD releases and syndication it continues to illustrate core concepts about emerging-adult friendships today. This show offers key implications for practitioners working with actual 20-something friends. 1 . Friendships are important in emerging adulthood, but their importance changes as romantic relationships become more salient and stable. Amid emerging- adults' numerous transitions, practitioners should ask troubled young people about and (mostly) platonic opposite-sex friendships, in reality these are less common than same-sex ones.As seen in Ross and Earache's relationship, the line between a f riend and a romantic/sexual partner is often fuzzy, creating feelings of anticipation and disappointment. Practitioners should be careful not to assume that opposite-sex friendships among heterosexuals are platonic or romantic. 3. Practitioners should strive to create environments that support friendships with diverse peoples. For many young people, moving out on their own provides their first exposure to individuals with substantially different backgrounds and ideas from their own. Interactions with these individuals can support growing maturity. . Friends are influential for better and for worse. Helping emerging adults form friendships with people who show positive behaviors (e. G. Ammonia's career success) will, in turn, promote successful development. Likewise, emerging adults whose friends are making poor life decisions may find it helpful to distance themselves from these friends and align themselves with other friends who are making better decisions. 9 5. Friendships are par ticularly important for marginalia peoples (ethnic or sexual minorities), and efforts to form friendships with allies and similar others will serve these young people well.For some, friendship and family networks overlap. Friends may be close enough to be considered â€Å"family'; likewise, some emerging adults insider family members to fulfill friendship needs as well, as Monica and Ross clearly did. 6. Although Friends' characters were limited to cell phone use, modern- day emerging adults are as'. N. Y with technologies such as testing and social networking sites to support existing friendships rather than supplant them. This appears to be a positive dimension of friendships that makes sense given that they are always on the move.But practitioners should encourage face-to-face interactions, particularly for very personal and life-transforming discussions?not all of life's battles can be won or lost via Faceable. . Emerging adults weather transitions best when they maintain exist ing friendships but are open to forming new friendships. For example, upon moving to the city, Rachel rekindled her old friendship with Monica but established new friendships with the other four. This may be challenging for some emerging adults who prefer to stick close to family, but making friends in new settings benefits them in the long run.Throughout our whole lives?but especially in emerging adulthood, it seems?we need friends who will â€Å"be there† for Notes The Rembrandt (1995), â€Å"I'll Be There for You,† Atlantic Records. Episode 14; â€Å"The One with the Cake,† season 10, episode 4; â€Å"The One with All the Thanksgivings,† season 5, episode 8; â€Å"The Pilot† (â€Å"The One Where Monica Gets a Roommate†), season 1, episode 1 . 10 Annotated Bibliography Fall, W. A. , and Faulkner, S. L. (2000). On being â€Å"Just friends†: The frequency and impact of sexual activity in cross-sex friendships. Journal of Social and Pe rsonal Relationships, 17, 205-222.Can women and men be â€Å"Just friends†? These authors sampled American university students and found that some emerging adults can have platonic friendships with the opposite sex. However, approximately half of heterosexual college students have had sex with opposite-sex friends. Among those who added â€Å"benefits† to their friendships, some did so frequently and others only every few years. The overwhelming majority of these friends were single when sexual encounters occurred, but a third of these friendships included at least one romantically involved friend.Having sex with a friend was relationship-enhancing in some cases and quite damaging in others. Allan, G. (2008). Flexibility, friendship, and family. Personal Relationships, 15, 1-16. In a comprehensive and current overview of reindeer's (including friendships in emerging adulthood), this author highlights instances where friendship and family overlap, support each other, an d are in conflict with each other. A sociologist, Dry. Allan especially focuses on societal changes over the past 40 years that have allowed people to enjoy greater freedom and flexibility in forming their own personal relationships.He reflects on suffusion in relationships (the merging family and friend relationships) but emphasizes that people have distinct understanding of these two types of relationships. Bagel, C. L. , Bender, S. E. Andresen's, C. L. , Kinshasa, T. L. , Monticello, S. A. , and Mueller, J. G. (2005). Friendship quality and perceived relationship changes predict psychosocial adjustment in early adulthood. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22, 235- 254. 11 It seems that although friends agree about the quality of their relationship, each person has a slightly different view of the relationship.When friends disagreed about their relationship, they felt less satisfied about the friendship and were more hostile. So while having friendships with positive d imensions is important, noting the extent f negative dimensions in the relationship matters as well, particularly as it can shape an individual's well-being. Barry, C. M. , Madsen, S. D. , Nelson, L. J. , Carroll,J. S. , adulthood: Differential associations with identity development and achieved adulthood criteria. Journal of Adult Development, 16, 209-222. How do friendships change as emerging adults move toward adulthood?In a study of over 700 emerging adults, these authors found that people who were more â€Å"adulteries† actually had poorer quality friendships than did those who had not yet made adult commitments. In contrast, adulteries emerging adults had better romantic relationships. It seems that some of the steps toward becoming an adult (settling into a career, avoiding risky behavior, etc. ) might happen because of romantic partners more than because of friends. Boost, K. K. , Cox, M. J. , Brunching, M. R. , and Payne, C. (2002).Structural and supportive changes i n couples' family and friendship networks across the transition to parenthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64, 517-531. Having a baby changes everything?including friendship networks. These authors followed 137 couples from he time they were expecting to their children's second birthdays. Close friendships were especially important to new mothers over this time period, while their husbands' friendship networks declined and became less satisfying. For all parent's, having close friendships protected against feelings of depression during this transition.Crabber, J. , and Burgomaster, D. (1998). Friendship and need fulfillment during three phases of young adulthood. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15, 393-409. 12 Changing Spirituality of Emerging Adults These scholars examined how friendship lays out in different phases of emerging adulthood defined by family roles rather than by age: the single phase, the meritorious-children phase, and the parenthood phase. Emerging adults rely on friends to meet social needs the most during the single phase, slowing down their reliance as they move to the married and parenthood phases.Women call on friends for emotional support more than men do across all three phases. Deck', E. L. , Laggardly, J. G. , Miller, A. C. , schemer, M. J. , and Ryan, R. M. (2006). On the benefits of giving as well as receiving autonomy support: Mutuality in close friendships. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 313-327. Is it better to give than to receive support? The originators of Self-Determination Theory (Decide and Ryan, 2000) showed that receiving support from authority figures makes a big difference in people's motivation and satisfaction.This study extends their findings to friendships, where each partner is equal in terms of their authority. Indeed, people benefit by giving and receiving autonomy support to/from their friends, but it is the giving of such support to a close friend that matters more to a person 's well-being. Admire, M. , Oxidize, M. , and Whitecap, L. A. (2007). Looking to happy tomorrows with friends: Best and close friendships as they predict happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies, 8, 243-271. While friendship and happiness seem like a natural fit, the story is more complicated.Do all friends make people happy? The scholars find that spending time with a best friend makes people happy, especially when they also spend time with a person's happiness. Female, D. H. (2001). No couple is an island: A social network perspective on dyadic stability. Social Forces, 79, 1259-1287. How do friends affect emerging adults' romantic relationships? Interestingly, this study finds that thinking hat friends support a romantic relationship matters more 13 than how much they actually support it.These perceptions of support from friends lead to more stable relationships, but at the same time, having a really close best friendship makes it less likely that a romantic relationship will endu re (perhaps because the friendship competes with the romantic partnership for one's time). It seems that friendships can have both positive and negative effects on emerging adults' romantic relationships. Grief, G. L. (2009). Buddy system: Understanding male friendships. New York: Oxford University Press. Considerable emphasis has been given to women's friendships with their hallmark high levels of emotional intimacy.The author levels the playing field in this book by summarizing extensive interviews with 400 men to describe what makes their friendships tick, affirming the importance of friendships for the well-being of men and communities. Additional interviews with women allow for appropriate contrast between the two genders. The author presents a typology of different kinds of male friendships: must (friends with whom it is critical to share important news), trust (highly liked friends, but not as useful as a must reined), Just (acquaintances who are companions), and rust friends (long-time friends).Lastly, characteristics of male friendships from early to late adulthood are described and interwoven with meaningful life events that shape these close relationships. Hearth, W. W. , and Stevens, N. (1997). Friendships and adaptation in the life course. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 355-370. These scholars show that friendships add considerable value throughout the lifespan. People's expectations and descriptions of their friends change throughout life, which makes sense given that people's thinking becomes more sophisticated. Regardless of these changes, people of all ages agree that friendships should involve both give and take.How friends engage with one another does change with age and situation. While having friends generally is a good thing for people, it depends upon the identity of friends and the quality of these relationships. 14 Letterer, A. M. , Griffin, E. M. , and Sparks, G. G. (2007). Forecasting â€Å"friends forever†: A longitudinal inves tigation of sustained closeness between best friends. Personal Relationships, 14, 343-350. Following a cohort of university students from 1983 until 2002, these scholars examine which college friendship characteristics matter in

Progressive Discipline †Employee/Labor Relations Essay

Discipline within the workplace is and has been a controversial subject. With so much at stake, employers and employees have different opinions on types of discipline and the effectiveness of these processes. One largely debated form of workplace discipline is progressive discipline. Should employees be encouraged to rehabilitate in the workplace? Should management be protected against legal action if they are to terminate an employee for unacceptable performance or behavior? There are many different situation and answers to these questions. Progressive discipline has become standard in unionized environments, and is becoming more common in other settings, such as government, hospitals, and high-school classrooms. ((Pinker, S, 2010) Progressive discipline is practice of establishing a series of steps of escalating seriousness and cumulating in the major (termination). (Dad, D., 2011) Within these boundaries lie other steps that are used with progressive discipline. These steps usuall y include a verbal warning, a written warning with increasing punishment, and a suspension-most likely without pay. The idea of this type of discipline is to give the employee ample opportunity to turn problems around. (Dad, D. 2011) Discipline within the workplace can take place for a number of reasons, and there are times where discipline is appropriate and inappropriate for certain wrongdoing. Infractions of company policy, tardiness, misbehavior, and other misdemeanors are examples of where the use of progressive discipline can be justified. There also may be instances where discipline is not appropriate; arbitrators have drawn a distinction between voluntary and involuntary unacceptable behavior on part of the employee. (Eden, G., 1992) If an employee’s infraction is due to a lack of their personal skills or knowledge, other forms of discipline can be recommended. Also, if the behavior is so serious that it is grounds for immediate dismissal, progressive discipline may not be required. A progressive disciplinary approach combines the concept of stiffer penalties for more serious violations with that of increasingly more serious penalties for recidivism. (Billikopf, G., 2006) When applying a progressive disciplinary approach, there are rules that should be followed to be sure the steps are applied and the treatment is fair. The first thing a manager should consider is that communication is key. There needs to be sure that there is certain understanding between the person applying the rules and the person who is subject to them. The manager should explain the infraction and follow it with a clear statement of the expected behavior. Also, there should be justification of what the next step in the process will be as far as discipline if the violation is repeated. Managers can use the seven steps of just cause to be sure a proposed disciplinary action if firmly and fairly grounded. (Seven Steps of Just Cause, 2007) The University of Iowa lists these steps as: Notice, Re asonable Rules and Orders, Investigation, Fair Investigation, Proof, Equal Treatment, and Penalty. An employee must be able to easily access the rules and regulation of conduct that is expected of them and they should also be periodically reminded of them. Sometimes, this can result in a need for re-orientation, sign copies of receipts of the Employee Handbook, and/or coaching from management. Training is a better approach than taking punitive steps. One reason is that Courts expect employers to â€Å"meet people halfway†. Offering employees ways to improve via training not only helps them to correct the problem, but it also shows that the company is a responsible employer that is willing to rehabilitate. (Falcone, P., 2000) Notice is the first and one of the most important steps of progressive discipline. If an employee is not clear on what is expected, how can they be required to produce the optimal results? Management will need to be certain that they are applying reasonable rules and orders. They should check with the collective bargaining units to make sure they are not in violation of any agreements. Also, they want to make sure they apply these rules consistently and make sure they are related to the necessity of the business. (The Seven Steps of Just Cause, 2007) When a manager deems that a behavior in unacceptable or inappropriate, they should conduct an investigation. This can give the manager time to express their concerns and also give the employee time to respond. Sometimes, an employee may not be aware that their behavior is unacceptable or their performance is not meeting expectations. The investigation can ease the process. It gives the manager time to explain the concerns and give the employee a specific time frame to deliver results. Having an unbiased investigation can sometimes correct an issue before other or any disciplinary actions are needed. Once the employee is aware of the undesirable behavior, the manager can then start to consider all evidence, p ro and con, and continue to conduct a thorough investigation. Investigations should be timely and occur before discipline is imposed. (Seven Steps, 2007) Also, an employee has a right to have union representation or to have another employee present during the investigation. The manager needs to be sure that they make the employee aware of this. In the United States, such an opportunity to request the presence of a co-worker is based on the Weingarten case. The National Labor Relation Board (NLRB) has determined that an employee’s request for a co-worker to be present involves protected concerted activity, and thus should be extended to all employees, even those not covered by a collective bargaining unit. (Billikopf, G., 2006) When disciplinary action is to be imposed on an employee, there needs to be substantial proof that a violation was committed; the more serious the infraction, the larger the burden of proof. When an employee is accused of improper behavior that could lead to dismissal, embarrassment, or criminal prosecution, a fals e accusation could put the manager in a bad position. If someone will be disciplined or terminated for dishonesty, theft, sexual harassment, assault, threats of violence, or working under the conditions of drugs or alcohol, management needs to be certain of the employees’ guilt. (Billikopf, G., 2006) The company and manager need to be aware of the policies and be sure that they are exercising equal treatment of employees when applying progressive discipline. The rules need to be applied even-handedly, justly, and without discrimination. (Seven Steps, 2007) Although there are not many instances where the violations of one employee are identical to another’s, management must take into consideration the severity of the infraction, the previous history of the employee, the employees’ attitude, and the mitigating circumstances. (Billikopf, G., 2006) Sometimes managers can find it easier to apply rules evenly if they discuss the instances with each other. Privacy should remain a main concern when discussing and manager sh ould use concealment and modification when communicating about employees. The last of the seven steps of just cause is the application of penalty. Penalties must remain fair, not arbitrary or capricious or based on emotion. (Seven Steps, 2007) When deciding on a penalty to implement, there should be a few factors taken into consideration. The use of progressive discipline includes the increased severity of recurring actions, so the prior use of this type of discipline on the employee should play a large factor in how a penalty is applied. The person applying the rules should be aware of the employee’s length of service and prior infractions and factor those into their considerations. A study done by Janice Beyer of State University of New York at Buffalo and Harrison Trice of Cornell University stated: Data from two samples of supervisors in a large corporation show that (1) supervisors used discipline primarily as a response to certain behaviors and when the work context was supportive of its use; and (2) use of discipline had small but significant effects on the subsequent work performance of target employees. The study took into account different dependant and independent variables such as employee age, characteristics, social settings, supervisor age, education, and ideologies. The results showed that most supervisors in the samples used some form of discipline to deal with employees they considered difficult. Over 95 percent had at least one informal discussion with the problem employees. The great majority-76 percent- used both constructive and confrontive topics in these discussions. (Beyer, J. M., & Trice, H. M., 1984) Written warnings were used in 49 percent of cases. Even suspensions without pay were used quite frequently; 27 percent of these problem employees had been suspended, for an average of about 4 days. Discharge was used with only 3 percent of the cases, but another 7 percent of these employees left the company. Clearly, despite the strong international unions that represented most of these employees in these companies, it is possible to get rid of some disruptive employees. (Beyer, J. M., & Trice, H. M., 1984) WORKS CITED Anonymous. (2005, May 11). WRONGFUL DISMISSAL: Progressive discipline needed to terminate for cumulative misconduct. Canadian Employment Law Today, (437), 3421-3424. Retrieved from ProQuest database. (212227123) Bank’s Failure to Follow Progressive Discipline Justified in Light of Clear Policy; No Disparate Treatment. (2007, June 1). Fair Employment Practice Guidelines, (625), 4-5. Retrieved from Business Source Complete database. (25537303) Beyer, J. M., & Trice, H. M. (1984, December). A Field Study of the Use and Perceived Effects of Discipline in Controlling Work Performance. The Academy of Management Journal, 27(4), 743-764. Retrieved from http://links.jstor.org/sici=0001-4273%28198412%2727%3A4%3C743%3AAFSOTU%E2.0.CO%3B2-R Billikopf, G. (2006, August 11). Discipline and Termination: Labor Management in Ag. Dad, D. (2011, March 16). Progressive Discipline and the tenure clock. Eden, G. (1992). An Oxymoron? Les Presses de l’Universite Laval, 47(3), 511-524. Falcone, Paul. (2000) A blueprint for progressive discipline and terminations. HR Focus. 77(8), 3. Paul Berube v. Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, Inc., No. 08-1229-cv (2d Cir. Oct. 15, 2009), http://www.legale.com. Pinker, S. (2010, February 27). The Great Discipline Dilemma. The Globe and Mail, p. b.17. Retrieved from ProQuest database. (382583397) Progressive Discipline Steps. (2007, August 9). Employee and Labor Relations. Retrieved from Office of the Vice President for Research website: http://www.uiowa.edu The Seven Steps of Just Cause. (2007, February 28). Employee and Labor Relations. Retrieved from Office of the Vice President for Research website: http://www.uiowa.edu Wright, T. (2006, January 23). Fired Worker can sue employer for not following discipline policy. Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.

Finance - Assurance and Audit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Finance - Assurance and Audit - Essay Example Internal audit function Fight (2002, p. 27) asserts that internal auditing serves the basic purpose of protecting the shareholders. Its role revolves around operational efficacy, financial reporting reliability, investigation and deterrence of fraud, asset safeguarding as well as ensuring compliance with the laws and regulations. Technically, internal auditors have a vital role in protection of the firm assets and their entire activities sum up to asset protection, which is also protection of the shareholders. According to Vinten (2004, p. 13), prevention of fraud revolves around monitoring of the financial procedures, including records and asset verification. Managers and other stakeholders commonly misappropriate these areas. A shareholder is an individual, an institution or a corporate with shares in a firm and has rights to the firm assets in case of liquidation. In essence, they own the company stock and have the right to protection from fraud and misappropriation. Internal audi tors have to protect the shareholders from financial loss resulting from fraudulent activities, obliteration of vital financial records, and concession of valuable, confidential information to unauthorized people, disruptive loss of business opportunities, unauthorized use of firm resources and confidence and customer relationship loss. Within a firm, it is easy to control most of the consequences by the appropriate application of internal control measures, including proper auditing procedures. Audit failure has brought questions about independent audit, yet it is necessary to note that auditing plays a significant role in the functioning of financial systems in any firm. It values the roles that financial reporters in firms play. However, the relevance of independent auditing is only visible when there is no fraud and absence of business failures after completion of auditing. This raises the questions regarding the need for independent auditors and one has to recognize the fact tha t a wide majority of audits stand the test of time when considering allegations of audit failures (Vinten, 2004, p. 45). There is normally an expectation that external auditors detect financial statement fraud and illegal acts by employees, which affect the financial reports integrity. The big concern is normally on misstatements in internally audited financial statements External auditors prepare reports regarding internal control over financial reporting. In the report, they outline the appropriateness of the management’s assessment of the internal controls and whether the company has maintained efficiency in control of internal financial reporting. Internal auditing carries out the initial auditing and prepares the financial reporting statements. In general, external auditors assess the effectiveness of the internal control over financial reporting, the design and operation of internal control over financial reporting basing on criteria of control, and finally, it ensures fairness in presentation of financial statements which conform with the generally acceptable accounting principles. Auditors have to keep improving their performance in protecting the shareholders, through the provision of accurate and adequate financial statements as well use of new technology in the audit process. This is essential for proper implementation of qualitative audits contributing to reliability of timely and useful financial information. They should be prepared to

How convincing is Porters model of national competitive advantage in Essay - 15

How convincing is Porters model of national competitive advantage in explaining the characteristics and performance of the business systems of major economies - Essay Example For this reason, the model suggests that the nationhood of a homemade industry has a significant role in making the business venture achieve its advantage globally. The value of the nationhood to the industry is responsible for the development of the primary factors that enhances the support for the organizations in achieving the advantages available in the global completion (Pejko, 2014). Porter noted that there are four determinants of reaching the national competitive advantage. The four determinants, however, operate under the influence of the country of operation added with the competitive strengths of the firms. In this instance, Porter presents an argument that states that the competitive industries may take the form of unique clusters of the nation based firms (Rowe, 2009). Clusters have some correlations with the customers, technology, skills, the distribution channels and many more. The availability of these clusters will make the nations come up with business systems that also will lead to the competitive advantage and the realization of the economic success as a whole. An example, in this case, is the Japans automobile industry and the US semiconductor industry. The two industries have the linkage to the Porters diamond model in their operation that in this instance assists them in the creation of the unique business systems and the competitive advantages over other industries. Factor condition defines a nation’s position on the factors of production that is useful for competition through a given field of industry of operation such as the case of the skilled labour or infrastructure. Consequentially, the national factors enhance the provision of the pre advantages for the nation. As a result, each nation has a certain factor condition that, in this case, makes it favourable for the growth and the development of business systems and industries (Tallman, 2009). For instance,

Tim Hortons Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Tim Hortons - Assignment Example Training needs are assessed through group interactions and observations by the human resource departments. The methods and techniques of training must be scientifically objective. This requires appropriately scaling the individual employee's performance through scores such as "needs improving, good, and excellent" (Chapman, Alan; 2009). Teams work best when they are given specific projects to work on. The selection and structure of teams depend on the size of the project and number of qualified personnel required in each team. They are trained on the basis of the job requirements and they are appraised through tests and observation by superiors as well as the human resource departments (Chaudron, David). Our business follows various strategies. We recognize good performance with a good back pat. We also recognize good performances through cash prize, good performance certificates and promotions (Employee Motivation & Job Satisfaction, 2009). Business hires a flexible leader. The flexible leader is a manager as well as leader. He knows a leadership is not manager and manager is not a leader. At the same time, he is capable of bonding with his men on a personal and emotional level. He has business targets. He meets his business targets using personal and emotional skills (Fletcher, Douglas; 2010).

Economic of Immigration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Economic of Immigration - Research Paper Example From the study it is clear that acquisition of technical knowledge imparts the adequate skills to the masses in the USA while low level of education and hence lack of high-end skills for immigrants from Mexico enables Americans to keep top level jobs. Implementation of different trade policies and immigration programs between the US and the Mexican government led to greater influx of immigrants into the USA. According to the paper findings the economics of immigration in Mexico is of interest because Mexico borders an economic superpower-USA. This it means that immigrants from Mexico affect many different sectors of a world class economy. Immigration has social, demographic, economic effects some of which are good while others detrimental. Most legal immigrants are not subject to a great deal of public scrutiny and suspicion because of the belief that they are rightfully there while the illegal ones are subject to both police and public scrutiny because of the belief that they affect the economy and society negatively. In order to enhance economic welfare the US government tries to reduce the number of illegal immigrants from Mexico by converting them to legal immigrants or by not allowing them near the border. In Mexico the immigration policy requires that immigration of individuals with skills that are limited in supply and those whose tax contributions and net cost of public services received are large should be well monitored. It implies that those who contribute positively to economic growth are the ones who should be granted the legal admission. Also admission of immigrants in limited occupations leads to increased aggregate income as a result of high labor demand and mobility across borders e.g. for international trade. Cortes (2005) states that continuing high levels of immigration weaken the enforcement of labor market regulations by the USA as a result of the influx of Mexican immigrants. This is because the inflows of aliens relax the commitment of employers in USA and create a population of workers who are not adequately equipped with the necessary skills. This is as a result of lower education levels thereby earning less as compared to the highly educated and well paid Americans resulting into lower tax payments and thus increased poverty levels. The Mexican Immigrants Act offers subsidy to those businesses that employ lowly skilled workers since they contribute a small portion of the aggregate income. Wayne (2001) states that illegal immigrants have

Psychology Intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Psychology Intelligence - Essay Example His theory suggests that man's intelligence is made up of 7 core intelligences (Myers, 2004). It is only upon consideration of all of these intelligences that one can be judged as intelligent or not. Basically, intelligence covers a wide array of human capabilities, skills, and talents. In Susan's case, her intelligence test scores were only average even though she possessed exceptional talents in ballet dancing possibly due to the inability of the intelligence test used to measure creativity as part of an individual's intelligence. Furthermore, Susan's case brings forth the issue of the reliability and validity of intelligence testing. Susan's case demonstrates a scenario wherein an inappropriate test was used. Her low test scores may also imply that the intelligence test administered to her came up with a standardized score without giving consideration to her scores in each of the components of the test which is used to determine specific facets of her intelligence. Most of the time, the validity of intelligence tests is questioned primarily because a particular type of test may not properly measure the specific area of an individual's intelligence that is being assessed. Furthermore, a single score is often inadequate in explaining the multidimensional aspects of intelligence. In cases such as these, the reliability and validity of the intelligence test is questioned.

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 2

English - Essay Example Following the technological era, the same stories have been used to warn on the dangers of the technology. Technology has been glorified by many since it has been a means of solving some of the problems that could be difficult or even impossible to be done by mankind. Indeed, looking at the history of mankind from the industrial revolution and the Renaissance period, there is no doubt that technology has been very handy in the driving for the changes and success that is evident today. In this essay, however, I will argue that even though technology is a good thing, it has to be approached with caution, as it can break down our ways of life in a manner that may be irredeemable. Some of the literatures that will be used in the essay include; Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip Dick, this literature will be used as a main material. It shows how androids interact with human and through their analysis of the dangers of technology is done. Another important literature to the discussion is Neuromancer by William Gibson and finally The Crying of Lot49 by Penchon Thomas. This three literature will form the basis of the discussion while some other texts may also be used to justify the discussion. Technology is the use of the available materials and knowledge to adapt to the environment. This is done by using the materials and knowledge as instruments and processes that provide the humans with a superiority over the environment he lives in. Therefore, Technology can refer to nonfigurative structures present, which include language among others which is an effort to organize and put in systematics in the human reality and therefore become an instrument used to explore the environment through communication and therefore compete effectively. The aspect of completion indicates the presence of evolutionary framework, where all forms of life are in competition for

Functions, Trends and Nature of Ownership and Control in the British Mass Media Essay Example for Free

Functions, Trends and Nature of Ownership and Control in the British Mass Media Essay In this piece of writing I will attempt to explain the functions, trends and nature of ownership and control in the British Mass Media. At the end I will describe the features of a Mass Media conglomerate. The Mass media is basically any style of text or image that is viewed by a lot of people. For example T.V, radio, newspapers, books, magazines, billboards, etc are all forms of mass media. Some of these can reach millions of people like T. V, where as newspapers usually reach hundreds of thousands and so on. The media gives us things like, news, entertainment, advertising etc. TELEVISION: Television is the biggest form of media in the UK and in most countries in the world. There are two main types of T.V in the UK, public funded and independent. The BBC is publicly funded by T.V licence fees of around à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½100 that cover all BBC related audio visual broadcasting. The government does not have any direct influence over what is shown on T.V although there are regulators who decide what is acceptable and what is not. The BBC is controlled by their board of governors of which there are twelve who are appointed by the Crown to ensure that the BBC fulfils its obligations. Among them are National Governors for Scotland, Wales and N. Ireland. One Governor has special responsibility for the English Regions. All are part time non-executives. They meet monthly and hold the BBCs managers to account for their performance against the agreed strategy and objectives. The BBC is led by the director-general, who is both chief executive and editor-in-chief. The Governors appoint the Director-General and (with the Director-General) the most senior management. BBC operations are run by the directors of nine programming and broadcasting divisions and six professional services, and by the Chief executives of the BBCs two commercial businesses. They report to the director-general and together make up the Executive Committee. A less formal Leadership Group meets to discuss and develop a clear vision for the BBC. The independents are controlled by themselves. However thy may be part of a bigger conglomerate. The ITV is a federation of television companies holding licences from the Independent Television Commission (ITC) to broadcast in 14 regions covering the whole of the United Kingdom. Each licence is awarded for a minimum of ten years. The ITV network has 15 independent regional television licences in 14 regional areas (there are 2 licences for London, a weekday and a weekend licence). All programmes are designed for local audiences in each region. The ITV is controlled by the ITV Council, comprising the Chief Executives of each licensee. Each ITV licensee has rights over the programme schedule, and is responsible for the production and broadcasting of its own local programme and news services. The ITV and its independent companies are regulated and licensed by the ITC. The ITC is independent of the Government and of the broadcasters. They are funded from fees that the licensees have to pay. The ITC makes sure that the independent and commercial licensees provide quality programs and a high standard of competition among other things. They also set certain standards for the time allocated to certain styles of programmes. There are five categories of channel 3 programmes for which the ITC sets minimum requirements. These are, * National and International news Three programmes each day of 20 minutes (lunch), 15 minutes (early evening) and half an hour in peak time. * Current affairs One and a half hours weekly average * Children Ten hours weekly average * Religion Two hours weekly average * Regional Varies from franchise to franchise Although the ITC is involved in licensing and regulating all forms of digital television, the Broadcasting Act 1996 makes it specifically responsible for establishing Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) in the UK. DTT is especially important because it carries existing free-to-air services provided by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 (S4C in Wales) and Channel 5. At present, T.V broadcasting is mainly analogue, however within the next five years it will all be digital. Digital T.V will bring a bigger choice of programmes to watch, as it will have on average 200 stations. You can already do shopping and go on the internet with digital T.V, but by the time it takes over analogue completely it will have many more options and facilities. NEWSPAPERS: There are many distinguishing features in the British Press. Some of these are things like the differences between tabloid and broadsheet papers or the differences between national, local and regional papers. There are ten morning daily papers and ten Sunday papers which make up the national press. Fleet Street in London used to be the centre of the newspaper industry, but all the national papers have moved their editorial and printing facilities to other parts of London or away from the capital all together. National papers are often described as quality,mid-market or popularpapers because of their differences in style and content. Five dailies and four Sundays are usualy described as qualitie papers. These papers are directed at people who want full information on a wide range of public maters. Popular newspapers are for the more light hearted reader. Mid-market publications cover the intermediate market. Quality papers are normally broadsheet (large-sheet) in format and mid-market and popular papers are tabloid (small-sheet) in size. Scottish editions of national papers usually only change things like the sports page and the T.V listings. Most places in the UK have their own regional or local newspaper. These can be anything from daily papers to evening ones, Sundays or weeklies. These papers concentrate mainly on local or regional stories although the dailies do print national and international news from a local viewpoint. Newspapers from the Irish Republic and the British national press are widely read in Northern Ireland. Several hundred free distribution papers, mostly weekly and financed by advertising, are published in the UK. They have enjoyed rapid growth in recent years. Ownership of the national, London and many regional daily newspapers lies in the hands of large corporations, most of which are involved in the whole field of publishing and communications (media conglomerates). Local papers however are owned by different companies altogether. Newspapers are also controlled by their boards of management. It is possible for two national papers to be owned by the same company and they can even be owned by broadcasting companies as a separate division, however influence between the two types of media is not recommended. There are local weekly papers for every district in Greater London; these are often different local editions of one centrally published paper. This does not just happen in London. A prime example of this in our area would be the Press and Journal. It covers the North of Scotland as well as some southern areas as far down as Perth and Stirling, but it produces different editions for every area of which there are eleven. These editions are classed as local editions. All newspapers are answerable to the press complaints commission, which responds to public complaints about printed items. RADIO: There are basically two types of radio in the UK. There is Commercial Radio and The BBC Radio. The Radio Authority governs commercial radio stations such as Moray Firth radio and XFM. The radio authority is basically the ITC of the radio. Like the ITC it also has no powers over the BBC. The BBC is fully independent. Although there are far more Commercial radio stations than BBC ones, the BBC is still ahead in ratings. The gap between BBC Radio and its commercial rivals has widened recently to show BBC Radio to have a share of 51.4% compared with 46.79% for Commercial Radio. In the neck-and-neck race for reach, the BBC edged ahead with 31.2 million listeners compared with their rivals 31.1 million. The figures released by RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research Limited) cover the period from June 26 to September 17 2000. Radio can change on a daily basis because the control of its output is not restricted. The format usually stays the same although major changes in presentation can happen from time to time. Independent radio station change depending on their income and audience. The better the audience the better the sponsorships and advertisers. Things like audience talk shows on radio where members of the audience can phone in and participate are very successful. The BBC and large independent radio companies are controlled in the same way as they are on T.V. Although the majority are part of larger groups, local radio is controlled by local management. These groups use their own style in the local stations but adapt it to suit the area of broadcast. VOLENTARY IN-VOLENTARY CODES OF PRACTICE: Independent T.V and radio are quite strictly controlled by the ITC and Radio Authority, but magazines and newspapers have more freedom. These, along with the BBC, ITV, Press Complaints Commission and the Broadcasting Standards all enforce their own codes of practice throughout the media. However, the law has the final say in control of the media in the following areas: Defamation: A statement which damages the reputation of an individual or company, i.e. false accusations, libel, innuendos, etc. Obscenity: The publication or broadcasting of material which will tend to deprave or corrupt. Incitement of racial hatred: 1986 public order act forbids material which is likely to incite racial hatred. Blasphemy: To pass the limits of decency and controversy and outrage Christian feelings. Only applies to Christians. Sedation: Forbids the publication of material that incites hatred towards parliament or the monarch. Official secrets act: Forbids the publication of official secrets. Contempt of court: Forbids you from pre judging a court case or to assume someone is guilty. MASS MEDIA CONGLOERATE: Carlton Media Group: The Carlton Media Group runs the following sixteen companies: Carlton London Region The London Region is one of three areas for which Carlton TV is the ITV broadcaster. Visit the site for regional company news. Carlton Central Region The Central Region is one of three areas for which Carlton TV is the ITV broadcaster. Visit the site for regional company news. Carlton International Carlton International is the largest distributor of classic British films and the biggest sales house for British TV outside the BBC. ITN ITN is one of the most respected independent news organisations in the world catering for news, sport, business and entertainments. Carlton West Country Region The West Country Region is one of three areas for which Carlton TV is the ITV broadcaster. Visit the site for regional company news. ITV Carries information about programmes on the ITV network. Action Time Television production company Action Time is a leading distributor of entertainments formats, including an extensive home video clip library. London News Network LNN is a TV and production company working for joint shareholders Carlton and LWT. Carlton Cinema Carlton cinema is a film channel available exclusively on On digital. Visit the website for comprehensive movie listings. Media Sales For information on rates, screen advertising, pitch time, sponsorship and career opportunities at Carlton. Carlton Communications Plc Carlton Communications Plc is the publicly quoted parent company of Carlton Media and other related media companies. Click here for the share price, financial and other investor information. ONdigital ONdigital was the first company in the world to launch a digital terrestrial television service delivering multi-channel TV and interactive services into homes through an ordinary TV aerial. Visit the website for listings. Simply Food SimplyFood.co.uk is the UKs No.1 food and drink website and home to the Carlton Food Network. It has a searchable UK restaurant guide and a database of thousands of recipes, plus features and reviews. Carlton Video On the Carlton Video website you can buy videos and DVDs of many of Carltons programmes and films, including classics like Inspector Morse, Soldier Soldier, and Britain at War. PeopleBank PeopleBank is the UKs leading provider of internet recruitment services, bringing together quality candidates and employers. Online since 1995, PeopleBank has extensive experience in providing cost-effective e-recruitment solutions. HTV HTV, the ITV broadcaster for Wales, was recently bought by Carlton TV. Visit the site of the most popular channel in Wales. They also have Carlton Books. This shows that Carlton cover broadcasting, publishing, the internet, advertising, and marketing. This means that if Carlton have a successful income level from one of there companies it can benefit all of them and in turn make them more desirable to the public. Because of this they can use control there revenue a lot better without having to pay other companies to do things like marketing. They sell advertising space to make the initial money to fund projects such as a new drama series. They can then market and publish their own material and because they own all the copyright they can expand by using the internet. Although there is a national guideline concerning who owns what and the amount of fields you can spread into to prevent companies from becoming all powerful and swallowing up smaller companies, Carlton still has its eye on Direct. This is a group who run insurance and holiday companies. At present, Carlton are biding for the Scottish Media Group who have two radio stations, a newspaper group, Scottish and Grampian television. If they are successful in their bid, they will be able to grow to new heights and spread into both radio and print forms of media quite successfully in Scotland. Functions of the Mass Media: There are five main functions in the mass media. Entertainment functions: This provides healthy amusement and helps to divert the attention of the audience from serious social issues and inequalities. Information functions: This helps to structure a particular view of the world and to look at it in geographical, political and social terms. Cultural functions: This helps to develop mass culture at the expense of more diverse subcultures. That helps to maintain the status quo in cultural terms, but may also discourage change and growth. Social functions: These socialize us into beliefs and relationships which help us operate successfully in society. This naturalizes one view of society and stops us thinking, obtaining and acting on alternative views. Political functions: This helps us to understand the operation of politics in our society. However, it gives us the illusion of participating in the political process, but actually endorses the authority of those who continue to run our lives unquestioned. The media are also capable of shaping opinions about political events and issues. Current Trends in the Mass Media: When you think of current trends in the media at the moment two things come to mind, digital and conglomerates. A lot of companies are trying to branch out into other fields of the media at the moment. The Scottish media group for one are trying to expand their interests in radio although this could cause problems with its T.V. franchises. There are regulations set up to prevent certain big companies from taking over the media by branching ever wider into it. However there are discussions about these regulations which could result in big firms having huge ownership or control over certain areas of the mass media. The main trend of the moment has to be the evolution from analogue to digital. T.V. and radio are all a part of the growing trend and it doesnt look like its going to stop there. Already you can tune in to the radio through digital T.V. as well as go on the internet, shop, play games, the opportunities are endless. The future however lies with a fully digital T.V. without the aid of ugly dishes on the side of your house or cumbersome boxes on top of you tele. With this you will be able to access anything you want. There will be no set programs, no times, just you, your T.V. and the whole media world at your fingertips. You will be able to pick anything to watch, read, here, play, buy, or do from your tele. This astonishing development is proving very expensive to produce, run, and buy if it is ever released. If it is released it will be the main media related technological break through in history.

Leadership Is A Relationship Education Essay

Leadership Is A Relationship Education Essay When it comes to this sentence: Leadership is a Relationship, we feel a bit puzzled. At first glance, such a topic sounds like a joke. Traditionally, the definition of leadership  is described as the process of  social influence  in ¼Ã…’which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. But here, we must emphasize the relationship between leadership and relationship. Some people hold the opinion that leaders, like husbands or wives, occupy roles only as long as they are alive. (Is Leadership a Relationship? by Mitch McCrimmon, Ph.D., 2010) Leaders and leadership is a topic being discussed for a long time. The desire to call leadership a relationship is well intentioned. Generally speaking, leadership is a relationship because one cannot lead without followers. The very meaning of leadership, to some extent, is a relationship and the interaction between leaders and followers. Leadership is an ongoing relationship between the leader and superiors, leaders and colleagues, leaders and consumers, and especially between leaders and followers. (Leadership is the Relationship by Kenneth Rice, 2006) Now the concept of leadership is no longer conventional type, it isnt limited to fixed roles and whats more, group boundaries are breaking down. In my point of view, leadership cannot take effect alone. To put it another way, leadership needs the aid of relationship. Because the personal relationship defines the existing quality of interpersonal interaction between the leader and would-be followers, followers will not join the leader without the requisite relationship. Leadership is the relationship.(The 9 Natural Laws of Leadership P.12- by Blank, Warren, 1995) Without good relationship in a team, a leader, if not supported by his team members, he cant accomplish the task successfully. It is just like a war. Even the bravest General cannot win the battle by his own, because he is just a drop in the sea. Only when he commands and cooperates with his soldiers will it be possible to win. In fact, leading is more than a relational concept. It is a relational term, and it does not imply a personal relationship between people. Instead, it means that leadership is a relationship is based on confusion or a failure to understand how relational concepts work. There are too many outstanding leaders in the history around the world; I am just a small role. Leadership is an art. We can see the common points shining on those famous leaders: The speeches of Sir Winston Churchill showed his constancy of purpose; in 1863, General Pickett earned the trust of the soldiers he sent up the hill, though everyone knew they would die; Mohandas Gandhi was a pioneer of Nonviolent Protest, his views were the most enlightened of all the political men in 20th century; The influence from Martin Luther Kings I have a dream, witnessed great changes of the whole USAà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦It is well recognized that a qualified leader needs the skills as follows: Good Communication Skills; Good Motivation Skills; Adaptability; Know Your People; Work Delegation; Decision Making; Passion. I remember my first time to be a leader. I would like to exemplify the notion above by my own experience. It was an unforgettable summer. I joined a youth camp in a remote village as a volunteer teacher. There were tens of youngsters of my same age, and what we were going to do is teach the students in the school some basic knowledge of preventing AIDS. I was seldom a leader and I didnt have much experience and talent of being a leader before. I used to think that leader must be those who have strong power of public appeal and are bold and resolute in action. To my surprise, I was chosen to be a leader on the first day I arrived. At that moment, I was both excited and timid: I was afraid that I couldnt be a good leader, but it was really an opportunity for me to have a try. At first, I was too anxious to speak in front of the crowd. When I stood on the stage and said Hello to those kids, I shivered and couldnt utter more words. Students were aged around 10 years old, and they were curious as well as surprised. They couldnt imagine such a coward would be there leader, but of course, they couldnt imagine what this leader would bring to them in the following two weeks. Adaptability is the key to succeeding in our ever changing environment. I adapted to this new environment soon and I thought I could adapt to any unpredictable situation that may arise, too. There are two kinds of leaders; those who want to be liked and those who want to be respected.   If you are respected but not liked, your leadership might be wanted, but it will probably be short lived.   It is possible to be both respected and liked and we should strive for both. Building relationships is one of the most important things we do in life on a personal and professional level. (Leadership Through Relationships by Richard. R. Ramos, 2009) I knew that to get in touch with the students mush first become their friends. I was a leader, but I was like a friend more. I played with them, talked with them, shared jokes and funny experiences with them. We soon knew each other well. Though I was the teacher, I gave each of them equal opportunity to express what they thought. I encouraged them to air their own opinion. As a result, I also earned their respect and credibility. Trust is built on honesty and integrity. (The Essence of Leadership by Stever Robbins, 2003) To build trust, involvement and communication is the key contributor. I always believe in that What you say and what you do must match up. There are five trust techniques: Share thoughts, feeling and rationales; Make commitments you can make; Admit mistakes; Request and accept feedback; Test assumptions. I know that to respect and maintain self-esteem of my students sincerely is vitally important in the process of getting their trust. Every time when they got some accomplishments or made some contributions, I would recognize what they have done and praise them. Otherwise, I listened and responded to them with empathy to show my understanding of their feeling with attention, so they were all willing to talk to me and express their ideas. For some relatively inactive children, I asked them for their help and encouraged them to involve. I valued their opinions and ideas, I was willing to share credit for achievements, and I valued their personal performance more than the results. They soon became optimistic and positive, and are more willing to join us in various activities. A good communication skill is necessary for a leader to listen to the opinions of others, and quickly convey their thoughts. We became close friends, and this is a progress beyond leadership. If we say leadership is the matter of relationship, we can also say that relationship is the source of influence, which is the foundation of leadership. To put it another way, leadership can be defined in one word: Influence. Effective leadership needs influence, and in order to get influence, a strong relationship is needed. We cant deny that the essence of leadership is the art of influencing people. Relationship is the key mechanism for bringing out the best in people from the ordinary, both as individuals and teams. Also, this is the core purpose of leadership can only be achieved through strong relationships. (The Leadership Relationship: Building High-Impact Relationships by Corporate Master, A Division of Integral Master Center) Things went on smoothly. We not only taught children knowledge of AIDS but afterward sang songs and shared our outlook for the future. When the children were asked what are you going to do when you grow up, they have various answers. I remembered some girls said they wanted to be designers because they liked beautiful clothes; some boys who have special interest in architecture hoped to be engineers; some of them dreamt of being professors; but what impressed me most is a boy who desired to be a leader. Gradually, I had more topics with those children and I got their trust. At that time, I felt that perhaps being a leader is better than what I had perceived before. A leader is supposed to have a passion to perform. Being passionate about my work would empower me to find almost impossible solutions be it invention, discovery, or innovation. Also, to me and to my students, passion was one of the sources of our joy and fun. In our class and in our life, passion made us happy and optimistic. For me, as a so-called leader and a voluntary teacher, in addition to my colleagues, my students were also my workmates because I need their aid and cooperation in my job. My colleagues helped me with my lectures and students performance would give me more confidence. I devoted myself into being a leader and I tried my best to be a better leader. After a few days of getting together, those students trusted me and relied on me. Once I was able to give your personal touch to them, I found amazing benefits from these efforts. Their personal lives had a great impact on the each of them. We talked about interesting news, anecdotes and stories together. I was attached to my colleagues and my students. Trust was really the best thing which could give me a warm feeling as the sunshine in winter. We were just like a big family. I had never felt that kind sense of success as well as commitment. Relationship behavior is the extent to which the leader engages in two-way or multi-way communication. It includes listening, encouraging, facilitating, providing clarification, and giving socio-emotional support. (Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series by Bolman and Deal, 1997) I reminded myself that I was a leader every moment. I must set a good example in front of them so I behaved like a leader and played am exemplary role in my class. In the conversations with the children, I came to know their characteristics and their hobbies. They were really cute, frank, and innocent. Just as technical research and development is essential for continued excellence and a competitive edge, so mush coaching and development become the leaders focal point for leveraging the organizations human capital. Coaching is the process of equipping people with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities they need to develop themselves and become more effective. Coaching conversations involve finding out peoples vision or destination, where they are starting from, and the direction they need to move in order to get there. ( Coach and Develop People by Gebelein, S.H., Stevens, L.A., Skube, C.J., Lee, D. G., Davis, B.L., Hellervik, L.W. Successful Managers Handbook. 6th ed. Minnesota: Personnel Decisions International Corporation. 2000.369-396) Development is vitally important in acquiring the skills and learning the knowledge needed to achieve the goals. I know that the role of a leader is also to be a coach. In order to equip them with more knowledge they couldnt learn from the textbook, I brought then to the park, to the field, and went picnic in the open air. I told them how to observe an insect or a butterfly; I taught them how to draw an oil painting; we played basketball together and competed with each otherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Coaching forged our partnership, which was another example proving that Leadership is relationship, and in other words, this was one of the sources our trust came; coaching inspired commitment of me and the students; coaching grew my managing skill and their learning skills, too; coaching promoted persistence of each one and finally shaped the environment we enjoyed this harmonious environment very much. Whats more, coaching is a continuous process rather than an occasional conversation, so we kept practicing during my stay with them. But things have gone wrong sometimes. In the last few days before the youth camp came to the end, we had prepared for a welfare party. I arranged a chorus for the students and rehearsed for them time by time, day by day. For these kids, rehearsal was the most boring thing in the world and they got tired soon. They rejected and tried to give up, which disappointed me very much. I was so desperate because I felt that the time and toil I paid was futile and would never reward. I tried hard to persuade and comfort them. However, nothing had a turn for the better; instead, they were more impatient and even shouted to me. I was helpless and sad. I recalled every picture that left impression in my brain but it didnt work at all. I was totally disappointed: They were my dearest but they even didnt respect me. I doubted my ability of management as a leader: I didnt succeed in managing a group of children well, let alone other adults. I tried hard to keep myself calm but things went worse. Tho se kids seemed pay no attention to me and made me more distressed. Consequently, I got angry and raged. I had never been so furious that I pounded the table angrily with a great thump. At this moment, those clamorous kids were shocked and astonished and kept silent immediately. There was not a bit voice. The whole classroom seemed isolated and time seemed to have ceased. I didnt know what they were thinking and I was not sure if they were scared of me or repented of what they had done. It was the worst memory in the process of being a volunteer teacher, but when I reflect it now, I came to realize that it was this bad experience that made me grow more mature. It was clear that I needed to implement the essential ingredients of effective persuasion: I knew and concerned their perspectives; I considered my position from every angle; I listened to them actively and patiently; I shared solution with them and tried to make it better; and what more, I insisted that communication do make changes. So I still believed that a leader should not give up first. I am a leader. I told myself at the bottom of my heart. After about one minute, I asked them, Is there anyone want to quit? Nobody answered. If anyone wants to quit now, you can stand out and tell me. Still nobody answered. I continued, Yes, the rehearsal, it is indeed a piece of tiring work. But if you insist staying in our group, please do your best or you will let us down, let yourself down. Those children were upset. One of them asked me in a low voice, It is so boring. We dont want to play it. Maybe it was the rehearsal that deprived them of their leisure. I stopped for a moment, anxiously thinking of this problem. No one knows how hard I struggled in my mind. I pondered for a while, and explained slowly to them, Only when we spare no effort and try our best will the rehearsal be successful. Only when we encounter difficulty and sweats will the result be satisfying. I hoped that every one of you will perform the best in the welfare party. But at present, there is still much to be improved. And I continued, Listen, my dearest kids, now we must believe that we are the strongest and we can be the best! I have full confidence on all of you! Some of them nodded their heads. A leader is the one not only commands and leads toward the victory but the one who comforts and encourages team mates when the morale of the troops is sinking low. Most of them stood and listened with their heads low, but their eyes were filled with a desire to success. One girl approved me, Yes, you are right. I think I didnt sing well enough. I will definitely work harder. Do you believe in yourselves? I asked them, and embraced them. Yesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Though their voice was low, I could still hear their courage and persistence. How about having fun when we finished the performance in welfare party? Then I will cook you delicious food to celebrate! I added. They seemed much satisfied. Her words were like ripples and most children expressed their agreement. They promised that they would exert themselves and never be on strike again. Some of them even proposed to play an important role in the chorus. I gave them a big smile and so did they. The crisis had gone and our trust came back again. Have a good rest, guys! This is the end of todays rehearsal, but tomorrow we must train harder. I reminded them. I rewarded each one of them an ice cream and of course, they were pleased and contented. Leaders require many skills in managing relationships, such as communication, interaction, crisis management, etc. The purpose of the relationship is not only to manage team mates in a good order but also to give each person the opportunity to grow and to contribute to his or her fullest potential and whats more, to build strengths in the midst of differences. According to my students strength and characteristics, I divided them into three groups in the chorus so that each one of them can achieve their best. Every time they rehearsed, I accompanied them, recorded and played to attain improvement. I couldnt do everything on my own. This was our combined effort. I also needed to give personal responsibility of the work to my students individually, and then keep track of their progress regularly. I found this process interesting and rewarding: They were like young trees and I was just the gardener. I saw them sprout, grow and bloom. After many days of cultivation, the day of farewell party would be the day these young trees fruit. Frankly speaking, it is of the utmost importance for me to motivate them to accomplish objectives. A real leader utilizes the most efficient approach for doing this leading by setting an excellent example. Behind the scene, my students seemed anxious. In fact, I was the most anxious one. I concealed my emotion of anxiety. They constantly asked me, Is my clothes tidy? or Am I look good? I gave each of them smile and some encouraging words. You look superb! Come on, your performance is fantastic! Gradually, these words had positive effect on me, too. I was encouraged by my words: I should be sure that they would be the most confident and competent team! Before the performance, I gave each one of them a hug. The whole class embraced together and made a nice wish. Then they step on the stage confidently. They were so calm and devoted in the spot lights. The melody impressed every audience and finally the whole auditorium was filled with applause. They had made it! That was the most wonderful performance they ever had! They were so excited and they ran toward me and hug me tightly. Leadership is a relationship and an act of influence as well as an impact. Albert Einstein once said, We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles but no personality. It cannot lead; it can only serve. I used to presume that leadership is just for people at the top but I realized I was wrong.  In fact, every one of us can learn to lead by discovering the potential that lies within ourselves, in order to make a difference of our life. After two weeks, I had to go back to my city and continued my life and study. Those kids were all reluctant to see me leave. They held me tightly, and some of them even cried. Some students called me even Professor to express their affection and thanks for me. I got many presents made by their own: paper flowers, pictures, chocolates, candies, and cards. Though cheap, they were exquisite and meaningful. At that moment, every scene and every moment we spent together was shown in my head again and again. I recalled everything from the first day I came to the last day I left. I didnt quite understand if this was power of leadership at that time, but there must have been something changed. When I reflected this experience after learning this course, I gradually realized it was myself who has changed. I changed from a student without any experience of being a leader to a real leader! Leadership is like wine, only when time passes will it be the finest and the best. Being a leader is absol utely a difficult thing; it is never a piece of cake. However, the feeling of being a leader is extraordinary and terrific, though sometimes it was great pain and stress. I felt that the new me is more courageous and confident; maybe it is because this volunteer experience has taught me a lesson and refined my soul. If we say Leadership is relationship, I am sure that my leadership experience has won me not only relationship but also friendship, which has more profound meaning than only relationship. The students became my friends. They gave me beautiful memory. To me, leadership is applicable to all facets of my own life and they are all beneficial: With the development of my self- awareness and confidence, I can gradually expand our perspective with a competency; I focus more on a goal and set the context of it; I understand the dynamics of human behaviors; I take the initiative to be the real me. Generally, leadership development is not an event.  Rather, it is a constant process. On one hand, leadership excellence is one of the most critical challenges facing not only organizations but small groups or individual nowadays. Leadership is not an easy job, so does to be a great leader. It requires commitment, talent, effort, guidance, and a most difficult thing charisma. There is no doubt that leaders will face a great deal of pressure, which can be quantified. Nevertheless, after accomplishing a great mission or task together with those followers, a sense of achievement and fulfillment is more important than the actual rewards. On the other hand, when we say leadership is relationship, that means relationship has profound influence in todays society, too. I emphasize that the relationship here has nothing to do with bribery and corruption. I truly with that the competition is equal enough. We can safely draw a conclusion that nowadays, especially in a competitive society, no one can battle alone. A wise leader with a strong organization as his or her supporters is more prone to succeed. Only if everyone in the team or organization is supposed to exert his or her utmost effort will it be possible that they have a happy end. In all, to be a volunteer teacher in the village left me a valuable fortune. This was my precious experience that worth remembering all my life. I tasted the sweetness and the bitterness in the short two weeks. Though there were difficulties and crisis in this process, I won the respect and built firm relationship with my students. Leadership is relationship, it is true. I did what a leader was supposed to do, and I had no regret at all. Those students have been my greatest friends because they also taught me a valuable lesson. This was my first time to be a leader, but I have learnt a lot from this experience. What I should do is keep self-improving and never give up. I am still on my way to learning to be a good leader. On this way, there are still a lot of obstacles and much to learn. References: Leadership is the Relationship by Kenneth Rice (2006) Is Leadership a Relationship? by Mitch McCrimmon, Ph.D. (May 2010) The 9 Natural Laws of Leadership P.12- by Blank, Warren (1995) Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series by Bolman and Deal, (1997) Coach and Develop People by Gebelein, S.H., Stevens, L.A., Skube, C.J., Lee, D. G., Davis, B.L., Hellervik, L.W. Successful Managers Handbook. 6th ed. Minnesota: Personnel Decisions International Corporation. 2000.369-396) The Essence of Leadership by Stever Robbins (2003) The Leadership Relationship: Building High-Impact Relationships by Corporate Master, A Division of Integral Master Center Leadership Through Relationships by Richard. R. Ramos, 2009