What have I learned?

This class was definitely not what I was expecting. I thought that management was all about a bunch of concepts and business models and definitions that I would have to remember. And basicially that is exactly what it is with the exception that most of what I learned is actually useful and can be applied into my daily life.

As a supervisor in a retail store, I have to deal with a lot more of these management topics as opposed to just being a regular sales person. I have to facilitate team work, give feedback and set goals for my team. So I found my self reading the slides and trying to see what I can use in my job everyday.

Usually classes are quite easy for me. But in this class I found myself having to study much harder to grasp concepts that I thought were just common sense. It was particularly hard for me to remember the steps in some processes so I had to reevaluate my study habits and really get on top of my game. I think thats reflected in my grades from the first midterm to the second. I also got some extra credit points along the way which was helpful.

For me , the vision topic was the one that resonated the most. Its very easy for us to focus on being successful in the present moment but sometimes its good to set a goal and look at the bigger picture for your life. Despite the corny video, I think this was something I decided to implement in my life from here forward.

I hope that I will remember the majority of the concepts i learned for my mgmt elective next semester!

For me, a personal vision is about setting life goals -- the things you ultimately want to accomplish in your lifetime. I'm a very creative person so sometimes I would get an idea but then I have to ask myself if it is even feasible. The answer is always YES! Anything you want to do can be accomplish with the right connections, know-how, charisma and efficiency.

My life vision is to be worldly and successful in business. I want to travel the world, live in another countrry for a while all while being my own boss. Sounds too good to be true BUT i'm hoping to get into PR and communications which can take me tons of places in the world. I also see myself being an awesome mother to my future children as family is very important to me.

Some people get into business purely for the monetary satisfaction and living a comfortable life. Obviously I want to be stable too but I hope to spend much of my time helping others through some efforts with non profit organizations. (for a while I actually wanted to join the PeaceCorps!)

My vision is a simple one defined by one word: happiness. At the end of it all, my motivation is purely to be happy at all times in my life. I don't  want to be content, but happy with the progression of my life and those I care about the most.

Avoiding the chaos..

I thought that the decision making activity was crazy. I personally felt that a lot of students were not heard while a few took over the process. After I saw the direction the chaos was heading, I definitely took on the avoidance role. I really just sat back and shook my head the whole time because my approach to things is much more laid back than my peers. I did ask one question but it took forever for me to get a word in, and I felt like people were just rushing through it. Obviously time was a factor and our grades were horrible but I must say, that chaos was interesting to watch. There was also a handful of students who were competing to win.Personally, I don't think that I could have swayed the class or made it run any better had I chosen any other role.

I do think we had a very good leader who was fair and organized the voting very well. His efficiency was the reason we got anything done at all, especially debating the essay.

I think we could have gotten things done faster if we separated into smaller groups for 15mins, decided what we hated about the test and then report back to the larger group and vote. I think this would have worked better because each person would be heard essentially and sometimes people feel more comfortable speaking in smaller groups. I also think that given the fact that the majority of the class failed the test, some were not as willing to speak up.

Overall I do like the package that we came up with and I think that if we tried this activity again it would run smoothly.

Baruch is a major Culture Shock..

My first semester here at Baruch was very interesting. I had come straight from graduating high school two months earlier and had no idea what to expect. My high school was in Brooklyn, small campus about 1000 kids, not very diverse and I was very used to just fitting in. Flash forward to my first week at Baruch and I was sort of blown away. In the elevators there were people speaking all of these languages I'd never heard before, which turned out to be Russian, German, Korean, Chinese,etc. Even with class introductions, looking around the room and hearing each student's story about their background was fascinating. It made me want to know more and get to know everyone.

One day my professor decided for us to work in groups on a hefty project. One of my group members, a Korean girl, never really spoke up or gave her input she would just agree with what everyone else said. Finally I asked her privately why she never really gave her opinion on things. She told me that she'd just come from Korea and its different there from America. In most Asian countries its better to go with the group than to be an individual - it promotes harmony. So instead of ruffling feathers she was following what her culture taught her which was to promote harmony. It was a very interesting conversation, but I learned alot about her and about a culture I knew nothing about prior.

Yes, I felt a bit culture shocked coming to this school but now after four years, I feel so diverse and worldy. Worldy may be a stretch but you get the jist. Baruch is definitely a mind opener.

Hello...

I'm Valerie, 23 year old junior majoring in busniss communications. Currently I work in retail and hope to take my talents and knowledge into the marketing and/or PR industries after grad.

I have a very laid back approach to most things, in this case business. For instance, my dream company to work for would have to be Google. That should give you a sense of my work style. For me, working in retail is one of the few jobs where you can have such flexibility in your work style. Working in an office setting is wonderful as long as I dont have to adhere to rigid dress codes and I can use my creativity to enhance the job - hence why finding an internship is so hard!

With this blog I plan to respond to articles or topics based on how I feel modern business should be run... from a less Zicklin approach. :)