The Recommended Assessments, Activities, and Projects Associated with Management Are Designed

CHAPTER 1—PERSONAL MANAGEMENT ACTIVITY

PERSONAL STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES

The recommended assessments, activities, and projects associated with Management are designed to help you get a better sense of your skills/abilities, career goals, and how well the two match up.

Take a moment to read the Personal Management feature for Chapter 1. The Johari Window defines four areas of self-awareness. The key to effective relationships and complete information about you is to expand the size of the open area. You do this by reducing the hidden and blind areas. To reduce the blind area, we must be open to information the others provide about us. How carefully do you listen when others provide feedback about your abilities? To reduce the hidden area, you must be willing to reveal information about yourself to others. How comfortable are you when it comes to sharing things about yourself?

To begin the process of discovery, select two individuals that know you through difference experiences or contexts. For example, your first choice might be a roommate or friend. A second choice may be your employer or professor. Approach each person at a convenient time. Your request for information will catch them off guard, so be sure to do it at a time when they are not distracted by other tasks and can provide a thoughtful response. Explain that you are working on an assignment about self-awareness and need feedback about your abilities. Ask each person to identify one strength and one weakness that you possess. Make sure they provide both. Ask for clarification if you need it, but do not be defensive. You are simply gathering information.

Putting It All Together.Reflect on your experience. How difficult was the assignment? Was it easier to receive feedback related to your strengths rather than your weaknesses? What did you observe when your acquaintances provided feedback? Did they seem comfortable in their roles? Write a brief summary of the strengths and weaknesses identified by your acquaintances. Consider the circumstances that allowed each acquaintance to develop this knowledge about you. Were there any surprises in what you discovered? How does what you learned relate to the key personal characteristics for managerial success identified in Chapter 1.