Managing your creativity

What is a management class?
It is a blog post I write,
The picture of my thoughts.
Discovering thyself,
In activities engaged.
Ideas flowing smooth,
With comments after that.
Discussions in depth,
Into what your visions are.
The leader that has passion,
To inspire, to create.
The knowledge that he passes,
Will surely remain.

"Communicating via Blog"

Effective communication is a powerful source of learning new information, whether it is a face to face discussion or through writing. Having blog assignments in management class was a fun way of finding out about different cultures, new approaches to solving problems professionally, and even discovering our personalities. I found posting blogs interesting, especially when my classmates discussed the activities that we performed in class such as the activity with an egg, and personality test.
1. "Did you feel you benefited from meeting. learning about or observing others online? Did it help in extending the communicating in class?
I think the blog assignment was especially beneficial to my shy classmates who do not feel comfortable to speak in public. The blog assignment was unique way of finding out about the goals and aspirations of my peers which is the kind of information not everyone share at once. Reading a blogs that are full of great ambitions, optimism, and smart ideas is motivating in terms of career and personal life as well. One of the examples is the blog about your "Vision to life".
2. "Did the blog get you to think about and share your perceptions about some of what we did in class?"
Definitely, the class activities performed in class made me think about them after the class. For example, I tested my friend`s personality through "DISC" test just to find out whether I would hire him if I would be the Boss. He actually had almost the same result as mine. I was "D sub-I" and he was "I sub-D" :)
3. Did you clearly understand the degree to which you could easily improve your course grades and relieve your test anxieties by appropriate attention to your blog?
I did understand that by posting blogs on time, as well as commenting on three of my classmates` blogs I already have my 20% of the class grade.
4. Do you plan on continuing to post your thoughts or ideas about school, work, career, life on this or another blog after this class ended?
Since I am majoring in Marketing with a minor and Communications/Business Writing, most likely I will keep blogging on this or another blogs because I know that it will be a big plus in my communication skills and also improve my writing skills even more.

My trip to McDonald`s

We were given an assignment for an extra credit which involved going to McDonald`s and ordering a unique sandwich called “McGANGBANG”. Professor Kurpis gave us detailed instructions on how to get the sandwich along with the receipt and pictures. It was not easy as I thought because I had to go to three Mcdonald`s restaurants to finally get my McGANGBANG. On Saturday, April 23rd I went to the first McDonald`s restaurant located at 341 5th Avenue in NY, NY where I could not get the McGANGBANG in spite of the efforts that I made explaining the stuff the kind of sandwich that I want. The employees were young females including the manager who had no idea what I was talking about. All of them with one voice told me that they do not make McGANGBANG. I spent ten minutes at the first McDonald`s restaurant. Even though, the fist attempt was not successful, I did not give up my willingness to get the sandwich. So I went to another McDonald`s at 401 Park Ave South, NY, NY where I spoke to salesperson and manager and asked for a McGANGBANG, however they were not able to provide me the sandwich. I decided to get a sandwich with five pickles and a french fries no salt. After 10 minutes they brought my order. As I opened it, I saw that it was just a toasted bun with no ingredients inside. I was them where the pickles were and the manager took the sandwich back and put thinly cut round five pieces of pickles and the french fries were salted. I spent 18 minutes at the second McDonald`s restaurant. I was not satisfied with the sandwich, especially because the french fries were salted. Nevertheless, I paid for it and the manager said that was all they could do. I threw that sandwich with french fries away.
Finally, today, April 25th I checked out the McDonald`s in Staten Island at 2154 Hylan Blvd not far from the place where I live. I asked the cashier that I would like to purchase a McGANGBANG sandwich and explained to her that it is a doublecheeseburger with McChicken sandwich stuffed in the middle. She said they are not serving lunch yet and asked her manager. The manager was nice today. I explained him how to make the McGANGBANG sandwich and he took all the details into consideration and made it in seven minutes. I was really happy with my order and it was the fastest service that I received of three McDonald`s restaurants that I have visited. There were four people involved in making my sandwich two cashiers, the manager and a sandwich maker.

When it comes to analyzing the management process that I have witnessed, the two McDonald`s restaurants in Manhattan that I went to had a poor communication between employees, management and employees and to the the customer. The restaurant staff did not make an effort to understand and satisfy the customer needs and wants by placing a special order. Instead, the employees were brushing away the customer stating that they did not have a sandwich called Mcganbang in their menu and therefore, they cannot make it. I did not have an opportunity to see the organizational skills which would involve the manufacturing process, since my order has not been placed. While, the second McDonald`s restaurant had bad organizational skills because sandwich makers because they forgot to put pickles in the sandwich and just gave me an empty toasted bun and salted french fries. I would recommend the managers and employees of the two restaurants to improve their communication, organization skills, develop strong leadership skills, and finally respect their customers choices and provide them with an exceptional service.
Staten Island McDonald`s restaurant demonstrated an effective communication between the employees, between the manager and the employees and to the customer. The two cashiers carefully listened to me when I explained them about kind of a sandwich that I wanted to purchase. Secondy, as my order was unusual, the cashiers consulted with the restaurant manager. The manager in turn, gave detailed instructions to sandwich makers on to prepare the McGANGBANG. The manager displayed true leadership traits by immediately considering my inquiry and handled the special order in a professional manner by providing a great customer service. He even asked the cashier to write down the sandwich name “McGANGBANG” on the receipt, since they did not have this kind of sandwich in their menu and their database. Most importantly, it took the staff seven minutes to complete my order. It was a wonderful experience ordering a McGANGBAG at the Staten Island restaurant where all the employees cared about their customer satisfaction.
I treated my colleage with the unique sandwich and reccomended her to check out the Staten Island McDonald`s on Hylan Blvd.

What type of leadership/management personality are you?

On Wednesday, April 13th we had the leadership/management diagnostic in class conducted by
professor Kurpis. I was really excited about taking this test to find out which type of personality I have. According to DISC test, I have a "D" sub-"I" personality which stands for dominance and influence. I think the result is very accurate considering that I answered all questions
correctly. I was happy with my result because a person who has a dominating personality has some
strong qualities such as taking authority, accepting challenges and making quick decisions which are very important in fast paced environment. I also liked influential part which includes characteristics such as creating a motivational environment, generating enthusiasm and viewing people and situations optimistically. I did not wish that I was another type, however I think learning some qualities that a "C" personality (Conscientiousness) has such as paying attention to key directives and standards, analyzing performance critically, and using a systematic approach to situations or activities will also be beneficial for a person especially in making tough decisions both personal and business.

I think this test is very helpful in interpreting people`s management personality and can serve a key to understanding one`s personality. It can also give an observer an insight to determining both strong qualities and weaknesses of participant which in turn will help him to interact with the participant more effectively.

The first idea that came to my mind after taking this test is that if I was a manager I would definitely use this leadership/management diagnostic when hiring new employees so that I would know which department will benefit best from this person and which qualities he or she needs to develop or improve.

The Power of Vision

The video called "The Power of Vision" that we watched in class was very informative and inspiring. The video discusses the importance of having a vision in one`s life and future that will guide them to making the right decisions in the most challenging and even fatal moments in their lives. For instance, I enjoyed the part in which they talked about the psychologist named Victor Frankl who was a victim of World War II. Frankl had a vision that helped him not only survive but also learn from his experience. Thousands of people starved to death, were abused, tortured and killed. However, there were others who managed to survive while living in the same conditions. What helped them is them is the vision, a hope that gave them strength to continue living, the light that they saw in the darkness which they followed. Having a vision about your future is very important for anyone who wants to live a meaningful life because vision gives people an idea about where he or she wants to stand  in let`s say 5 or 10 years in terms of career, family, etc. Vision helps us plan and build our future and serves as a foundation to big journey of  life that must be accomplished. I have a vision about my future. First of all, I want to get a good education and learn as much as I can in college so that I will have sufficient knowledge while making decisions in real life situations whether it is at work or on leisure. Secondly, I want to gain a lot of experience by participating in mentorship programs, educational seminars, researches or even meet people who have achieved their goals in the same field. Meeting successful people will help me analyze my vision about my future. Another and a more personal vision is to build a great family in which each member is loved and supported. The family that has good morals and a vision for a better life.

"Informed decision-making comes from a long tradition of guessing and then blaming others for inadequate results". Scott Adams

             In the class activity on decision making on March 7th, 2011 I used "Avoidance" method because it seemed to me that there was no way that the whole class would come up with a proposal that everybody would agree on.   I have also noticed other students who decided to withdraw from decision making process because they felt the same way.Also, I used "Accommodation" method by letting other decide what kind of exam we would have next time because first, I knew I would have to study harder for the next exam  to be able to answer all questions regardless of the exam format. Secondly, if I would still suggest something it would be lowering the worth of the first exam so that it would not affect our overall grade for class by much. Some students however, used "Compete to win" method who gave various suggestions  such as having no essay, having essay worth less points, having essay questions before the exam, etc. to swift the decision making process. One of the female students who managed the decision making process played an important role in finally making the decision by using "Collaborating" method. She encouraged other students to give suggestions and participate in the decision making process, negotiating with them with Professor Kurpis` support and approval.  

"An Eggs-cellent Way to Plan"

       Our goal in the class activity on February 17th was to develop a plan that would help us effectively complete the task. We were given 25 minutes to think of plan which would enable us to protect an egg from any cracks and breakages, and 10 minutes to finish the task using one egg, nine straws and a paper tape. Our group went through all the steps of the planning process. Our planning included two ways of constructing a protective case for an egg. The first idea was to cut the straws into many pieces and to connect them using scotch tape to build a square basket. The second plan was to weave a basket by sticking the straw ends together. We chose the second plan which helped us to protect the egg while showing 50 percent of the egg. The basket had a strong base and sides that would prevent the egg from slipping out of the basket. Our team`s performance was good but it could be better if everyone in the group worked like one and were optimistic. In my opinion, our plan was excellent and the protective basket for an egg was also well planned. I think we had a good chance of winning the contest if only the egg was thrown gently, not smashed into the trash can.  

Are You Culturally Shocked?

 Every culture has their way of living which includes their religion, traditions, customs, beliefs, languages, etc. Consequently, what is appropriate in one culture may not be so in a different culture and appear shocking to some people. I was born in Uzbekistan and later moved to Kazakhstan but I did not really feel a big difference between the two countries.  It maybe due to the fact these countries were a part of former Soviet Union in which all people spoke the same language.

             I have first experienced culture shock when I came to the United States in the summer of 2006. I spent most of the summer in Ocean City, NJ.  Every morning  I passed by strangers who greeted me with a welcoming smile and asked me how I was. That was something that I have never experienced in my country. I have also noticed that these nice people were not just pretending to smile but they were actually sincere. I went back to Kazakhstan in the end of the summer.

            The next year in 2007 I found myself in America again. This time it was the famous “Big Apple” or the New York City which did not stop surprising me.  It was summer.  The first thing I noticed is that there were so many people in New York that represent different backgrounds, cultures, and countries.  Especially, I was shocked to see the way Americans dress and so did my friends from Russia, Moldova, Ukraine,Poland, etc.  Women wore business suits, skirts, dresses and they also wore sneakers , rubber sole clogs with them. I thought that clogs were the ugliest shoes ever. Men followed the same fashion but I guess the way women dress stands out a lot, simply because they were women. Also, it was very strange to see young women wearing boots with a dress. The cowboy boots were not made for wearing in summer which would be designed so that the air passes through them but simply the kind that one would wear in autumn or winter.   

          Finally, a more annoying  cultural shock to me was that most American`s I have met in my life do not know Geography as opposed to Europeans. For example, when I was asked about my country which is Kazakhstan. I would get a very weird reaction like “where? Pakistan? Afghanistan?.....” or the most common respond such as “Have you seen the movie Borat?”. However, I have to give a credit for those who were in Peace Corps and knew a lot. It is just that in my country  we had started learning Geography in sixth grade and were taught to identify the country and its capital. Plus I went to English courses with American teachers Miss Mott from Seattle and Miss Dause from Virginia for 2 years: 2003-2004 in Kazakhstan. One day, we were given an exam which required us to fill in the fifty U.S. states in a blank map. The task was not easy but certainly helped me improve my knowledge about the United States of America before I came here.

In conclusion, I believe that it is important and fun to know about different cultures, countries. Especially, if you live in a diverse  city such as New York which empowers you with the knowledge about many nations, cultures, tastes, humor, food and traditions.       

     

Introduction of myself

       My name is Dinara Kemelbekova. I am originally from Kazakhstan. This is my 1st semester at Baruch College. I previously studied in BMCC college and received my Associate`s degree in Business Administration. My current major is Advertising and Marketing Communication with a minor in Economics. I am also interested in management and would like to learn the skills that help one become a successful manager who is able to make profitable decisions for a company and bring it forth.


Thank you,

Dinara Kemelbekova
MGMT 3120/MW6A