Vital Friends and Clashing Strengths

1.      My friend Megan represents the builder role. I’ve known Megan since I moved to California, and we were in the same school. We have often discusses schools, careers, opportunities and jobs together.

2.      My friend Rachel (Yes, we have the same name and it does complicate things) fits three roles for me: Champion, collaborator and companion. It seems like a bit of a stretch, but she has supported me in all of my endeavors, been there for me always, shares my high ambitions, and has the same interests. She is very protective and me, and extremely loyal.

3.      Kelly is my connector friend. She somehow knows a lot of different people and has linked me in to quite a few of her friend groups.

4.      Energizer category are my family friends Gigi and her daughter Ellie. I teach Ellie private ballet lessons and then we have tea together. It’s always a fun experience.

5.      Marisa fits the role of the Mind-opener friend. She has a way of framing very thought provoking questions and effortlessly makes you think of things you never would have considered.

6.       And lastly, my mum fits the role of Navigator. My mum and I are really close, and she has always gives her opinion and aids in making decisions.

                

Some of the strengths that I think would clash with mine are command, competition and in some cases, deliberative. Individuals who have the strength of command tend to take charge of the situation. The reason I think I wouldn’t respond well to command is because I’m usually the one to take the initiative, and I don’t like being told what to do, especially if they are my equal. Competition is the other strength that I think I might clash with. I’m actually quite competitive myself, but I feel like I know where to draw the line of where the contest ends. I’ve been in situations with people who are so concerned that they won’t be the best, and it frustrates me. Sometimes it’s not all about you, and I think that this is one of the shadow sides of Competition. The last strength I think I could clash with is Deliberative. In some instances, I understand that you need to take time to make important decisions. However, with little decisions or situations where you need to react quickly, you don’t have the time to contemplate it. Take advantage of the time you are given.

Thanks for reading!
Rachel Khan 

Mission Statement

I am at my best when I am challenged or when I work with people I trust. .
I will try to prevent times when I don't have any control over the situation or when I am anxious. .
I will enjoy my work by finding employment where I can Working on creative projects, working with people, teaching and mentoring, and meeting a challenge. .
I will find enjoyment in my personal life through Cooking, reading, baking, singing, dancing, music, spending time with people I love, watching TV programs, films and theatre, travelling, and exploring new places. .
I will find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts such as Arts, Good with people, strong personality, leader, being a friend, adventurous and dedicated. .
I can do anything I set my mind to. I will I would travel and create an organization to take care of children and teach them life skills and give them an education. Perhaps crate a partnership or form our own clothing company to provide resources. I think I'd do this as a side project while working for an internationally based company so that I could have the means to travel. .
My life's journey is If I were the heroine of my own story, I think I would take a few friends with me, and travel as far as I could. I think I would want to save people from hurting, and help them. No one should have to be hurt and alone. You can't realistically save everyone, but I think I would be successful in the end, which would be passing on the tradition to the next generation. .
I will be a person who Cares for others, has courage, stood up for what she believed in and was a strong woman of God. .
My most important future contribution to others will be Someone who was always there for them, listened to them, supported them and protected them. To be a true companion in their time of need. .

I will stop procrastinating and start working on:

·         To be less impulsive and spontaneous.

·         To not be as sassy and snarky and be more sensitive.

·         Not to be too invested in a prospective situation in case in doesn't go through.

I will strive to incorporate the following attributes into my life:

·         Imagination, artistic perspective and empathy

·         Intelligence, wisdom and ambition

·         Companionship and respect

I will constantly renew myself by focusing on the four dimensions of my life:

·         To keep in shape, make healthy decisions and be my best.

·         To maintain my faith in God, pray often, and to pour into others.

·         To recognize when my stress levels are too high, and when I need to take a break. Also when to control my emotions.

·         To help others and not to get carries away with my emotions.

The two goals I selected to work on were 1) to be a good student so that I am able to be successful in the business world and in life, and 2) to continue to build my work relations skills and gain professional experience. I didn’t set any stakes, because if I don’t meet my goal, my emotional connections would be enough guilt or happiness. My referee is my mum, because I’m around her more than I am anyone else. My best friend Rachel is my support, in addition to my family, and I think they will hold me accountable. Three qualities that I have that I think will help me in reaching my goals are my determination, control over situations, and my desire to its end instead of stopping in the middle.

As always, 

Thanks for reading, 

Rachel. 

Carpe Diem: Locus of Control Results

1.                

                                      My score from the locus of control assignment was a five, which means I have an internal locus of control. I would agree with this assessment because I am very determined and aspirational, and my focus is working hard to achieve my goals. I believe you should work as hard as you can to reach your destination because that’s the way to improve yourself and get you to your goal, so that you can begin a new dream. Having an internal locus of control can backfire in negative situations, as I tend to take losses very personally.

2.       Journal Entry Six:

1)      My current situation with this problem is a recurring injury I had. In ballet, like any other sport, when you injure yourself you need to take enough time off to recover. I went back too soon, when I thought I was fully recovered. One thing led to another, and then I had to get surgery. I had done load of physical therapy, and then I switched physical therapists and continued. My current struggle is that I need to motivate myself to do my at home exercises.

2)      I would eventually like to get back to doing what I love: ballet. I absolutely adore the feeling of being in the studio. It just makes me feel at home. I don’t have as strong of a desire to be a professional dancer as I used to, but I would like to teach at a studio and definitely keep participating in it. I love watching, teaching and doing dance. It’s a very rewarding experience, and definitely something I would like to continue doing on the side of my latest endeavor.

3)      I think my choices are clearly set in front of me. I show dedication by doing my home exercises, return to physical therapy and really focus on regaining my strength. From there, I can return to teaching my student and eventually to dancing. After that, wherever I go, I would like to continue going to classes. I would like to remain a part, but not all-encompassing part of my life. The other choice is to continue not doing my exercises and leaving my ankle in the current situation it is. The longer I leave it, the worse it will get.

4)      The first option would leave me with the positive conclusion of resuming my passion, learning more, and teaching what I know to the next generation. The second option wouldn’t change my current status whatsoever, and things will remain the way they are now.

5)      I will chose the first option and completely dedicate myself into fixing and returning to what I love. I watched a documentary series about ballet today, and it really inspired me to go and get back what I lost, and made me realize just how much I miss doing dance.

6)      My goal is to begin my plan starting this week. I will get myself into a routine and working hard to get it done. If I return to physical therapy within a month of me faithfully doing my exercises, then I think I could get better in 4 months, maybe even less. And if I am able to go back, then I’ll finish out the remainder of my plan for the rest of my life.

Thanks for reading!

Rachel  

Self-Assessment

1. In your journal, write the eight areas of the self-assessment and record your scores for each as follows:
63  Accepting Personal Responsibility
78  Discovering Self-Motivation
70  Mastering Self-Management
68  Employing Independence
77 Gaining Self-Awareness
68  Adopting Lifelong Learning
51  Developing Emotional Intelligence
70  Believing in Myself

2. My four highest scores were in Discovering Self-Motivation, Gaining Self-Awareness, Mastering Self-Management and Believing in Myself. I think the reason for this is that I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I'm extremely artistic, but I like being organized and I hold myself to high standards. I like to push myself, and I hate quitting in the middle of something before I've finished my part. I'm a very opinionated individual, and I usually stick to my opinion in an argument. I like to think the best will come out of any situation, and I like formulating ways to improve things.

3. The areas that I scored lowest in were Employing Independence, Adopting Lifelong Learning, Developing Emotional Intelligence and Accepting Personal Responsibility. The fact that I scored the lowest in these areas was interesting was it went completely against what I thought I would do well in. I'm very independent and I like doing thing for myself instead of having them done for me. One of the principles that I've been taught since I was little and strongly believe in is that you never stop learning and you can learn from everything around you in the seemingly mundane everyday. I've been very responsible from a young age. The one that struck me more than the rest was Developing Emotional Intelligence. I consider myself a controlled person, but I suppose we all have things to work on, and I am looking forward to strengthening my weaknesses and  developing my strengths.

Thank you for reading!
Rachel