TED Talks

http://www.ted.com/talks/jim_hemerling_5_ways_to_lead_in_an_era_of_constant_change?utm_source=tedcomshare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=tedspread

The talk that resonated with me the most was by Jim Hemerling and was titled "5 Ways to Lead in an Era of Constant Change".  This talk took place in Paris, France in May of 2016.  In this TED Talk, Jim describes what he refers to as "always on transformation" which can be summarized as a company's willingness to advance and grow, which he finds vital to the success of a company.  Although he states that always on transformation sounds exhausted, he addressed 5 things that he believes lead to transforming an organization in a positive direction.  The first one is having a sense of purpose.  Without a purpose for a company or organization, there is no ability to grow or flourish.  The second is going all in.  If you do not put forth all of your effort you are wasting your time, it is important to find something that you are passionate about and pursue it, because you will be far more successful and happy in life.  The third thing that he stressed was being able to provide opportunity for others.  It is important that you not only help yourself grow, but also help build connections with others that will help them thrive in whatever field or avenue they are pursuing.  He also advocated for organizations fostering a culture of continuous learning.  It is important that learning is something that is encouraged, because there is aways opportunity to learn and improve as a person.  The last of his five tips was to hold people accountable for their actions as a leader, and also to be an inclusive leader.  This is something that resonated with me the most.  As ASB President, it is often difficult finding ways to get different people in the class involved in activities that we do.  His advice for being an inclusive leader started with listening to what people have to say, and also presenting yourself in a way that makes you approachable.  These are two things that I work very hard to do, and as a leader these are things that I value myself and in others.  I would highly recommend this TED Talk to anyone that in interested in leadership or business, it gives some great advice on how to run an organization and how to really grow a company to be successful both personally and professionally.  I found it very informative, and his five tips are definitely things that I will try to implement in my leadership class this year and in any other business endeavors that may come my way in the future.

Blog #14 - Internship Update

After debating on switching internships for the first month of the new year, I decided to continue on with my internship at Veeva.  It has been great learning in the field this year and having the opportunity to do hands on work has been amazing.  My current task for this semester is creating an on boarding program for the company.  On boarding is basically the steps that the company will take when new people are hired to ensure that the transition is smooth.  My internship provider and I have been primarily working on how to teach various aspects of the company (powerpoint, 1 on 1 conversation, video, etc.) and also who will be in charge of getting that done.  It has been very similar to leadership, where my internship provider is delegating tasks to members of her team, which is something that I do frequently.  I have learned through my internship that being bored is okay.  Often there just isn't stuff for me to do, so finding new ways to keep myself busy has been good practice for when I have a job of my own in the future.  I have learned that the business field is very structural, and everything has steps upon steps before it is completed.  I really love this about business, and being an organized person is definitely something that will be beneficial for me in this field in the future.  One thing that I would like to continue doing is meeting new people and networking myself.  My goal for this semester has been to practice my networking skills, because connections are very important to have.  One thing that I would like to do is work with another person on a few activities when I'm not doing anything, as opposed to sitting watching my internship provider answer emails.  I have already talked to my internship provider about shadowing other employees and she has been more than willing to help out.  I haven't really come across any questions about my industry or internship, my mentor has been very helpful in ensuring that I am aware of what is going on and she has done a good job easing me into the internship.  Between now and the end of the year I hope to finish the on boarding program (although this is a huge task) and also assist my internship provider in planning a community service/outreach type project for the company.  It would be really cool to be able to blend my experience in leadership with something at my internship and plan something successful.  I continue to forget to take pictures at my internship, my mentor and I have been very busy recently, but when I go in next week I will be sure to take some pictures to post!