Erica
Alex Library 2-18-13
0Today I worked on the COB Career LibGuide, adding new pages and researching databases to be used in the LibGuide.
Alex CAT 2-15-13
0Today I sent my contact information to Michelle and then continued to work on the WordPress skills checklist and wrote my Spring 2013 reflection.
Alex Spring 2013 Reflection
0First Month in Information Commons
During my first month of working in Information Commons I have learned to how to use Moodle more effectively as a student and instructor. I am now more comfortable providing help to people that have questions about using Moodle. I also learned how to use iMovie a lot better than before and created an iMovie bio using the skills I learned through the iMovie training.
Experience
My experience in IC would have to be working on the Google Forms project with Erica for Butler University’s Center for Citizenship and Community. Before taking on the project I was only somewhat familiar with Google Forms and what its capacity was. After working on the project for the CCC I was made aware Google Forms are a very useful and powerful tool. It is a tool that could be used for many departments to make students and instructors processes very easy. I enjoyed this project because it relates closely to my major, Management Information Systems. Through this project it reinforced why I chose the major I did. I learned that communication of what the client wants the system to do is very important because in the development stage Erica and I were creating what we thought they would like the form system to do. Luckily, what we created seemed to be what they wanted when we met with them. This project is not yet finished but it shows that any project that requires working outside of your organization takes time to develop and probably not as fast as you would like. Schedules of the people working on the project do not always work out and not all people can meet to work on the project when you want.
Tips for Future Assistants
Learn everything you can and don’t be afraid of programs you have not used before. Working in IC is great opportunity to broaden your skill set and better equip you for your job, classes and personal life.
Use both the Mac computers and the PCs in order to familiarize yourself with both
If an Associate presents you with a project, take it! It could be a great opportunity and you will learn a lot through doing it.
Strengths and Weaknesses
My strengths are problem solving, both my problems and others. I enjoy a challenge and then working toward a solution. In addition my program strengths are library research, iMovie, Google Forms, and WordPress.
My weakness is customer service and addressing a customers problem when they come into CAT. I have a hard time of understanding exactly what they need and directing them to someone who can address their problem.
What am I passionate about?
I am passionate about helping others and showing them how to make their life easier and more productive through technology. I am also passionate about finding solutions to people’s problems regarding technology.
Goals
I would like to improve my customer service by greeting the customers as they come in and paying close attention to what the need help with and refer customers to the right people. To help with referring them to someone else when I do not know, I would like to better understand what others strengths are inside CAT to refer the customer to.
Kate 2/15 CAT
0Today I worked on tracking down the photos I used in the posters and getting permission to use them. Got permission for one! yay. The other two I may have to change, don’t worry they will be even better ….and with proper picture permissions.
Ryan CAT 2/15
0- Completed and emailed iMovie Checklist
- Typed Spring 2013 Reflection 1
Ryan’s 2013 Spring Reflection 1
0During the short amount of time that I have been working inthe Information Commons, I have managed to learn a vast amount of information on ways to use technology than I thought I would ever be able to gain. I have also had a fascination with the ways that technology works, and always trying to figure out how they work on my own. Or search around on the internet looking up guides and videos and not stopping until I figured out how to complete the task that was at hand. Being a part of Information Commons has helped me build on my independence when it comes to learning new things by providing guides and videos to help me learn how to use programs I have never used, or even heard it, and be able to use them with a decent proficiency and has even helped when it comes to my school work as WordPress and DreamWeaver are both programs that are taught in a class that I am taking this semester. Be able to create a website in itself is something that I never thought I would be able to accomplish, but working with IC had really helped me see that anything is possible if you really set out and make a goal of it.
Although I have had a good amount of success of learning how to use new programs with the help of associates, guides, and videos, sometimes I would get to a point where I just was still confused with how to use a certain program. During the time that we were required to use learn how to use Access, no matter how many times I watched videos, got help, and clicked around in the program hoping that I would eventually figure out how to use the program, I still had problems with how it worked. But eventually my associate at the time (Michelle) asked another associate (Meg) if she could help write out instructions to help me complete the task. The document that she typed up really helped me a lot even though I was still confused about how some of the aspects of the software worked. I haven’t used access since we were assigned to learn how to use it, but I would like to try and go back one day and click around in the software for awhile to learn more about what all it can do, and to be able to have the knowledge of how to use another software even if it is at a more elementary level proficiency.
Advice to future IC student workers:
- Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Questions: For some people, going into a new work environment where you don’t know anyone can be a little daunting to someone, but never be afraid to ask questions if you need help with anything whether it’s an associate or just another assistant. Everyone in IC is genuinely nice and caring, and any questions that you may have will get answered. Even if the person that you ask doesn’t know the answer, they will help you find someone that will no matter what it takes. Asking questions helps show that you are interested in what you’re doing, and you’re interested in learning how to do something that you previously didn’t have the knowledge about. So never be afraid to ask a question no matter how silly you might think it is because everyone in IC is always going to be there to help you succeed with your job.
- Never Give Up: If you don’t have the prior knowledge of working with a certain software or piece of technology, you might hit a point where you get stuck and feel like giving up, but you shouldn’t. From personal experience, if you ever get stuck and you really want to figure out how to do something on your own without the help of someone, try clicking around and see where things take you because you will probably even figure out things that you didn’t know before while looking into the solution that you’re having. You should always give it a shot and see if you can learn the things on your own or even through a Google search if you’re determined to figure out how to do something, and should never give up and just go on to something else just because you’re frustrated that with figuring out how to do something. But don’t just click around for answers for hours to try to find your answer. If you’re having a lot of difficult, don’t be afraid to ask for help.
- Find Your Niche: Everyone has as certain piece of technology that they are more comfortable with than others. Finding one that you’re most comfortable with will help you succeed a lot when it comes to working in IC. You’ll be able to help IC as a whole if you’re proficient in a certain software or hardware as they will be able to look to you for certain projects that need to be completed or helping out with various trainings. Helping with these will also help you hone your skills as you’ll always have chances to work with them and improve and add on to the skills that you already have. So don’t be afraid to find something that you love working with or seem to have a natural talent for as it can come in handy and can potentially open up many different and unique opportunities that you might have the pleasure of being a part of.
Working in the Information Commons has shown me that I am capable of being independent in a work environment. Being in my second semester as a junior, knowing that I have much time left before I graduate does scare me because I am afraid that I won’t be able to hold my own in professional work environment. But since working in the IC, I have seen in myself that I am able to come to work and start on my work for the day and usually get in projects and tasks completed in a timely fashion. I have also learned that I am pretty good at using DreamWeaver, though not the best. I had fun completing my website last semester despite some some hiccups every now and then, but in the end I was able to make a decent, yet simple website. And being in MS265 this semester, I was able to use my knowledge of what I learned to do in IC to help with a resume website that we are currently working on. It also helped me pass a quiz (17/20) over information I wasn’t in class to learn and that’s in a book that I did not buy (Awesome!).
Despite discovering some of my strengths and making some of them even stronger, I have also realized and was reminded of some of my weaknesses. One of my weaknesses that I have always struggled with due to personal reasons is the fact that I have problems with speaking to a group of people or even just recording myself and knowing in the back of my head that it is going to be seen. Being a pianist for most of my life and starting to perform for people when I was 12, I came to the realization that I do have issues with knowing that “all eyes are on me”. I’m not comfortable with knowing that the attention is all on me mainly when it comes to being the center of attention around people that I don’t know. And I know this problem has affected me at work due to always trying to avoid recording Panapto’s as it was something that I knew I would be extremely uncomfortable doing. But it is something that I plan on trying to work on so I’m not always afraid and uncomfortable about being put in a situation where I am the center of attention. Another weakness of mind that I noticed is that I’m not always sure of myself when it comes to answering questions. While working in the library, I was always asked questions about a lot of different things from just copying to where books are located in the library. And sometimes when people came up to ask me questions, I wasn’t one hundred percent sure of myself and would ask someone just to double check that I was giving the person the right answer. I need to work on going over things every now and then to remind myself things about the library more than I do so I will have more confidence when answering people’s questions, and maybe even gain more confidence in myself just as a person.
I have always had a passion for music and an interest in technology as my parents are both musicians and my sister and aunt are heavily into IT. The combination of the both eventually led me to major in Recording Industry Studies with a Business minor. Although I am better at information technology than I actually am when it comes to recording technology, having the opportunity to be able to work with both inside of class and at both of my jobs is amazing. I enjoy being able to learn as much as I can about any type of technology whether it be through music, computers, video games, or even cellphones. Knowing that the technology exists makes me want to try to have fun with it if I have the means to which I have been lucky enough to do such as rooting my cellphone and reverting it back to normal, and even modding a couple of handheld gaming consoles because I was bored. Having the access to a lot of different forms of technology drives me as it is, and I’m always willing to try anything once when it comes to technology even if it fails because in the event that I do fail and I feel like I’ve possibly broken something (such as unlocking an iPhone recently), I will work for however longs it takes to get things up and running again and take pride in my accomplishment.
Shannon S. @ CAT&Lib 2/14/13
0HAPPY VALENTINES DAY.
Today I finished my reflection and sent it to meg. Then i started watching the Dreamweaver videos and tried to follow along with them. I am about half way through the videos and probably will not finish then during my shift at the library later today. During my library shift i worked on burning a disk for Tim
Alex Library 2-14-13
0Today in IC I met with Tim Hommey to go over the COB Career Development LibGuide and started on creating the LibGuide with the research I have done on different resources.
Ryan CAT 2/14
0- Emailed Michelle contact information
- Worked on iMovie Checklist
Erica’s 2013 Spring Reflection 1
0When asked why I came to Butler, I often jokingly respond that it was because of Excel. Whenever I have to make a big decision, like where am I going to spend four years of my life during undergrad, I make a table. I think of all the factors that are important to me—location, cost of living, retention rate, number of nearby churches—and I utilize the comparison to make a decision. I said all that to point out how ingrained technology is into my life. I’ve always been a somewhat geeky person. If I want to learn how to use a program, either I point and click until I understand everything or I find an instructional that helps walk me through it.
Working at Information Commons has given me the opportunity to do everything I love. I work with and learn new technologies every day. I am constantly teaching others and building instructional resources. But most of all, working at Information Commons has taught me how to truly be a leader. All of these skills are things that I will keep with me the rest of my life. Information Commons has been a high point of my experience at Butler and will always be what I credit as my first real professional experience. But what have I left behind me as a legacy? What have I contributed to the program that has poured so much into me? Now that’s a harder question to answer.
My hope is that my biggest contribution to Information Commons has been that I have been an example of leadership and mentoring. My first semester here was really tough because I came on to the job as an Associate, and most of the time felt like I had no idea what I was doing. That year and the next, I tried my best to model my actions and leadership after Kristen Allen. Kristen was the backbone of the program, and I wanted to make sure that her hard work did not go to waste and her vision continued after she was gone. Now, I hope that others can say the same of me.
My goal during my time here has been to be the best Associate I can be. I want to be an example of a trustworthy person. I want the new Assistants to see my work ethics and drive and understand that is what we want them to model after. I have tried to be a role model in leadership. I want model to others that leaders are still expected to follow the same rules as those who follow them. I want my team to understand that we work together; they don’t work for me. And I want to implement streamline processes and keep things organized so that anyone who comes in after me can easily understand and pick up a project where I left off.
One of the things I am most proud of and excited about is that Julianne has allowed the associates to help build and change the program. I had the opportunity to play an integral role in the creation of the new Specialist position. I have been involved in changing and implementing new policies that help keep the students accountable to the program and help us accomplish our vision. And most of all, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to lead independently. Instead of just fulfilling a list of job expectations, I’ve branched out and created new responsibilities and opportunities for myself.
Coming into the job, I was pretty confident in my ability to lead by example. What I soon realized I was clueless about was how to be a true leader, because a true leader isn’t just an example, but has followers. Now, I feel that I have developed into becoming a leader through mentorship. It’s a learning process I’m still working on, but I now understand that just being the example isn’t enough. If I want others to follow my example, I need to mentor them by learning their strengths and weaknesses, helping them discover their fit in the program, making them feel important and necessary, and inspiring them to have continual growth. Part of mentoring is addressing weaknesses, and that’s the one area I still struggle with. I want to focus on people’s strengths all the time, but sometimes that creates problem areas that later become a big hindrance. My goal this semester is to learn how to help people with their weaknesses and still make their overall experience positive.
So what is my legacy? If I had to leave advice for future Information Commons students, this is what I would tell them:
- Be the initiator. If you don’t understand exactly what you are supposed to do, ask. If you think of a new project that would benefit the program, suggest it. If you want to become a leader in the program, display those characteristics now. If you feel that the program could be more effective in one area, bring that to the attention of your supervisors and then help implement the change. The Information Commons program isn’t bounded by a job description and set list of services. We are constantly changing, seeking improvements, and growing. But that process can only happen if you take the initiative and become the change.
- Expect to grow. Information Commons is a professional development program and therefore will challenge you to develop your abilities. If you feel overwhelmed at first by the magnitude of what we do, welcome to the club. We are all still learning and growing as the program continues to expand. While you may be the resident expert in one thing, most likely there will need to ask for help with something else. Use each opportunity to learn from those around you and always be willing to grow.
- Be a leader. No matter what your title is or how long you have been in the program, be a leader. Rise above the expectations and be willing to take on responsibility. Hold yourself to a high standard, but don’t expect others to do more than you are willing to do. Be understanding. Be a peacemaker. Be willing to apologize. Be the example. Learn how to mentor someone and then help them reach their full potential. Always look for the good in every situation and person. Always put the person before the problem, the program, or the position. Seek advice if you are struggling or at a loss. Information Commons has great potential, but the only way we can see the vision become a reality is by leading the way.