Introduction
Over the last three weeks, you worked with a team from your gathering. You may have felt a range of emotions. Maybe you felt frustration waiting for others to help or do their part, or maybe you saw the benefits of using each other's talents and abilities to share the load. Of all the things that you might have learned from this experience, there is one that should shine through—your ability to work with others.
The team project has revealed to yourself and others what kind of employee, teammate, and disciple of Christ you really are. This lesson will give you an opportunity to reflect on your performance and what you think it says about your ability to work with others. You’ll also examine how your performance aligns with your personal values and consider ways that you could be a better disciple leader. Finally, you will reflect on the whole course as you prepare to move on to the next step of PathwayConnect.
Disciple Leadership
At the beginning of this course, you were told that “this course is designed to help you develop two important elements of disciple leadership—a deepening of your conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ and the professional skills you will need to lead.” You’re now nearing the end of that journey. We’ve covered a lot of topics this semester, from managing your career to improving your communication skills, decision-making, teamwork, and collaboration. As you went through these lessons, how did you do at balancing your spiritual development and professional skill development? Some students find it difficult to continue to build their spirituality when dealing with the complexities of the team project and the more business-focused lessons. Others find that when they are forced to work in teams, it is easier to apply the Learning Model and ministering principles with their teammates.
Building up the people around you and adding value wherever you serve is a big job. Some days you might feel like you're doing good just to get by. But how, despite our weakness, can we find ways to be better disciple leaders? Let’s review some of the principles of disciple leadership that we studied in this course to measure how well you applied them throughout the team project.
Small "L" Leadership
At the beginning of this course, you learned that leadership does not come from a position or calling, but rather from your ability to influence others through your example and service. We called this type of leadership small "L" leadership. Your team project gave you a practical way to practice small "L" leadership. No matter how you divided up the tasks or roles on your team, you could, through your example, lift and serve others. You had the opportunity to look past the assignment and reach out with love and kindness to those who were struggling or who were dealing with issues at home or at work that made it difficult for them to complete assignments. Indeed, you may have even been the recipient of a teammate’s kindness and help. Your influence, good or bad, was felt by your teammates.
Learning Model
As a reminder, the learning model involves these steps:
Prepare
- Complete assignments early
- Engage in pre-class discussions
- Bring questions to share
Teach One Another
- Listen and respond
- Respect others
- Invite the Spirit
Ponder and Prove
- Reflect individually
- Reflect in groups
- Record learning
- Test understanding
The heart of the Learning Model is being responsible for your own learning and being willing to serve and teach others. The team project gave you the chance to not only be responsible for yourself but also to help others. To evaluate your performance in this area, ask yourself "Did I help as much as I could?" Perhaps most of all, the Team Project gave you the chance to teach one another. For example, if you understood the math or knew how to use Excel or PowerPoint, you likely had the opportunity to share it with others.
Competent
In the first week, you read the following quote from Elder Richard L. Evans: “You know, it is a wonderful thing to be faithful, but a much greater thing to be both faithful and competent. There is no particular virtue in being uninformed, certainly no virtue in ignorance. When young people can acquire the skills, the techniques, and the knowledge of these times, and along with it have a spiritual commitment and a solid faith and cleanliness of life, there is nothing that you can’t achieve; nothing in righteousness or in reason” (From an address given to the young people at the Northwest Inland Division Gathered for Zion’s Camp, October 15, 1971).
In your semester project, you could have relied on the work of others rather than learning for yourself. While it is wise to draw upon the talents and skills of your teammates, coasting on the merits of others eventually catches up with you. Employers usually know who their most competent and hard workers are. If you want to grow your career and be a good disciple leader, it would be good to follow the council in D&C 107:99–100: “Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence. He that is slothful shall not be counted worthy to stand, and he that learns not his duty and shows himself not approved shall not be counted worthy to stand. Even so. Amen.”
Professional Skills
We’ve been emphasizing all along that teamwork and collaboration is an essential skill. It consistently shows up in employer surveys and often gets turned into interview questions like the following:
- Can you tell me about a team project that you worked on?
- Are you more energized by working alone or by collaborating with other individuals?
- Describe a disappointing team experience. What could you have done to prevent it?
- Can you describe an experience when you worked with a difficult team member? What did you do to resolve the situation?
- Describe a project that you've worked on that required input from different people.
- Have you ever been part of a virtual team? How well are you able to collaborate with people remotely?
You might not have thought about your team project as a test of your employability, but your employers would be very interested to know how well you work with others.
Initiative vs. Deference
The team project gave you a chance to evaluate your ability to work with others while also revealing your ability to balance initiative and deference. In the first week of this course, you were introduced to this graphic which shows the four quadrants of initiative vs deference.
Take a moment to look over this graphic again. Based on what you see, how do you feel that you did during your project? Were there times that you were high or low in initiative or deference? What quadrant would you put your peers in? It can be hard to be both high-initiative and high-deference, but good disciple leaders learn how to operate in this quadrant.
Conclusion
At the beginning of this course, you were encouraged to offer the talents and skills that you learned in this course to the Lord. You read about how Adam and Eve were commanded to offer the best of what they had to the Lord. You learned that it was through their sacrifice that they made an acceptable offering to the Lord, and by so doing, became more like Him.
During this course, you have had to make your own sacrifices. You stayed up late or got up early to complete your assignments. You rearranged your schedule to attend your gatherings, work with your teammates, and deal with all the other things in your life. Whether you realize it or not, you have—through your sacrifice—made an offering to the Lord.
Only you and God know the size and shape of your sacrifice and how that sacrifice has changed you. One thing is for certain though—your sacrifice to complete this course has made you more capable. You can use the talents and skills that you’ve developed in this course to be a disciple leader. This week, you’ll do just that by giving students who are just beginning this course advice on how to be successful. You’ll also solidify how you’ll use your new skills to bless your home, your family, the church, and your community.
Giving Back
To replenish means to give back, to restore a resource that has been used, or to build up a reserve. If we don’t replenish our resources, they eventually run out. Pioneers often survived on crops that earlier pioneer groups had planted along the way. In turn, those pioneers then planted new crops for the pioneers who would come later. People who have gone before us have also replenished what they have taken and made it possible for us to receive the blessings we enjoy today.
Similarly, in Haiti, members planted trees to stop erosion. They knew that the trees wouldn’t directly benefit them but they wanted their children and grandchildren to live in a world where they didn’t have to suffer from the devastating effects of erosion the way they did.
We have a responsibility to similarly prepare the way for future generations. This principle can apply to many aspects of life including financial help, rearing children, natural resources, and education. At the heart of replenishment is the desire to pass on the blessings that we have received to others. This is one of the reasons why disciple leadership has been a central theme of this course. If you can learn how to manage your career, develop professional skills, and work with others, while at the same time being a disciple leader, then you will have learned how to use education to become more like Christ. Sometimes people view education as a way to “get ahead” in life. Conversely, disciple leaders view education as a way to lift their families and communities for generations. In short, disciple leaders consecrate (dedicate) their learning to the Lord.
One of the ways the Learning Model helps students and teachers consecrate their learning is by teaching one another. It’s also an important part of being a good disciple leader because it puts you in the mindset that part of the reason you’re studying is to share your learning with others. In that spirit, for your application activity this week, your assignment will be to create a letter giving advice to a future PC 102 student. While this activity will certainly have personal benefits like reflection and introspection, it will be more of an opportunity for you to give back and help those who are just starting their journey to be more successful. We may use your letter to help prepare students to start the course or for a particular assignment. Think of this as your opportunity to give back to students who will follow you.
Before you begin the last assignment, ponder over the topics discussed throughout the semester. Consider which ones stand out to you the most. This will help you decide what to say in your letter.
- Week 1 Disciple Leadership. Find a job posting, choose a certificate course for next semester.
- Week 2 Career Management. Complete a resume.
- Week 3 Networking and Interviewing. Create or update a LinkedIn profile, or conduct an informational interview.
- Week 4 Relationships and Teamwork. Create a team governance document.
- Week 5 Interpreting Data and Making Decisions. Complete a break-even analysis.
- Week 6 Professional Communication. Create a professional email and presentation
Looking Ahead to GS 170: Career Development
GS 170 is a course you will take at the end of your first certificate. In that course, you will continue to practice many of the skills learned in PC 102. These skills include finding a job, revising a résumé and networking. If you plan to get a job or start a business in the future, consider doing that sooner rather than later. If you never plan to work for pay, continue to find places of work where you can apply what you are learning. Doing these things will help you prepare for GS 170, but more importantly, they will help you deepen your learning and improve your ability to serve others at home, Church, and in the community as a disciple leader.
W07 Gathering Prep
What will you do this week, in preparation for the gathering, to exemplify the Learning Model principle of “Teach One Another?” Review your notes before your gathering this week. There are two important elements of disciple leadership—a deepening of your conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ and the professional skills you will need to lead. At your gathering this week take the opportunity to demonstrate or share one of these principles of disciple leadership.
After reading this lesson, ponder the following questions. If desired, record your thoughts in a learning journal.
- Was it easier or harder for you to be a disciple leader during the team project?
- How were you a small "L" leader in your team?
- How have you applied what you have learned this semester in your family, the Church, and your community?