In elementary school, at the start of each fall semester, there was always an essay assignment that I dreaded most…
“How did you spend your summer?”
To me, it felt like this one writing assignment set the bar for the rest of the academic year, and I never felt as though I had much material to work with. I wanted to thrill and entertain my reader, but how could I do that when my summers weren’t particularly interesting?
At a time when I was reading the classics filled with larger-than-life characters and grand adventures (Treasure Island, Swiss Family Robinson, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Odyssey, and the like), my summertime stories of day camp arts & crafts and weekend family backyard barbecues didn’t quite measure up. I recall staring at the blank piece of loose-leaf paper on the desk in front of me pondering whether to submit a piece of fiction or non-fiction (and debating with myself as to whether my teacher would prefer an exciting tall tale over the mundane truth).
Now that I’m all grown up (and have had quite a few years’ reprieve from school essay assignments), I happily share how I spent some of my time this summer. On a personal note, I traveled a bit to Florida and the Bahamas to reconnect with family after a long COVID-induced separation. I soaked up my fair share of sunshine, put my toes in the sand, and even hooked a (small) fish. From a work perspective, I did a lot of planning and preparation for the new fiscal year and made a guest appearance as a DiSC profile workshop facilitator at the University Advancement department retreat. Don’t worry, I didn’t crash the party, I was invited.
DiSC is a behavioral self-assessment based on the 1928 DiSC emotional and behavioral theory of William Moulton Marston (lawyer, psychologist, inventor of an early version of the lie detector machine, and creator of the comic character Wonder Woman). The DiSC theory is a system of classifying personalities based on an individual’s response to a series of behavioral questions. The categories of behavior are Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness.
Together with Tami Johnson, the Training Specialist for the Organizational Development & Communications (ODC) team in Human Resources, we facilitated 2 DiSC profile workshops for our colleagues in University Advancement. The first workshop was for leaders and was 3 hours in length. We included an icebreaker that taps into the creative side of the brain and allowed the inner Van Goghs, Picassos, and Cassatts to emerge. The second workshop, delivered the following day, was about an hour and was a general profile overview for all levels.
As facilitators, we had lots of fun asking our unwitting participants to paint canvases, move around the room, choose “my need is…” nametags, plan mock vacations, and share openly. The positive energy and enthusiasm were infectious. Shout outs to Dan Perry and Nicole Anable for giving us the opportunity, time, and space. And a huge thank you to the highly engaged participants. Looking forward to seeing you all again soon to check in on your progress!
May your fall be filled with larger-than-life characters and grand adventures! And don’t worry, there’s no essay assignment to follow.
Are you interested in offering a DiSC workshop for your team? Contact hr_odc@txstate.edu for more information.