A Recent Aha! Moment #postaday2011

I have been fortunate to have been selected to attend the NASPA Institute for Aspiring SSAOs, January 6-9 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. There are 62 Institute participants and 7 Faculty (W. Houston Dougharty, Patricia Telles-Irvin, Gwen Dungy, Kathleen MacKay, Ainsley Carry, Toni Castro, and Sarah Westfall). Our days have been focused on a variety of topics important for a SSAO search, application, and interview. We have spent time in mentor groups, in 1:1 meetings with Faculty members, and networking. The Faculty guided us through discussion focused on the life of a SSAO, leading change, strategic thinking and planning, a new generation of SSAOs, crisis management, politics, managing resources, and surviving the media. American Campus Committees, represented by Teri Bump, sponsored our Aspiring Opening Reception. Teri presented an inspirational program on etiquette and networking. She made it seem simple and important!

Prior to arriving at the Institute we completed a StrengthsQuest™Survey that provided each participate with their top five strengths. Mark Pogue, Vice President of Gallup Education Division lead a great discussion on our strengths, and how to get the most out of our Strengths. In addition to the survey prior to arriving, we were assigned a reading list that complemented the topics covered at the Institute.

I really enjoyed all of the readings, but in particular the readings on recognizing, navigating, and surviving campus politics. As I read the chapters I felt like I was gaining "secrets" to higher education. The information energized me. During our discussion on this reading, I shared that I didn't find the politics on campus negative, I felt they were puzzles that needed attention to be resolved. As our conversation continued I had an Aha! moment: My five Strengths are Achiever, Activator, Input, Learner, and Restorative. The last Strength, Restorative is described briefly this way, "People strong in the Restorative theme are adept at dealing with problems. They are good at figuring out what is wrong and resolving it" (StrengthsQuest™Themes, 2009). AHA!! I like the poltics on campus because is they are a challenge, and sometimes a problem, that needs attention to be resolved. It was a powerful AHA moment today!