DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

 

Dear Journal,

 

“If you focus on results, you will never change. If you focus on change, you will get results.” – Jack Dixon

 

Throughout every training, every class, every roleplay, Nancy has taught us how to use various helping skills to elicit deeper conversations with students, thus enabling us and them to harness a greater understanding of each other…building a relationship together; rather than simply ending a thirty-minute coaching session with just the student’s top onion layer off, hardly.

 

As a success coach, I’ve struggled with establishing rapport with my students, apart from a few. I realized I was focused on trying to develop strong bonds with my students, but I wasn’t necessarily taking the steps to do so. I thought I was…

 

Looking back on the past weeks’ coaching sessions and class visits, I notice a change in my interaction with the students. I’ve been more open in changing my approaches when promoting certain events on campus or when meeting with a student. Though some students may not be receptive to any method I try, most have shown me – either through smiling, nodding, laughing, or even talking to me afterward – that they’re interested in some information I have for them; that they’re willing to listen and participate in events; and that they’re open to meeting with me. When they do come for coaching sessions, they don’t simply leave after thirty minutes with just a vague memory of, “Oh yeah. I met with my peer coach person, and she asked how things were going.” Instead, they leave after forty-five minutes to an hour (since almost all of my meetings have gone over the mark due to hearty conversations that just couldn’t be cut off) knowing that they have another friend on campus who’s here for them; and with knowledge of the steps needed to be taken in order to achieve their goals.

 

My goal for each coaching session is to finish knowing I made a difference in a student’s life – big or small.

 

Memorable Moments

 

(1) March 6th“I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.” – Brené Brown

 

I never thought I would relate so much to a student. What I thought would be a mundane coaching session turned into a fruitful conversation between two alikes. We found common ground in academics – either talking about experiences with professors or mutual classes we took in high school. From there, we branched off to talking and laughing about other interests. I didn’t look at the time until we started to wind down. The session lasted for an hour and a half – the longest in my career thus far! I knew this was a successful coaching session because the coaching form wasn’t completely filled out; in fact, none of it was. Reflecting back now, I don’t recall even referring to the questions listed. Were most of the questions answered? Yes, but I elicited more from the student by steering the conversation according to what they said, rather than pausing to write down their response and then moving on to the next question. I would say this engagement had the best transitions, paraphrasing, and reflections of feeling; those components contributed to the fullness of this meeting.

 

(2) March 8th“Be an encourager. The world has enough critics already.” – Unknown

 

A familiar face. The student I had the pleasure of meeting with was no stranger to me. I met him last semester during a “College Tips” workshop that I cofacilitated. He was a Non-FYS mentee! I remember the drive in him to succeed in whatever he sought out. When we reconnected during our coaching session, he told me that he was applying to the Honors Program, which he had expressed interest in last semester. He also told me of a recommendation he received to apply to SASP, which I encouraged wholeheartedly. I loved this meeting because he articulated everything he wanted to accomplish…sounded a lot like myself. Working with him to develop a plan in order to achieve his goals was most rewarding, and his gratefulness just added to the joy I felt.

 

(3) One final memorable moment was reconnecting with some of my students from last semester. The “Escape the Library” Murder Mystery Challenge begins on March 20th, and as success coaches, we needed to promote the event to our students. I decided to reach out to my former mentees, assuming some would be interested in participating. A group of three young ladies, who I had previously coached, were the first out of all my mentees to respond back to me. I’m excited to see them again, and I’m rooting for them to win!

 

Challenges I Thought I Would Have and Those I Foresee

 

(1) One of the challenges I foresaw was the Murder Mystery promotion. I wasn’t sure how many students would express genuine interest. When I initially announced the event, my mentees didn’t necessarily react much to it. Contrasting the first mention of the event, I later described my participation in a run-through, and a lot of my students seemed to really enjoy the concept and structure of the experience. However, I know that most of my mentees work off-campus and typically have to leave school around Community Hour in order to get to work on time, so involvement from my students may be a bit spotty. For those who don’t have other obligations that take place at the same time as the event, I have been using enchantment tactics in order to convince them to partake. I’ve mentioned the opportunity to connect with other first-year students. But most importantly, I’ve touched upon the underlying academic benefit, which is learning how to utilize the library and its online databases for research (something all students need to do!) That information seemed to appeal to them – I’m just waiting on teams.  

 

(2) Another challenge I’m already facing is more personal than professional, though there are ties to work. I’m dreading the next two weeks…midterms, group projects, work deadlines, waves of last-minute coaching sessions, etc. – talk about stress! Every Friday I have off, and every Friday I tell myself I’m going to get ahead in all the work I have to do for the upcoming week; however, that hasn’t happened. What I plan to do, especially for these next few weeks, is document everything according to priority and schedule certain time limits for each task, thus maximizing productivity throughout the day.

 

Helping Skills I Applied (Within My Coaching Sessions)

 

  • Paraphrasing
  • Reflection of feeling
  • Summarizing
  • Open-ended questions & the use of encouraging prompts, such as “tell me more about…”
  • Nonverbal encouragers, such as nodding and smiling
  • Enchantment (Used when promoting the Murder Mystery Challenge)

Personal Growth (Motivational Quote for the next few weeks…)

 

 

 

 

Talk to you again in two weeks...

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Samantha

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.