Falling Up

This SHOULD be my last post as a grad student!! Woo- hooooooooooooo!  And it’s going to be a short one, because I’ve still got a few items to tend to for my final project, which is due in the morning.  Fun stuff.  Seriously, all-nighters were way cooler (and easier) when I was an undergrad. 

Mostly I just want to share that I led my last workshops yesterday (ok technically I have 1 more big one coming up, but these were the last 2 that would be included in my project) and it was a great experience. A classmate from the Adult Learning program kindly offered to have me run 2 sessions at her workplace. 

The session was scheduled to be just 45 min-1hr, and I was really worried about what I could do in that time frame.  As it turned out, I planned just the right amount, which was nice. 

What I really want to convey though is that I had a fabulous audience (both times, but particularly for the 1st group), and that can really make or break you sometimes.  I did a presentation that was in some ways very different than others I’ve done for this project, but it wasn’t a totally new animal or anything.  But this first group was very engaged, very “into” what I was saying and doing.  And the combination of me feeling prepared and confident and their enthusiasm just seemed to create a great atmosphere.  The stories they shared seemed to magically segue perfectly into my next point.  The dialogue was open, people were being frank and authentic… I mean, it was just 1 hour, so we didn’t solve any major crisises (how do you spell that??) but people were much more willing to share than many other groups have been. 

It was a great last presentation and the feedback shows that they thought so to.  Hooray for small successes.  Now if only I could bottle up whatever that magic formula was…

Back to the grind…. and thanks for reading.  I’m sure I will post more after graduation, but thanks to any who read this even while it’s all about school and learning and “boring” stuff like that.  I have to say that the blog has been a useful tool; I use it to think aloud and clarify my thoughts, and it helps quite a bit.