Uc4-Develop Career and Life Decisions

COMPETENCY BASED LEARNING
MATERIAL
SECTOR : TOURISM
QUALIFICATION : FOOD AND BEVERAGE SERVICES NC II
UNIT OF : DEVELOP CAREER AND LIFE DECISION

COMPETENCY
MODULE TITLE : DEVELOPING CAREER AND LIFE DECISION

HOW TO USE THIS COMPETENCY-BASED LEARNING
MATERIAL
The unit of competency, “Develop Career and Life Decision”, is one

of the competencies of Food and Beverage Services NC II, a course which
comprises the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required for a TVET trainee to
possess.
The module, Developing Career and Life Decision, This unit covers
the knowledge, skills, and attitudes in managing one’s emotions, developing
reflective practice, and boosting self-confidence and developing self-
regulation.
In this module, you are required to go through a series of learning

activities in order to complete each learning outcome. In each learning
outcome are Information Sheets, Self-checks, Operation Sheets, Task Sheets,
and Job Sheets. Follow and perform the activities on your own. If you have
questions, do not hesitate to ask for assistance from your facilitator.
Remember to:
 Read information sheet and complete the self-checks.

 Perform the Task Sheets, Operation Sheets, and Job Sheets until you
are confident that your outputs conform to the Performance Criteria
Checklists that follow the said work sheets.
 Submit outputs of the Task Sheets, Operation Sheets, and Job Sheets
to your facilitator for evaluation and recording in the Achievement
Chart. Outputs shall serve as your portfolio during the Institutional
Competency Evaluation. When you feel confident that you have had
sufficient practice, ask your trainer to evaluate you. The results of
your assessment will be recorded in your Achievement Chart and
Progress Chart.
You must pass the Institutional Competency Evaluation for this

competency before moving to another competency. A Certificate of
Achievement will be awarded to you after passing the evaluation.
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FOOD AND BEVERAGE Date Developed:
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QA System Developed by:
CBLM ON DEVELOP Revision # 00
CAREER AND LIFE
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FOOD AND BEVERAGE SERVICES NC II
COMPETENCY BASED LEARNING MATERIALS
LIST OF BASIC COMPETENCIES
No. Unit of Competency Module Title Code
1. Participate in workplace Participating in workplace 400311210

communication communication
2. Work in a team Working in a team 400311211

environment environment
3. Solve/address general Solving/addressing general 400311212

workplace problems workplace problems
4. Develop career and life Developing career and 400311213

decisions life decisions
5. Contribute to workplace Contributing to workplace 400311214

innovation innovation
6. Present relevant Presenting relevant 400311215

information information
7. Practice occupational Practicing occupational 400311216

safety and health policies safety and health policies
and procedures and procedures
8. Exercise efficient and Exercising efficient and 400311217

effective sustainable effective sustainable
practices in the practices in the workplace
workplace
9. Practice entrepreneurial Practicing entrepreneurial 400311218

skills in the workplace skills in the workplace
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MODULE CONTENT
UNIT OF COMPETENCY : Develop career and life decisions
MODULE TITLE : Developing career and life decisions
MODULE DESCRIPTOR : This unit covers the knowledge, skills, and

attitudes in managing one’s emotions,
developing reflective practice, and boosting
self-confidence and developing self-
regulation.
NOMINAL DURATION :
At the end of this module, you MUST be able to:

1. Manage one’s emotion
2. Develop reflective practice
3. Boost self-confidence and develop self-regulation
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COMPETENCY SUMMARY
QUALIFICATION TITLE : Food and Beverage Services NC II
UNIT OF COMPETENCY : Develop career and life decisions
MODULE TITLE : Developing career and life decisions
INTRODUCTION
This unit covers the knowledge, skills, and attitudes in

managing one’s emotions, developing reflective practice, and
boosting self-confidence and developing self-regulation.
LEARNING OUTCOME
Upon completion of this module, the trainees must be able to:
1. Manage one’s emotion
2. Develop reflective practice
3. Boost self-confidence and develop self-regulation
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
1. Self-management strategies are identified
2. Skills to work independently and to show initiative, to be
conscientious, and persevering in the face of setbacks and
frustrations are developed
3. Techniques for effectively handling negative emotions and
unpleasant situation in the workplace are examined
4. Personal strengths and achievements, based on self-assessment
strategies and teacher feedback are contemplated
5. Progress when seeking and responding to feedback from teachers to
assist them in consolidating strengths, addressing weaknesses and
fulfilling their potential are monitored
6. Outcomes of personal and academic challenges by reflecting on
previous problem solving and decision making strategies and
feedback from peers and teachers are predicted
7. Efforts for continuous self-improvement are demonstrated
8. Counter-productive tendencies at work are eliminated
9. Positive outlook in life are maintained.
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LEARNING OUTCOME # 1 Manage one’s emotion
CONTENTS:
1. Intra – Interpersonal relationship
2. Evaluation
ASSESMENT CRITERIA:
1. Self-management strategies are identified

2. Skills to work independently and to show initiative, to be
conscientious, and persevering in the face of setbacks and
frustrations are developed
3. Techniques for effectively handling negative emotions and
unpleasant situation in the workplace are examined
CONDITIONS:
The students/ trainees must be provided with the following:
 Learning materials
- team building manual
- catalogs
- brochures
 Simulated team
ASSESSMENT METHODS:
Competency in this unit may be assessed through:
1. Written test
2. Practical performance test
3. Interview
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Learning Experiences
Learning Outcome # 1 - Manage one’s emotion

Learning Activities Special Instructions
Read and understand the information
Read Information sheet 4.1.-1 sheet and check yourself by answering
on “Intra – Interpersonal the self-check. You must answer all the
Relationship” questions correctly before proceedings to
the next activity
Answer Self-Check 4.1-1
(Trainee checks answers Refer to Task sheets, it will help you
against the answer key) practice your skills.
Read information sheet 4.1-2 The performance criteria checklist will

on “Evaluation” guide and help you evaluate your work
as you are practicing your skills.
(Trainee checks answers Evaluate your own performance using
against the answer key) the performance criteria checklist. When
you are ready, present your work to your
trainer for final evaluation and recording.
If you have questions and clarification

fell free to ask your trainer.
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Information Sheet 4.1-1
Intra – Interpersonal Relationship
After reading this information sheet, you must be able to:
 explain the various types of intra and interpersonal communication

 discuss the role of stereotypes in the communication process
 identify the role of communication conflict in intercultural
relationships
Levels of Communication
Scholars categorize different levels and types of communication. These

distinctions are somewhat artificial, since types of communication more
realistically fit on a continuum rather than in separate categories.
Nevertheless, to understand the various types of communication, it is
helpful to consider various factors. The distinguishing characteristics
include the following:
 Number of communicators (one through many).

 Physical proximity of the communicators in relation to each other
(close or distant).
 Immediacy of the exchange, whether it is taking place either (1) live or
in apparently real time or (2) on a delayed basis.
 Number of sensory channels (including visual, auditory, tactile and so
on).
 The context of the communication (whether face-to-face or mediated).
Note that each level of communication may be formal or informal, personal

or impersonal. Note also that the purposes of communication may vary and
overlap, giving a communicator a potentially wide list of choices for
communication channels.
Broadly speaking, the levels of communication can be categorized in a four-

fold pattern as intrapersonal, direct interpersonal, mediated interpersonal,
and mass.
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Intrapersonal Communication
Intrapersonal communication takes place within a single person, often for

the purpose of clarifying ideas or analyzing a situation. Other times,
intrapersonal communication is undertaken in order to reflect upon or
appreciate something. Three aspects of intrapersonal communication are
selfconcept, perception and expectation.
 Self-concept is the basis for intrapersonal communication, because it

determines how a persona sees him/herself and is oriented toward
others. Self-concept (also called self-awareness) involves three factors:
beliefs, values and attitudes. Beliefs are basic personal orientation
toward what is true or false, good or bad; beliefs can be descriptive or
prescriptive. Values are deep-seated orientations and ideals, generally
based on and consistent with beliefs, about right and wrong ideas and
actions. Attitudes are learned predisposition toward or against a topic,
ideals that stem from and generally are consistent with values.
Attitudes often are global, typically emotional. Beliefs, values and
attitudes all influence behavior, which can be either spoken opinion or
physical action. Some psychologists include body image as an aspect
of intrapersonal communication, in that body image is a way of
perceiving ourselves, positively or negatively, according to the social
standards of our culture. Other things that can affect self-concept are
personal attributes, talents, social role, even birth order.
 Whereas self-concept focuses internally, perception looks outward.

Perception of the outside world also is rooted in beliefs, values and
attitudes. It is so closely intertwined with self-concept that one feeds
off the other, creating a harmonious understanding of both oneself
and one’s world.
 Meanwhile, expectations are future-oriented messages dealing with

long-term roles, sometimes called life scripts. These sometimes are
projections of learned relationships within the family or society.
Intrapersonal communication may involve different levels of communication

activity: internal discourse, solo vocal communication, and solo written
communication.
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 Internal discourse involves thinking, concentration and analysis.
Psychologists include both daydreaming and nocturnal dreaming in
this category. Prayer, contemplation and meditation also are part of
this category, though from a theological point of view the argument
may be made that this is not solely internal to one person. In Sufi
tradition, this is similar to the concept of nafs, negotiating with the
inner self. Example: Consciously appreciating the beauty of a sunset.
 Solo vocal communication includes speaking aloud to oneself. This

may be done to clarify thinking, to rehearse a message intended for
others, or simply to let off steam. Example: Talkingto yourself as you
complain about your boss.
 Solo written communication deals with writing not intended for

others. Example: An entry in a diary or personal journal.
Direct Interpersonal Communication
Direct interpersonal communication involves a direct face-to-face

relationship between the sender and receiver of a message, who are in an
interdependent relationship. Because of interpersonal communication’s
immediacy (it is taking place now) and primacy (it is taking place here), it is
characterized by a strong feedback component. Communication is enhanced
when the relationship exists over a long period of time. Interpersonal
communication involves not only the words used but also the various
elements of nonverbal communication. The purposes of interpersonal
communication are to influence, help and discover, as well as to share and
play together.
Interpersonal communication can be categorized by the number of

participants.
 Dyadic communication involves two people. Example: Two friends

talking.
 Group communication involves three or more persons, though
communication scholars are inconsistent as to the top end of the
number scale. The smaller the number in the group, the more closely
this mode resembles interpersonal communication. Often group
communication is done for the purpose of problem solving or decision
making. Example: University study group.
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 Public communication involves a large group with a primarily one-way
monologue style generating only minimal feedback. Information
sharing, entertainment and persuasion are common purposes of
public communication. Example: Lecture in university class.
Another way of categorizing interpersonal communication is on the function
or setting of the communication.
 Organizational communication deals with communication within large

organizations such as businesses. This is sometimes considered part
of group communication, but communicationscholars have built up a
body of knowledge focused primarily on organizations. Example:
Workfocused discussion between employer and employee.
 Family communication focuses on communication patterns within

nuclear, extended and blended families. Like organizational
communication, this too is sometimes seen as part of the general
category of group communication, but much research has been
focused specifically on communication within a family relationship.
Family communication can be enhanced by thelong-standing and
close relationships among participants as well as the likelihood that
families have shared heritage, similar values, and social rituals.
Patterns differ in communication between spouses, between parent
and child, among siblings, and within the wider family context.
Example: Conversation during a holiday meal.
Additionally, some scholars identify a category of impersonal

communication. This is a distinction between impersonal and interpersonal
communication on the basis of the quality of the interaction. Impersonal
communication is that which involves functional short-term exchanges such
as might occur between a shopper and a salesman; the label of
interpersonal is reserved for communication that functions in deeper and
more meaningful relationships.
The process of interpersonal communication includes several stages over an

extended life cycle. Communication scholar Mark Knapp has outlined one
useful framework for understanding the coming-together process. Note that
these stages can be applied to personal friendships, romantic relationships,
business encounters, and many other types of interaction.
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 The initial encounter offers a first impression that can be full of
communication data. Likes or dislikes can be instantaneous, though
many people have learned that first impressions may be misleading.
 Experimenting is the second step in interpersonal communication. In

this step, information is exchanged on a variety of topics – general and
“safe” at first, gradually becoming more personal and more self-
revealing.
 Intensifying follows when the experimentation leads to positive mutual

conclusions that the relationship is worth pursuing.
 The fourth step in interpersonal communication is integration, in

which mutual decisions are made that the relationship is fulfilling.
This is the stage of intense friendships, close businesspartnerships,
romantic commitments, and so on.
 Bonding is the final stage, in which the relationship is sealed (often

formally with contracts or written agreements) and generally is
publicized (such as through announcements).
Knapp also outlined a similar reverse pattern for the unraveling of

interpersonal relationships:
 Differentiating mirrors the initiating phase but focuses instead on the

differences that people notice about each other.
 Communication likewise plays a central role in the circumscribing

stage, during which time participants in the relationship begin to
minimize their communication and confine it to mainly functional
topics.
 Stagnating is the next stage, in which the relationship becomes flat

and personally unfulfilling and is continued mainly for reasons
beyond the relationship, such as religious or family obligation,
contractual obligation, or social expectation.
 Overt unpleasantness is evident in the avoidance stage, in which the

participants in interpersonal communication both avoid each other
and express mutual annoyance when they encounter each other.
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 Termination if the final stage of breakdown, at which time legal,
religious or other formal contracts are abrogated and the demise of the
relationship is announced to others.
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Mediated Interpersonal Communication
Mediated interpersonal communication involves technology that assists or

links the sender and receiver of messages. This may involve immediacy (live,
or so-called real time). It does not involve a primary context but instead uses
technology to link the various parties in communication.
 Dyadic communication includes two people, with some of the

elements of interpersonal, but the context is not face-to-face.
Example: Two business colleagues using the telephone or e-
mail.
 Group communication includes a small group of people.

Example: Teleconference in a distancelearning class.
Mediated communication offers the advantage that it allows people to

communicate over a distance or throughout a time span that would not be
possible in direct communication. E-mail offers instantaneous global
communication, and cell phones are highly mobile. Computer technology
makes it possible for people to do their job without being physically present,
allowing them to work from their home or from across the world.
Like direct communication, mediated communication may be formal or

informal, personal or public. Feedback may be immediate or delayed.
Machines even can assist in communication across language barriers.
Related Concepts in Interpersonal Communication
Conversation: Often considered informal and everyday speech, but more

formally a finite element within an ongoing relationship based on
interpersonal communication. Most conversations of a standard five-step
process of opening, built-up, substance, feedback, and closing. Since a
conversation is a two-way process, it involves various controls, many
associated with conversational turns (the changing of the speaker and
listener role). Conversations can exist in both direct and mediated settings.
Speech act: An intentional utterance made to achieve an intended goal. In

an informal context, a speech act might be a promise made by a parent to
his or her child. A more formal example of a speech act is an interview given
by a government leader with hopes of persuading voters.
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Communication competence: The ability to communicate in a socially
acceptable way. For interpersonal relationships, this involves the speaker’s
interaction with others. For more public situations, this involves the
audience perception of the speaker in terms of vocal presentation, message
control, command of language, physical appearance, and so on.
Self-disclosure: Process of making internal revelations about oneself that

others would be unlikely to know otherwise. While self-disclosure is an
individual communication tactic, it invites reciprocity.
Gender differences: Communication scholars have researched the varying

ways men and women communicate, which often varies further among
different cultures. Some of the major differences are that men use report
talk to share information or demonstrate knowledge, whereas women often
use rapport talk to enhance relationships and share experiences.
Psychologists have observed that men and women who are androgynous in
their communication styles rather than those who rely heavily on
stereotypically masculine or feminine style are more successful in their
interactions with others.
Metacommunication: Communication about the act or process of

communicating rather than focusing on the content of communication. For
example, a couple that argues about how to spend their money is
communicating. A couple that discusses how they argue is engaging in
metacommunication.
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Self-Check 4.1-1 (True or False)
1. Intrapersonal communication takes place within a single
person, often for the purpose of clarifying ideas or
analyzing a situation.
2. Mediated interpersonal communication involves
technology that not assists or unlinks the sender and
receiver of messages.
3. Dyadic communication includes one person, with some of
the elements of interpersonal, but the context is not face-
to-face.
4. Feedback may be immediate or delayed.
5. Group communication includes a small group of people.
Example: Teleconference in a distancelearning class.
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Answers to Self-Check 4.1-1
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. True
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Evaluation
1. Define performance appraisal

2. Understand relationship with performance management
3. Define psychological profiling
4. Understand and define aptitude
Performance appraisal
Performance appraisal (or performance review) is a process for individual

employees and those concerned with their performance, typically line
managers, to engage in a dialogue about their performance and development
and the support they need in their role. It is used to both assess recent
performance and focus on future objectives, opportunities and resources
needed.
Relationship with performance management
While performance appraisal is an important part of performance

management, in itself it is not performance management: rather, it is one of
a range of tools that can be used to manage performance.
Performance management is a holistic process bringing together many

activities that collectively contribute to the effective management of
individuals and teams in order to achieve high levels of organisational
performance. The process is strategic, in that it is about broader issues and
long-term goals, and integrated in that it links various aspects of the
business, people management, individuals and teams.
Role of line managers
Because performance appraisal is usually carried out by line managers

rather than HR professionals, it is important that they understand their role
in managing performance and how performance appraisal contributes to the
overall aims of performance management.
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Psychological Profiling
Psychological profiling in team building can be a very useful tool in

distinguishing personalities, traits, characteristics, strengths and
weaknesses of each team member. From the beginning of time, people have
had to work together and because no two people are alike, not even twins,
the mind and overall psychological makeup or personality of a person can be
an important aspect in building effective and productive teams.
In the early 19th century, when astronomers timed the passage of stars
overhead, they noticed they all came up with different results. They took
these differences and made an analysis of what they called the "personality"
of the eye. Even as far back as the mid-1800's, distinguished scholars were
championing the whole person as a unit of study. From that point forward,
individual psychologists began to conceptualize personality and behavior
differently.
Psychological profiling is a useful tool in the selection of a team, team

alignment, personal development, coaching, and the overall team
development. A team can certainly be formed without psychological
profiling; however, with the power of knowing the personality and mind of
each team member better, it gives the team a head start in meshing and
forming the most effective team possible.
What is Psychological Profiling?
Psychological profiling is the analysis of an individual or teams behavior and

psychological characteristics, used especially to identify and explain the
makeup of that person or the team in question. If the organization or team
can better understand the makeup, behavior, and characteristics of the
members of that team, it is more likely that those paired up will behave
more congenial and have more overall cohesion within the group.
Sir Francis Galton may properly be called the first practitioner of

psychological testing. It has been said that he originated mental tests, and
assumed that intelligence could be measured in terms of a person's level of
sensory capacity-the higher the intelligence, the higher the level of sensory
discrimination. Galton also began a long line of research on mental imagery,
much of which included the first extensive use of the psychological
questionnaire. Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, James Cattell, B.F. Skinner and
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other great minds can also be much accredited for bringing psychological
profiling to not only the individual, but to the groups or teams within
organizations.
Carl Jung's theory of psychological types says each person is "wired" with
different tendencies and preferences. Some of us are extraverted while
others are introverted, some are "thinkers" while others are "feelers", and so
on. Carl Jung also once said, “Personality is the supreme realization of the
innate idiosyncrasy of a living being. It is an act of high courage flung in the
face of life, the absolute affirmation of all that constitutes the individual, the
most successful adaptation to the universal condition of existence coupled
with the greatest possible freedom for self-determination.” In order for the
team to understand the individual, the individual must also understand
themselves.
Personality is often said to be the major makeup of an individual person or

team’s make-up. A contemporary definition for personality is offered by
Carver and Scheier (Professors of Psychology): “Personality is a dynamic
organization, inside the person, of psychophysical systems that create a
person’s characteristic patterns of behavior, thoughts, and feelings.”
Important aspects of the psychological or personality makeup may be:
 Dynamic Organization: suggests ongoing readjustments, adaptation to

experience, continual upgrading and maintaining Personality doesn’t
just lie there. It has process and it’s organized.
 Inside the Person: suggests internal storage of patterns, supporting
the notion that personality influences behaviors, etc.
 Psychophysical systems: suggests that the physical is also involved in
‘who we are’
 Characteristic Patterns: implies that consistency/continuity which are
uniquely identifying of an individual
 Behavior, Thoughts, and Feelings: indicates that personality includes
a wide range of psychological experience/manifestation: that
personality is displayed in MANY ways.
Carver & Scheier also suggest that the word personality “conveys a sense of
consistency, internal causality, and personal distinctiveness”. This issue of
“personal distinctiveness” is very important. There are certain universal
characteristics of the human race and particular features of individuals. We
all for example experience stress and the elevated pressure that goes with it.
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The real key is this though - Every one of us is unique too. That is why
using psychological profiling can point out much of those unique points and
point the team in the right direction to play on those unique points, while
also meshing with the similar characteristics.
Types of Psychological Profiling
There are many types or ways an organization can perform psychological

profiling in building and sustaining teams. Actual tests or questionnaires
can be performed – possibly the number one way most people may think of
psychological profiling. However, there are other ways. Psychological Profiles
also known as Personality profiles can be deduced from any public
information such as demographic data, internet search, media, opinions,
blogs, social networking services, wikis, newsgroups, words, voice, pictures,
videos, biological features, physical features, body language, forums,
message boards including other methods such as statistical comparisons
with peer groups.
Factors such as how people create various usernames, emails, IM Names,

the way people write, the style and method of writing, the words they use,
their pictures, videos, voice, biological features, physical features, body
language, their comments etc also have relevance. This can also help to
understand and estimate behavior in different social and team situations.
Relevancy of a personality profile also known as psychological profile is

proportional to the accuracy of the background information you provide. The
fundamental point of profiling is comparing a subject's behavior with the
behavior of others in similar circumstances who have been studied in the
past. The key to good profiling is in deducing what background effects what
trait and identifying patterns. Often times what most people commonly
consider to be irrelevant pieces of information could be very relevant for any
trait. It is also possible that people have a certain trait but do not act upon it
due to external circumstances that make it very difficult for them to act in
accordance with their natural trait. In these situations when the external
circumstances are removed people revert to their natural trait.
There are no traits that are all bad or all good. Good or bad is very relative
and defined according to the society one lives in or the circumstances.
Certain traits in certain situations would be extremely desirable and those
same traits in a different situation could be extremely undesirable. And even
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within the same society, concepts of good or bad may change over time,
particularly if influenced by evolving societal values or expectations.
Often times people's own perceptions about their behavior, thoughts or

functioning are biased by their own ideal image and experiences. Objective
observers, on the other hand can provide a more unbiased assessment of
these behaviors. To you your own traits, may seem perfectly normal, typical
or not typical. Yet to those around you, they may seem typical, odd or
abnormal. Normal is often defined by what's statistically average. Most
people fall in the middle ground, the average, while others fall to one
extreme or the other. And what is normal also changes over time
particularly when influenced by evolving societal values or expectations.
Although there are a number of ways psychological profiling may be

administered to the individual or the team as a whole, below are some major
tools used by many organizations to understand the team building process
better. It is best to analyze the particular industry and business that is in
need of team building and decide upon the best tool available for that
organization. One may find that not only one tool is sufficient, but may need
multiple tools to understand fully and reach the goals of team building that
are needed for ultimate success. The options available specifically for teams
are bolded:
Personal
Social Competence
Competence
Similar to resilience and hardiness, the Adversity
Adversity Quotient Quotient has been proposed as an indicator of capacity
(Paul Stolz, 2000) to withstand and thrive on challenging circumstances
specifically related to business and the workplace.
Personality tool based on 9 personality types.
Developed with a more deeply historical and spiritual
orientation than most other similar questionnaires by
Enneagram (Google some leading humanistic psychologists, including
search) Gurdjieff, Ichazo, and Naranjo. The types relate to the
major roles that people seem to adopt and play in
society. There is no definitive Enneagram questionnaire
- various free and commercial versions are available.
DiSC Management Commonly used tool and associated training program
Strategies (Corexel) for providing feedback and improving on people's self-
management and team management in workplace
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settings.
The HBDI 120-item self-report diagnostic tool which
Herrmann Brain
provides thinking styles profiling based on left-right
Dominance
hemisphere preferences and cognitive vs. limbic
Instrument
thinking preferences. Can also be used for team
(Herrmann, 1970's)
profiling, building, and analysis.
A thinking style / personality profiling and feedback
Human Synergistics
system, plus training program, which can be completed
(Human Synergistics
on an individual, team and organization level to assess
International,
strengths and areas for improvement/change in
1970's)
individual effectiveness.
Similar to the MBTI, identifies 16 personality sub-types,
Keirsey based on dichotomous ratings on 4 main personality
Temperament Sorter factors which are derived from the psychological work
of Carl Jung.
The MBTI is the most widely used personality
assessment questionnaire, particularly in workplace
Myers-Briggs Type
training. The MBTI identifies people as being one of 16
Indicator
overall types, based on dichotomous ratings on 4 main
personality factors.
Profiles the kinds of kind of roles people prefer to
Team Management
play in groups and teams. Provides individual and
Systems (Margerison
team-levels of analysis. Used to help improve quality
& McCann, 1980's)
of team performance.
System for gathering feedback from others about
360-Degree personality and work styles which makes particular use
Feedback of combining observer ratings and comparing with self-
ratings.
These instruments are commonly used and recommended as comprehensive

personality and team profiling tools. These tools are often used by
organizational consultants, managers, individual team members, and
workplace trainers to help facilitate understanding of:
 personal strengths and weaknesses

 other team members' strengths and weaknesses
 a team's overall strengths and weaknesses
 an organization's overall strengths and weaknesses
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Aptitude
An aptitude is a component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at

a certain level, which can also be considered "talent". Aptitudes may be
physical or mental. Aptitude is not knowledge, understanding, learned or
acquired abilities (skills) or attitude. The innate nature of aptitude is in
contrast to achievement, which represents knowledge or ability that is
gained.
Intelligence
Aptitude and intelligence quotient are related, and in some ways opposite
views of human mental ability. Whereas intelligence quotient sees
intelligence as being a single measurable characteristic affecting all mental
ability, aptitude refers to one of many different characteristics which can be
independent of each other, such as aptitude for military flight, air traffic
control, or computer programming.[2] This is more similar to the theory of
multiple intelligences.
Concerning a single measurable characteristic affecting all mental ability,

analysis of any group of intelligence test scores will nearly always show
them to be highly correlated. The U.S. Department of Labor's General
Learning Ability, for instance, is determined by combining Verbal, Numerical
and Spatial aptitude subtests. In a given person some are low and others
high. In the context of an aptitude test the "high" and "low" scores are
usually not far apart, because all ability test scores tend to be correlated.
Aptitude is better applied intra-individually to determine what tasks a given
individual is more skilled at performing. Inter-individual aptitude differences
are typically not very significant due to IQ differences. Of course this
assumes individuals have not already been pre-screened for aptitude
through some other process such as SAT scores, GRE scores, or finishing
medical school.
Combined aptitude and knowledge tests
Tests that assess learned skills or knowledge are frequently called

achievement tests. However, certain tests can assess both types of
constructs. An example that leans both ways is the Armed Services
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Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), which is given to recruits entering the
armed forces of the United States. Another is the SAT, which is designed as
a test of aptitude for college in the United States, but has achievement
elements. For example, it tests mathematical reasoning, which depends both
on innate mathematical ability and education received in mathematics.
Aptitude tests can typically be grouped according to the type of cognitive
ability they measure:
1. Fluid intelligence: the ability to think and reason abstractly,

effectively solve problems and think strategically. It’s more commonly
known as ‘street smarts’ or the ability to ‘quickly think on your feet’.
An example of what employers can learn from your fluid intelligence is
your suitability for the role for which you are applying
2. Crystallised intelligence: the ability to learn from past experiences

and to apply this learning to work-related situations. Work situations
that require crystallised intelligence include producing and analysing
written reports, comprehending work instructions, using numbers as
a tool to make effective decisions, etc.[3
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Self-Check 4.1-2 (Enumeration)
1. The ability to think and reason abstractly, effectively solve
problems and think strategically.
2. The ability to learn from past experiences and to apply this
learning to work-related situations.
3. A component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at
a certain level, which can also be considered "talent".
4. Is the analysis of an individual or teams behavior and
psychological characteristics, used especially to identify and
explain the makeup of that person or the team in question.
5. Is a process for individual employees and those concerned
with their performance, typically line managers, to engage in
a dialogue about their performance and development and the
support they need in their role.
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1. Fluid intelligence
2. Crystallised intelligence
3. Aptitude
4. Psychological profiling
5. Performance appraisal (or performance review)
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LEARNING OUTCOME # 2 Develop reflective practice
CONTENTS:
1. Work priorities
2. Manage work priorities and commitments
ASSESMENT CRITERIA:
1. Personal strengths and achievements, based on self-assessment

strategies and teacher feedback are contemplated
2. Progress when seeking and responding to feedback from teachers
to assist them in consolidating strengths, addressing weaknesses
and fulfilling their potential are monitored
3. Outcomes of personal and academic challenges by reflecting on
previous problem solving and decision making strategies and
feedback from peers and teachers are predicted
CONDITIONS:
- catalogs
- brochures
 Simulated team
ASSESSMENT METHODS:
1. Written test
3. Interview
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Learning Outcome # 2 - Develop reflective practice

Read and understand the information
Read Information sheet 4.2.-1 sheet and check yourself by answering
on “Work priorities ”
the self-check. You must answer all the
questions correctly before proceedings to
the next activity
(Trainee checks answers
against the answer key)
Refer to Task sheets, it will help you
practice your skills.
Read information sheet 4.2-2
on “Manage work priorities and
The performance criteria checklist will
commitments”
guide and help you evaluate your work
as you are practicing your skills.
Evaluate your own performance using
the performance criteria checklist. When
trainer for final evaluation and recording.

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Work priorities
1. Set and meet own work priorities

2. Understand pareto analysis
In any responsible position in any company that you ever have, it is a given
that there will be more work to do than there are hours in the day. You
could kill yourself, trying to do everything that needs to be done, and still
not manage to complete it all. As a manager, your most important task is to
determine priorities, so that the things that need to be worked on are those
that receive your time and attention and that of your department.

Priorities have to be established based upon what is best going to meet your
company’s needs. But, that’s not always easy to determine. What often looks
like the best possible solution may not actually be so. Properly determining
priorities requires understanding the various tasks that need to be done,
how they relate to your company’s goals and how they compare to other
tasks that also appear important.

We’re going to take a look at a number of tools which can help you in
determining priorities.

Urgent/Important Matrix
Many people have a hard time understanding the difference between

urgency and importance. Essentially, these are people who don’t plan, but
only deal with things as they come up. To them, what makes things
important is their urgency. However, these two words are not synonyms:
 Important – of great significance or consequence; in business, these

are the things that help us meet our goals
 Urgent – requiring immediate action or attention; in business, these
are the emergencies
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Starting from time point zero, nothing is urgent, although there are things
that are important. However, as we saw in the last section, not taking care
of something that is important, can make it into something urgent. The lack
of purchasing taking care of those connectors turned an important change
of a product into an urgent problem that had to be dealt with. For most
cases, urgent thing are so, simply because of people not taking recognizing
or taking care of important things.
As we look at this matrix, we can see that everything that we do in our work
day fits into one of these four categories. If we draw a horizontal line across
the middle of the matrix, we divide our activities into the important and the
not-so-important. As much as possible, you want to keep yourself working
“above the line.” However, others will constantly try and keep you below that
line.
Let’s look at each of these four categories:

 Important, not Urgent – These are things that help you accomplish
your company and department’s goals. Planning and preparation
always fall into this category. So does professional development.
 Important & Urgent – Dealing with true emergencies. As previously

stated, many of these are caused by improper planning. You want to
work towards eliminating these. However, when they do crop up, deal
with them quickly and decisively, because they are affecting the
company’s performance.
 Urgent, not Important – These are usually urgent because others

didn’t do their job and are expecting you to take up the slack. Often,
they are somebody’s pet project, that may not even have anything to
do with your department’s responsibilities. Others will always try and
keep you here. Learn how to say “no.”
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 Not Urgent or Important – The only word to describe this category is
“interruptions.” Somebody wants a report on something or other and
they’re not even sure why they want it or what they’re going to do with
it. Or, somebody wants to just stop by your office and chat a while.
Try and eliminate these things.

Unless you actively work to keep yourself above the line, others will work to
keep you below it. You must learn how to identify which things are truly
important and which ones are truly urgent; as opposed to things that people
think are important or urgent because they help them build their little
fiefdom.

ABC Prioritizing
The most common form of prioritizing tasks is by a simple ABC method. In

this method, you make a list of all the tasks that you have to complete, and
assign them a letter code:
 A = High priority, very important to get this done

 B = Medium priority, this should get done
 C = Low priority, it would be nice if this could get done

It is assumed with this method that you know how important the various
tasks are in regard to your company’s and department’s goals. Otherwise,
the priorities you place on the individual tasks really have no value.

The next step in the process is to add a due date for each of these tasks.
Most important tasks need to be completed by a particular time. If they
aren’t completed by that time, they move from just being important to being
important and urgent. Some items may not have a due date, especially
things that are priority C. However, a priority C item, that never gets dealt
with may become more important over time. For this reason, some people
put a start date on the items as well. That way, even items that may be a
Priority C will have some visibility.
When planning each day’s work. One starts by looking at the priority “A”
items. Those that have due dates the soonest are obviously more important
than those who’s due dates aren’t coming for three months. Therefore, they
must be the first ones to go on that day’s schedule. Your day will consist of
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some items within each of these three priority levels, depending upon
importance and due date.
The trick is balancing everything in such a way that everything gets done
before its due date. You must realize that in some cases, this can’t be done.
But the better you can do it, the better you will look to your boss and other
members of management.

Paired Comparison Analysis
The paired comparison analysis is a method for determining which of a

variety of tasks, that all seem important, is actually the most important.
With it, individual tasks are compared to each other; breaking down the
decision process of deciding the most important of ten tasks into A/B
decisions, instead of trying to compare A to B through J. The total of these
individual decisions allows you to see which task or tasks are truly the most
important.

In a paired comparison analysis, one makes a matrix like the one shown
above. I’ve blacked out over half of the blocks on this matrix, because there
is nothing to be gained by comparing an item to itself or to comparing two
items to each other more than once.
1. The same items are listed along the top and along the side. For the
sake of simplicity, I’ve called them tasks A through E in this example.
2. Then each pair of tasks are compared to each other, with a decision
being made as to which is more important.
3. The more important task is written in the box, with a “score” 1=not
very different; 2=somewhat different; 3=very different. Remember,
we’re talking about importance here, nothing else.
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4. Finally, the scores are added up. In my sample chart the final scores
are:
 a. 7
 b. 3
 c. 4
 d. 1
 e. 4
From my example, it’s clear that A is the highest priority, after which C & E
come in together at second place. When I am planning my time or the
workload of my department, I should allocate the largest part of the time to
completing item A.

Pareto Analysis
Where the Paired Comparison Analysis can be sued for almost anything, the
Pareto Analysis is a specialized management tool, used for prioritizing
problems. It is also a comparative tool, but one that looks to see the root
cause of problems, with the idea of attacking the roots which are causing
the most problems first.

A Pareto Analysis works under the assumption of the “Pareto Principle”
otherwise known as the “80/20 Principle.” This states that 20% of causes
generate 80% of results (please note that these numbers are merely
illustrative, not exact percentages). So, if you can identify those 20% of
causes, you can more quickly eliminate 80% of your problems.

To do a Pareto Analysis:
1. Start by identifying a list of all the problems that you need to resolve.
Use whatever resources you have (team members, analytic data,
surveys, customer input) to identify those problems.
2. Identify the main cause of each problem. While it may be possible that
there are more than one cause, there are usually only one or two main
causes.
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3. Assign each problem a score, based upon what you are trying to
accomplish. If the main issue you are trying to work on is customer
satisfaction, then score based upon that. If it is profits, use that to
score the problems.
4. Group problems together by root cause. You will probably find that
you have the same root causes cropping up more than once, put those
items together.
5. Add up the scores by groups. This will show you the highest priority
items to tackle first
Remember, any form of analysis is only as good as the information you are
using and how honest you are in your analysis. Don’t allow yourself to be
swayed by your or others preconceived notions about what the causes are or
what corrective action needs to be taken.

Whenever possible, allow your customers to do the scoring for you. An easy
way to do this would be through customer complaints. If your tech support
department is receiving a lot of complaints, develop your problems and
causes, and then let the number of customer complaints for each item be
the score that you use. This gives you the most impartial score possible. Not
only that, but the score is coming from your business’ most important
people, your customers.
Please keep in mind that these tools are just that, tools. While they can help
you get a better picture of what’s going on in your department, they can’t,
and shouldn’t make your decisions for you. There are many other similar
management tools available; both for prioritizing your workload and other
management tasks. A great place to look for them is at: www.mindtools.com
When looking at large projects, it is very helpful to break them down into
smaller tasks. Failure to do this can lead to the same problem you had in
turning in a school project. When the teacher assigns the project, it seems
like the due date is a long way away. There is no need to worry, because
there’s lots of time to do it. So, that project gets largely ignored. However,
the day comes when that project is suddenly due, and there isn’t enough
time to do it. Why? Because it went from not urgent to suddenly urgent!

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Let’s take for example a major report you have to produce for management
about the company’s web site. You’ve got two months to do the report, so
although the project is important, it’s not urgent. Okay, so what are the
steps you need to do in order to create this report:
1. Gather automated data on traffic and sales through your web site.
2. Gather customer feedback from the web site.
3. Collate the customer feedback.
4. Compare automated data to customer feedback and develop your
analysis of the effectiveness of the company’s web site to meet your
company’s goals.
5. Develop recommendations for improving the company web site.
6. Develop cost projections and ROI for those improvements.
7. Develop your final report.
8. Edit & proof read your final report.
Okay, the first question is, how long will each of those steps take? If you
don’t already have a method in place to accomplish steps one and two,
you’re in trouble. Two months may not be long enough to complete your
project, no matter what you do. If you wait a couple of weeks, thinking that
you’ve got plenty of time, you’re sunk.

By breaking the project down into steps, we can easily see how we need to
schedule the project. However, if we don’t do the breakdown, it’s very easy to
say to ourselves, “I can do this in a couple of days, there’s no rush.” Maybe
you can do the actual writing and editing of your report in a couple of days,
but there’s no way you can do the preliminary work in that amount of time.
You need every minute you can get.
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1. Of great significance or consequence; in business, these are
the things that help us meet our goals
2. Requiring immediate action or attention; in business, these
are the emergencies
3. Is a specialized management tool, used for prioritizing
problems.
4. Is a method for determining which of a variety of tasks, that
all seem important, is actually the most important.
5. In this method, you make a list of all the tasks that you have
to complete, and assign them a letter code
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1. Important
2. Urgent
3. Pareto Analysis
4. Paired comparison analysis
5. ABC method
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Manage work priorities and commitments
1. Prioritize competing demands to achieve personal, team and

organizational goals and objectives.
2. Utilized resources efficiently and effectively to manage work priorities
and commitments
Modern electronic technology has come to the aid of the manager in creating
a number of tools to help manage time, tasks and priorities. Utilization of
these tools can not only help you work more efficiently, but have a better
idea of how your time and the time of your staff are being utilized. Just like
any other time spent in organizing and planning your time, time spent
investing in learning to use these tools and putting them to work for you is
time well spent.
Personal Information Manager (PIM)
Personal information managers are the computerized version of the day

planner. Its electronic memory holds:
 Your schedule
 Contact information
 Priority to do list
 Notes
 e-mail (in some cases)

For those that use Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook comes as
part of the package and is a PIM. However, there are also a number of other
commercial and freeware PIM software packages available on the market.
Here are a couple of web sites to check for free PIM softare:
 http://www.freewarefiles.com/category_8_85.html
 http://www.freedownloadmanager.org/downloads/pim_software/

If you use more than one computer, such as using both desktop and laptop
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computers, you will find it more effective to install your PIM on your laptop
computer, since that is the one you always have with you. When working in
the office, you can use your desktop computer for your main work
computer, but keep your laptop open on a corner of your desk for using the
PIM.

Using two computers like this takes some getting used to, but can actually
be a real advantage. Your laptop can handle your PIM, “notes” and time
tracking, preventing you from having to have these functions open on your
desktop computer. With both of them open at the same time, you have
constant visual access to more information.

As you can see from my testimony in the introduction of this course, I am
known for being an efficiency expert. I regularly use two computers, with a
total of three screens on my desk. My laptop is open at all times for my PIM,
Microsoft OneNote ™ and my time tracking software.

My main computer has two monitors on it. One is my internet monitor, and
the other is my work monitor. The internet monitor normally has two
browser windows open, with six tabs each. The six tabs on one window are
all for e-mail accounts and maintaining open communication with various
people. The six tabs on the other window are all for managing various
projects I have in process. When I need to do research that requires a
number of tabs open, I open a third browser window for that.

My main work screen holds whatever I am working on, a number of widgets
that I use regularly, and has the desktop liberally sprinkled with icons for
programs and documents that I use regularly. Additionally, I put links to
projects and documents in process on the desktop, so that I don’t have to go
hunting for them.

I also link my projects in process to my laptop, through an online service
called “Dropbox.” This insures that I have the latest files for my current
projects on both my desktop and laptop computers. When I am away from
the office in a meeting, I have all the latest information available. Or, if I
have some downtime, waiting for a meeting to start, for example, I can open
up my laptop and continue working on whatever I was working on in the
office. That turns dead time into productive time for me.
Time Tracking Software

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I mentioned that I use a time tracking software. In my average day, I work
on anywhere from 3 to 9 different projects. I track every minute I spend,
from the time I walk in to my office, to the time I leave at the end of the day,
to include breaks, interruptions, and time wasted with somebody else’s
sudden emergency.

This information is regularly printed in reports and maintained in a file. But,
before it goes into the file, I analyze the effectiveness of my time for that day,
week, or month. I constantly grade myself on my personal efficiency and
effectiveness. That helps me to improve in how I am utilizing my time.

I also require that everyone working for me tracks their time as well. While I
know that it is very easy for them to lie about how they are using their time,
I also know that I need to know if other people or priorities are wasting my
people’s time.
Every task we work on is given a time estimate before beginning. I create

one, then I ask the individual who is responsible for that task to create one.
Their time estimate is the one we go by; they don’t even know what my time
estimate is, unless we have a great disagreement. In those cases, I will ask
them to justify their time estimate. If their justification is reasonable, we go
with theirs. If it is not, then and only then do I let them know mine, along
with the reasoning behind my estimate.
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Any deviance from the estimate, whether high or low has to be explained.
This is more of a training tool for my employees than anything else. By
making them explain it, I am making them analyze what happened. This
analysis helps them learn how to better estimate the time needed for various
projects.

I need to say something here. Too many managers have used time tracking
software as a stick to beat their team members over the head. Likewise with
using time estimates as a stick. I am careful to never use these tools to beat
up my staff, but as a way that we can improve our performance over the
long haul. As a manager, I’m constantly working to improve the training
level of my people. Making them analyze their time usage helps them
become better; that’s why I do it.
Note Taking Software
Everybody needs someplace to take notes; notes on projects, notes on the

company, notes on their co-workers, even notes on plans for the weekend.
The old way to do this was with a notebook and pen. For years, I carried a
notebook around everywhere I went in the factory; jotting down notes on
problems, projects, conversations and information that I would need.

The problem with any notebook system is keeping it organized. This is why
electronic notebooks are so much better than paper ones. No, I’m not talking
about notebook computers, although my electronic notebook is in my
notebook computer, I’m talking about a notebook software package;
someplace to take notes.

There are two notebook software packages that I want to mention to you:
 Microsoft OneNote
 TreePad

While there are others available on the market, by mentioning these two, I
hope to give you a general idea of what they all can do for you. These two
packages are both designed to accomplish essentially the same task, giving
you someplace to take notes, but in different ways.

TreePad comes in a variety of versions,
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from a simple version that you can download and use for free to a much
more robust version of the program. It is a text based program, such as
other “Pad” programs (Notepad, WordPad). The “tree” part of the name
explains how it works. TreePad organizes information much as a directory
tree.
With TreePad, you create a file, which can either be a general file, or a file
for an individual project. Within this file, you create a number of categories,
which they call “nodes.” Each node can have child nodes, like sub-pages in
the file. Your child nodes can also have child nodes. I’m not really sure how
many levels of child nodes you can go down. Each node is also a page,
where you can add your own notes.

The limitation to TreePad, at least the basic version that I’ve worked with, is
that everything is text based. You can’t format text, put in bullet lists, add
hyperlinks, diagrams, graphics, video or audio to the pages. However, you
can organize a lot of information in a way that makes it easy to find and
view.
The more expensive versions of TreePad allow extensive formatting and

graphics to be added to your individual nodes. TreePad’s website can be
found at: http://www.treepad.com/

Microsoft OneNote is a much
more robust notebook program
and for those who use any
version of Microsoft Office, from
2003 onwards, it is free.
OneNote is much more
graphically oriented than
TreePad. On the left of the
notebook “page” there are a
number of tabs, each of which
represent a separate notebook.
Across the top of the page are
tabs, much as the tabs you would put in a three ring binder, and on the
right you have tabs that represent individual pages.
Switching between pages, tab sections and even notebooks is just a matter
of clicking on the appropriate tab, all of which are visible. This makes
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OneNote extremely easy to navigate. Any changes you make are
automatically saved. If you have the same notebook on more than one
computer on your network, they will all update automatically, if you so
select.

Each page is fully customizable for format, including tables, lists, font, size,
color, etc. If you want to save something from the Internet, it automatically
adds the URL of the page you found it on; a life saver if you have to find it
again. You can even save images, audio and video from the Internet to pages
in OneNote.

If you use a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) such as a Palm, Blackberry or
iPaq, there is a portable version of One Note that will link directly with your
PDA, allowing you to take notes on your PDA and have them show up as a
separate notebook in OneNote.

Project Management Software
I mentioned the idea of breaking

projects down into steps at the end of
section 2.1. The larger a project is, the
greater the need to be able to break it
down into individual tasks. Tracking
and scheduling these individual tasks,
especially when they require the efforts
of different team members or even
different departments can be
challenging.

I am a firm believer in graphical representations of any complex task. The
mind is much faster to grasp complex issues when they are presented in a
graphical form, than when they are in a text form. Even more to the point,
the mind can easily capture the interrelation between a number of tasks,
when they are presented graphically. Using a project management software
package, such as Microsoft Project, allows you to create a graphical
representation of any project, showing the plan, participants, resources,
individual tasks, timeline and progress. In an instant, all the necessary
information about project standing is presented in a much clearer and
easier to understand manner than voluminous reports and charts.
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Setting up a project in project management software takes time. However, it
is a clerical function that you can easily train your secretary to handle. It is
well worth the effort, in how well it will convey to your project team all the
pertinent information about a project’s progress.

I actually ran an entire factory using Microsoft Project. As an engineering
manager, I started a factory where we were remanufacturing city transit
buses. The company I worked for manufactured these buses for a number of
municipalities in the United States. Our bus was unique in that the entire
body and structure was made of a low grade stainless steel. Therefore, when
these buses reached the end of their programmed service life, we would take
them as trade-in on new buses, and remanufacture them.
The process of remanufacturing these buses consisted of over 1200 separate

tasks, ranging from a few minutes to over an hour. We needed to schedule
individual workers to complete the tasks, sometimes moving them to the
work station where the bus was, and at other times moving the bus to the
area where the work was to be done. Managing the workflow of this
operation was an extremely complex task.

By establishing the 1200 production tasks as steps in a project, I was able
to timeline them in the project management software. Each bus we ran
through the plant was placed as a separate project, with its 1200 tasks. We
than printed this out as a wall sized chart, and were able to see for any day,
who should be working on what on what bus. This became an invaluable
management tool for the production manager.

Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
A Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) is like having an

electronic secretary in your pocket. I first started using a
PDA when I noticed that I was leaving my notebook type
planner, with all my important information, in my car way
too often. I’d be talking to somebody, and needing
information, or needing my calendar to schedule
something, but it would be in the car. So, I bought my first
PDA. I’m now on my 6th one, and still use it constantly.

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A PDA is a combination calendar, contact directory, note taking electronic
device, with wi-fi capability to connect to the Internet. They are made with
touch-sensitive screens that are actuated by a stylus (fingers
are usually too big). I personally prefer PDAs that run on
Windows Mobile ™, simply because they give me a mobile
version of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel, so that I can
both read and create documents for these two programs, on
the go.

Many “Smart-phones” are also PDAs, giving you the same
functions as a PDA, along with your Cell phone capability. Some PDAs have
built in keyboards, while others use an on screen keyboard. The one
complaint I have about PDAs is that they are a bit slow to type on, because
using the stylus is a bit like the old hunt-n-peck typing method. While I
have a foldable keyboard for my PDA, it isn’t always convenient to get it out,
or even bring it with me.

What makes PDAs great is the amount of information you can bring with
you. Most use removable SD memory chips, which means that you can have
multiple chips if you need more memory. I even have chips with a number of
full-length feature films on them, so that I can watch them while traveling.

Tablets
Tablets, such as the iPad and the Motorola Xoom are
the newest productivity technology to hit the
marketplace. They provide the user with the
convenience of a PDA along with the capacity of a
laptop computer. While the full impact of PDAs is yet to
be realized in the marketplace, they are rapidly taking
over large segments of both the PDA and the laptop
computer market.

There are several benefits of using a tablet over a PDA;
specifically that they run faster and have a larger screen. This allows them
to be utilized for Internet access much better than a PDA and also allows
much faster typing on the touch screen keyboard.
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Self-Check 4.2-2 (Identification)
1. Are the computerized version of the day planner.
2. Is like having an electronic secretary in your pocket.
3. Name the two notebook software packages.
4. It is a notebook application that organizes information much as
a directory tree
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1. Personal information managers

2. Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
3. Microsoft OneNote, TreePad
4. TreePad
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LEARNING OUTCOME # 3 Boost self-confidence and develop self-
regulation
CONTENTS:
1. Appropriate work-life balance
2. Develop and maintain professional competence

3. Identify and develop ways to improve competence
ASSESMENT CRITERIA:
1. Efforts for continuous self-improvement are demonstrated

2. Counter-productive tendencies at work are eliminated
3. Positive outlook in life are maintained.
CONDITIONS:
- catalogs
- brochures
 Simulated team
ASSESSMENT METHODS:
1. Written test
3. Interview
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Learning Outcome # 3 - Boost self-confidence and develop self-

regulation
Read Information sheet 4.3-1 Read and understand the information

on “Appropriate work-life sheet and check yourself by answering
balance” the self-check. You must answer all the
questions correctly before proceedings to
Answer Self-Check 4.3-1 the next activity

Refer to Task sheets, it will help you
Read information sheet 4.3-2 practice your skills.
on “Develop and maintain
professional competence”
Answer Self-Check 4.3-2 The performance criteria checklist will

guide and help you evaluate your work
(Trainee checks answers as you are practicing your skills.
Read information sheet 4.3-3

on “Identify and develop ways Evaluate your own performance using
to improve competence” the performance criteria checklist. When
Answer Self-Check 4.3-3 trainer for final evaluation and recording.

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Appropriate work-life balance
1. Identify signs of unhealthy work-life balance
While it is important to your employer that you are dedicated to the job, it is
equally important that you are able to function well on the job. The old
model of expecting people to be so dedicated to their jobs that they ignore
their families is an erroneous model, and has been shown to be so. People
who are that dedicated to their jobs tend to have more stress related health
problems than people who are able to strike a happy balance between their
home life and their work.

Families are the support circle we all need. They validate our efforts at work,
because our work gives us the ability to provide for their needs. It is they,
not our co-workers, that pick us up when we feel low, encourage us when
we feel like we’ve hit the end of our rope, and help us to relax from the
stress of battling dragons all day long.
Work will never relax you, no matter how much you enjoy it. We all need
recreation, the time to re-create, or remake ourselves back into who we
really are. Leaving work at the end of the day to do something enjoyable
helps in being more effective on the job the next day.

Stress is one of the biggest killers today. It causes high blood pressure,
heart attacks, aneurisms, mental health problems, ulcers and a whole host
of other maladies which take people away from their jobs. Even those who
stay on the job can be negatively affected by stress, causing a reduction in
their performance.

Here are some signs of an unhealthy work-life balance:
 Depression
 Anxiety
 Irritability
 Neglecting your personal business
 Becoming more negative in your speech and expression
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Part of managing your time is insuring that you have enough personal time
to meet your needs. While the temptation may exist to overwork yourself in
an attempt to accomplish more, you must realize that extra hours don’t
necessarily mean increased efficiency. In fact, a number of studies have
been done, which conclusively show that after eight hours of work in one
day, one’s efficiency starts to drop off.

Another thing that affects your personal efficiency is how tired you are. The
first thing that is affected by lack of sleep is the higher brain functions. As a
manager, you are being paid to think, not just do. A janitor or production
line worker may be able to do their job without much thought, but you can’t
do yours. Spending excessive hours at work, without getting enough rest is
a sure plan for reducing your ability to think; in other words, reducing your
ability to do your job.

So, rest is an essential part of doing your job well. Not just in the sense of
sleep, but rest in the sense of taking your mind off of your job. Many times,
the reason we can’t find the solution to a problem is that we are so focused
on one train of thought, that we can’t see other possibilities. Taking one’s
mind off the problem insures that when they come back to it, they will have
a fresh perspective on the problem.

There are several things that you, as an individual, need to do to insure that
you are getting proper rest and allowing yourself to get rid of stress:
 Be sure to take breaks at the appropriate times at work.

 Speak up when your work load is overwhelming you.
 Prioritize your work, so that the most important things are done first.
 Don’t try to live in the office, go home when it’s time to go home.
 Take your holidays and vacations as scheduled.
 Find an enjoyable hobby that you can do in your off time to help you
reduce stress.
 Exercise regularly; exercise is a great stress reducer. Additionally, it
strengthens your heart, to be better able to handle stress.
Remember, going home and spending your time there worrying about work
isn’t fooling anyone except yourself. That isn’t taking time off from the stress
of work, that’s just being at work at another location. Even worse, you’re not
accomplishing anything, you’re just worrying.
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As a manager, you are also responsible for checking on the stress level and
work-life balance of your team members. Here are some points to help track
the condition of your employees:
 Ensure clear, effective communication of management’s actions and

goals to all team members.
 Ensure that team members are fully trained and competent to fulfill
their areas of responsibility.
 Ensure that team members are given opportunities to continue their
professional development, both through in-house training and outside
seminars.
 Ensure that the individual workloads are not excessive.
 Ensure that team members are not working too many hours.
 Ensure that team members are taking their scheduled holidays and
vacations.
 Ensure that you are not unduly adding to team members’ stress by
poor management, unrealistic expectations or poor communication
techniques.
 Ensure that workplace harassment, bullying and sexual harassment
are not allowed.
 Ensure that employees receive additional support when outside
problems cause excessive stress (family problems, accident or
sickness of a family member, financial difficulty).
 Ensure that team members are taking care of themselves, specifically
their personal health.
 Ensure that team members concerns are brought before management.
 Ensure that employees who need counseling are given that
opportunity.

There is a saying that I first heard from a navy chief petty officer, talking
about his commander, “There are many ways to impress a superior officer,
but only one to impress a crew.” There was a lot of wisdom in that saying. It
is true that you can impress upper management by a variety of means; all it
takes is one thing coming out of your department that is above and beyond
expectations. On the other hand, there is only one thing that will impress
your employees, that is when they realize that you are concerned about
them.

I can tell you, from personal experience, that most people will go above and
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beyond the expectations for a boss that they know is concerned about them.
I’ve experienced this as a captain in the army, as a retail store manager, as
an engineering manager, and as a director of a non-profit organization.
Showing my people that I am concerned about them and their needs has
always done more to get outstanding work out of them than a whip ever
could.
Since I’m on the subject, even though it’s not part of this course, one of the
important ways that you show employees that you are concerned about
them is to recognize their outstanding accomplishments, achievements and
contributions to the company.
Napoleon is quoted as saying, “It’s amazing what a

man will do for a piece of colored ribbon.”
Military organizations throughout the world have taken advantage of

Napoleon’s wisdom. There isn’t a country you can travel to where the
members of their military don’t sport ribbons and medals on their dress
uniform tunics. Those little pieces of ribbon and tin are recognition for their
accomplishments.

While I don’t think you should institute a system of ribbons and medals in
your workplace, I do think that you should recognize people’s performance.
Some sort of reward is always appreciated and will motivate others to
accomplish more.

My son worked for a coffee shop, part of a large
chain, while studying in college. He has a whole
collection of pins and certificates he received for
recognition of his outstanding service as a Food and
Beverage Services. I have an old jacket that was
given to me by one of our customers, back when I
was working in the bus plant. I’ve also got a
number of plaques, cups, ceramic doo-dads, pins
and certificates which were given to me for
outstanding service in one company or another. Each of those items is a
prized possession, as valuable to me as a medal that some soldier won on
the field of battle.

Everybody craves recognition. I don’t care if you have to create a bogus
award for something, like maintaining the neatest desk, in order to give your
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worst performer an award, make sure you publically recognize any
outstanding act on the part of your team members. Not only will it motivate
them, it will show them that you care about them. It will also, take some of
the stress out of their jobs, replacing it with joy.
Your employee’s family relationships are important to their work efficiency

as well. The old management model was “You leave your personal problems
at the door.” Reality is that people can’t do that. No matter how important
their jobs are to people, their home life is more important. As a manager,
you need to be aware of what’s going on in the lives of your people. If they
are having problems, take that into account when dealing with them. More
importantly, help them get help with their problems.

Everyone deals with family issues. The two major areas are:
 Problems in their marriage relationship

 Problems with their children (especially teens)
So, if those problems affect the employee’s ability to concentrate on their

jobs or interfere with their workplace performance in any way, they become
your concern. What can you do? The first thing is to steer them in the way
of counseling. Many company health insurance packages also pay for some
amount of personal counseling. Use it, or at least encourage your employees
who are having problems to use it.

The other thing you can do, which may seem a little bit off the wall, is to
make marriage and family training seminars part of your company’s
professional development training. Even if you don’t have a budget for this,
there are many non-profit and faith based organizations who are willing to
give these seminars for free, as long as you can guarantee them a group of
people.

Do you want to show your employees that you care about their work-life
balance? This is an ideal way to do so. Arrange for the use of a conference
room after hours, and arrange for one of these groups to come in and offer
free seminars for your team. You may have to encourage them a little bit to
come; for some reason, the ones who need it the most are the least likely to
take the initiative. However, it will be time and effort well spent. Not only will
your employees know without a doubt that you are concerned about their
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home life they will also be able to overcome their problems, which will in
turn make them work more efficiently.
Your personal work efficiency. Medical studies have been done which
conclusively prove that people (both men and women) who participate in
satisfying regular, frequent sexual relationships in their marriages
accomplish more on the job than those that only have sex infrequently or
irregularly.

It is important that we clarify something here. When we are talking about
sexual intimacy, we aren’t just talking about the physical sexual act, but
everything that is involved in having an intimate relationship. Sex is not just
a physical act; it is more an emotional and mental act. To connect
emotionally requires knowing the other person and focusing on them, not
just focusing on them satisfying you.

How can sexual fulfillment affect one’s work on the job? There are actually
several parts to this complex issue:

Maintains a Healthy Marriage – All hormones (defined as sexual chemicals)
have an affect on people’s emotions. If you don’t believe me, just be around a
woman right before her menstrual period. The change in her hormone levels
cause PMS (pre-menstrual syndrome). Sexual intimacy releases the
hormone oxytoxin into the bloodstream. This hormone, which is found in
both men and women, causes the emotional feeling of being “in love” with
the other person. So, sexual intimacy, what we call “making love” literally
does create the feeling of love in a marriage relationship.

Any couple, who engages in regular, frequent sexual intimacy, where both
partners are satisfied, is going to experience much more closeness in the
emotional part of their relationship. Not only that, but the sexual intimacy
acts as a catalyst to rectify other areas of problems in their marriage.
Communication, romance, non-sexual expressions of love and interest in
each other’s lives and feelings all increase from sexual intimacy.
Eliminates Stress – There is no greater muscle relaxant known to man than

sexual orgasm. If one of the things we are trying to accomplish by
maintaining a healthy work-life balance is stress elimination, sexual
intimacy is the most effective part of that stress elimination program
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I must mention that sexual intimacy without orgasm doesn’t reduce stress,
but increases it. So, in the case of couples where the woman rarely has an
orgasm or doesn’t experience orgasms at all, sexual intimacy will not help
her and may cause insomnia.

Why would a woman not experience a sexual orgasm? There are two
reasons. First of all, from purely the physical part, lack of frequency and
lack of foreplay can make it extremely difficult for women to experience
orgasm. The longer a period of time that lapses between sexual encounters;
the less likelihood that the woman will experience an orgasm. On the issue
of foreplay, a woman needs about 30 minutes of kissing, caresses and other
foreplay to prepare for penetration. If all the couple does is a quick, purely
physical sexual encounter, without proper preparation, she won’t have an
orgasm.

Secondly, from the emotional viewpoint, for a woman to have an orgasm, she
needs to be able to give herself emotionally to her husband. The more
successful she is in giving herself to him, the greater the chance of an
orgasm. If there is any unforgiveness or lack of trust, she has a great
difficulty in giving of herself.

Helps You Sleep Better – Because of the stress relief and relaxation that
sexual intimacy brings, it is much easier for people to enter into a deep sleep
after sex. Deeper sleep means a more complete sleep, allowing the person to
awake more rested and refreshed for the same amount of time in bed.

Helps Maintain Your Health – Medical studies have shown that men who
have regular, frequent sexual intimacy with their wives live an average of
seven years longer than men who don’t. That’s not the surprising part
though; women who have regular, frequent sexual intimacy with their
husbands receive a lot of health benefits.

There is one medical study in particular, conducted by a female
gynecologist, who demonstrated that in the case of women who have
frequent sex with their husbands, virtually all of the regular problems for
which women visit their gynecologists are eliminated. On top of that, it gives
them younger, more wrinkle-free skin.

Maintains a Woman’s Emotions – Some very recent medical studies show
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that women who engage in frequent sex with their husbands have almost no
cases of depression. These studies (and there have been several) indicate
that there is some chemical element in semen, which is absorbed through
the vagina, that is beneficial to woman’s emotional health.

The same level of frequency, when using condoms does not produce the
same results. In fact, in one study where they compared women who had
sex with condoms to women who had sex without condoms, over 90% of the
women whose partners used condoms suffered with depression regularly;
while 0% of the women whose partners did not use condoms had problems
with depression.
One final issue in this section is personal health. Many of us don’t put
enough emphasis on our personal health as we should. When one is young,
that really isn’t much of a problem, but as we grow older, we need to pay
more and more attention to our health.

People who are overweight, smoke, eat an unbalanced diet, don’t exercise,
don’t sleep enough or drink too much all have one thing in common; they
aren’t taking care of their bodies. While we can get away with that any of
that for a short while, continuing in it, especially continuing in it when we
are at middle age and beyond, is a sure recipe for disaster.

People with unhealthy lifestyles live shorter lives, with more health
complications, more medical bills, and more days lost from work for health
issues. Additionally, as their situation progresses, it affects their ability to
work efficiency and even to move efficiently. Since they typically die at a
younger age, their expertise is lost to your company.

You, as an individual, need to watch over your personal health. Your
company and your family need you healthy, so that you can do your job,
both at work and at home. Likewise, you need to set the example for your
work team. If they see that you are taking care of yourself, it will help
encourage them to do so as well.

One of the things that Japanese business is well known for is instituting
exercise in the workplace. Many companies have regularly scheduled
exercise, where employees are led in some stretching exercises and low-
impact calisthenics right at their work station. Is this generosity on the part
of the company? Absolutely not. These companies have become aware of the
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importance of the health of their work force. They are doing what they can to
help people maintain their health, so that they don’t have the cost of paying
their medical bills and the lost time of those people missing work.

If your company doesn’t have an arrangement with a local gym, perhaps you
could be the one to propose it. Many gyms will work with companies to
create a package deal for their employees. The gym offers a discounted price,
part of which the company pays and part of which the employee pays.

It’s a good deal for the gym, because they gain a sizable group of new
members. It’s a good deal for the company, because they have a healthier
workforce for minimal cost. Finally, it’s a good deal for the employees,
because they can get the membership at a reduced rate.
One last point that I’d like to make about using technology and maintaining
an appropriate work-life balance. You need to realize that implementing the
strategies that I’ve outlined in this section is going to make you the
proverbial boat rocker. Most people and most companies don’t like this, or if
they do, it’s to a minimal degree. However, implementation of this
technology, these planning strategies, and these health policies has its
advantage. You will have a more efficient department, accomplishing more
and making a positive impact on your company.

Just be ready for some criticism as you begin to make these changes. Those
that follow the herd always criticize the lone wolfs. That’s okay, let them
follow the herd; it’ll make you look all that much better. Once you prove the
effectiveness of your new methods, they can still follow the herd as your
company implements your initiatives throughout the company.
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1. Give at least five (5) signs of an unhealthy work-life balance.
2. Everyone deals with family issues. Two (2) major areas deals with
family issues
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1. Depression, Anxiety, Irritability, Neglecting your personal business,

Becoming more negative in your speech and expression
2. Problems in their marriage relationship, Problems with their children

(especially teens)
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Develop and maintain professional competence
1. Understand professional competence

2. Develop and maintain professional competence
Upon receiving a degree in whatever, most of us are convinced that we are

now the world’s greatest expert on… whatever. I remember when I was
awarded my PHD. For a couple of days, I was floating around somewhere on
Cloud 9. Then I had to repair a leaking toilet in my house. Suddenly, while I
was kneeling on the floor in front of that toilet, the thought came to me,
“This is what a doctorate gets you.” Needless to say, I came crashing back
down to earth in a hurry.
Gaining a title or degree doesn’t mean that we’ve arrived; all it means is that
we’ve passed another checkpoint on the road of learning. Professional
development is an ongoing task, one in which true professionals constantly
engage, working to improve their knowledge and competency.

Take medical doctors for example. Medical science is constantly changing,
new discoveries are being made and new techniques developed. To even try
and keep current in one area of medical specialty is an impossibility. Yet
truly professional doctors, the cream of the cream you might say, strive to
keep abreast of the major developments in as many medical specialties as
possible. That’s why they spend so much time reading professional journals,
constantly educating themselves on what is happening in their field.

It’s not just medical doctors who need to do this. When I was working as an
engineer, I received six different trade publications per month. While I didn’t
read them all from cover to cover, I did go through them, seeking for
information and new technologies that would help me in the job I was doing.
I even kept an indexed file of articles which I thought would be of use to me
at a later time.
The point is, learning doesn’t stop, or at least it shouldn’t. I like to say,
“When you stop learning, you start dying.” Learning is the intellectual
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part of growing and growth is a necessary element to life. Medical science
tells us that at about the age of 20 our bodies stop growing. From that point
on, we have more cells dying per day than we have being created. In other
words, from the age of 20 on, we are dying. So, it’s easy to draw the parallel
between physical growth and mental growth; when growth stops, death
starts.
Assess personal knowledge and skills against competency standards to

determine development needs, priorities and plans
Self-assessment is fundamentally healthy. We must all realize that those we

come into contact with are constantly assessing us; whether it is a
colleague, a friend, a blind date, or our boss. If we want to pass their “test”
we are best off checking ourselves out, before they do.
To make any assessment, it is necessary to have a standard of comparison.

Without a standard of comparison, the only thing that gets assessed is one’s
opinion of themselves. Those who think highly of themselves will decide they
are doing great, while those who don’t think highly of themselves will think
that they are doing worse than they are.
Ideally, you want to be able to use standards that are specific to your
business enterprise in your evaluation. While many jobs have similarities
across broad industry lines, each company has their own internal
procedures, policies and systems. These can and will affect how well a
person rates in their competency.
Three types of competency standards:

Enterprise specific
Unofficial (peer)
Nationally endorsed
In some fields, competency is very highly related to product knowledge. Take

engineering for example. You can hire the best electrical engineer in the
world to work for your company; but no matter how much that engineer
knows, he doesn’t know your products. When faced with a product related
problem, the first thing he has to do is learn about those aspects of the
product. This can make that highly experienced engineer look like they are
incompetent. No, they aren’t incompetent, they are just ignorant of your
product.

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The same situation exists in many fields. An accountant who is new in a
company won’t show up his first day of work, with an automatic
understanding of the account numbering system that is used in that
company. Even if he has worked 30 years as an accountant, in 10 different
companies, he’ll still have to learn the specific system that is used in that
company.

Competency standards within a company should be part of the job
description for any position within that company. Since these are the
standards that individuals are rated upon, they are the most important for
you to know. Additionally, if your position is one in which there are several
grades (junior technician, technician, senior technician) you need to know
the competency standards for the next higher level, so that you can work
towards becoming qualified for that promotion.
Whether or not your company has actual published competency standards

as part of their job descriptions, they do have unofficial competency
standards. These unofficial standards may fluctuate constantly, as they are
based upon the competence of the various people doing the job. In other
words, the average competence that people bring to the job automatically
becomes the average competence expected of the people working that job.
Typically, everyone knows who the best worker or workers are in any
particular job or department. Everyone else is either consciously or
unconsciously compared both to that best worker and the average.
Promotions, raises and important assignments are all given out based upon
this unofficial evaluation.
In addition to the job specific or company specific criterion for competency,

there is a whole realm of information and knowledge that isn’t specific to a
particular organization, their products or their policies. Knowledge of these
facts transcend a companies, industries, and locations. In these cases,
nationally endorsed standards for competency are a better basis for
comparison. These are the competency standards that are expected of any
professional working in that field.
When assessing your professional knowledge and competency, it is

important to compare yourself to all three of these standards. Even if you far
surpass the competency standard that is stated in official company policy, it
won’t truly be recognized, unless you are also one of the top people within
the company for competency in that particular job.
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There are two basic parts of assessing your competency: knowledge and
performance. It is possible to be the most knowledgeable person in the world
on a particular subject, but that doesn’t automatically make you the best
performer. Performance takes in a number of characteristics, including
knowledge. But, it also takes into consideration work habits, attitude and
productivity. Many people who aren’t as knowledgeable about a subject are
superior performers, because they better utilize the knowledge and ability
that they have.
Your assessment isn’t complete

until you develop a plan of action from it.
You should reassess your knowledge and competency in a structured way

on a regular basis, at a minimum once a year. In that assessment, be sure
to compare yourself to both local and national standards of competence. At
the same time, compare yourself to your peers level of competence.
Just evaluating your level of knowledge and performance isn’t enough if you
don’t do something with those conclusions. As part of your assessment, you
need to decide upon some action steps to take you to the next level of
competence. Are you needing more training in your profession? Do you need
to develop better work habits? Do you need to seek ways of broadening your
knowledge? Is there a problem with your attitude that is affecting your
work? All of these questions and more should be included in the action plan
you create.
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Self-Check 4.3-2 (True or False)
1. Professional development is an ongoing task, one in which true
professionals constantly engage, working to improve their knowledge
and competency.
2. Your assessment is complete until you develop a plan of action from
it.
3. There are two basic parts of assessing your competency: stress and
performance.
4. When you stop learning, you start dying.
5. You should reassess your knowledge and competency in a structured
way on a regular basis, at a minimum once a year.
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1. True
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. True
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Identify and develop ways to improve competence
1. Identify personal learning style(s) to develop competence

2. Evaluate personal learning style(s) to develop competence
3. Select personal learning style(s) to develop competence
4. Use development opportunities suitable to personal learning style(s) to
develop competence
Let’s be honest here, performing an unbiased appraisal of ourselves is

tricky. Our opinion of ourselves is bound to creep into that evaluation,
coloring everything we do. While this doesn’t mean that our self-evaluation
is useless, it does indicate that we need some sort of outside evaluation to
balance against our own.
There are a number of different sources we can go to, in order to receive

useful feedback that can balance our self-evaluation; these include:
 Colleagues at our same level in the organization

 Managers who receive the product of our work
 Internal customers within our organization whom we trust
 External customers with whom we work regularly and have developed
a relationship
 Team members whom we manage or coordinate the efforts of

Regardless of whom we select for this feedback, it is important that we select
people with a proven track record, whom we trust and who know us and our
work. It is always easy to find people who will tell you, “You’re the greatest.
You’re doing everything right. That stupid company just hasn’t recognized
your potential.” This type of feedback, while it may help us feel good, won’t
help us at all with our professional development.

At the same time, if we don’t select people whom have a sound professional
standing and outlook, it can be all too easy for us to dismiss whatever they
say; especially if it is contrary to our own opinion. That isn’t going to help us
any more than listening to someone who tells us we’re okay.
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Be sure to assess
both your knowledge and your performance.
It is also important to seek feedback from several sources; one source isn’t
enough. These sources should show a wide range of social, cultural and
ethnic backgrounds and with a range of physical and mental abilities. No,
this isn’t about being anti-discriminatory; it’s about getting the best
feedback possible. You might receive great feedback from intellectual people,
but those with a lower education say that you come across like you are
speaking “down” to them. Or, you might find that you don’t communicate
well with certain ethnic groups. If your job requires communication, and
most jobs do, this type of feedback is important.

Quite often, others will see things in us that we are blind to see in ourselves.
This can be especially true of bad habits we have, mannerisms that can be
annoying to others, and methods of communication that are hard for others
to understand. Without the feedback of others, we will never know about
these areas of weaknesses.

Don’t just accept the opinion of one person and change your whole
professional development plan based upon their opinion. That’s just one
opinion, and it can be a false opinion. However, you should be ready and
willing to take that opinion and seek for confirmation of it. When you find
that others agree with that person’s assessment, then you have something
you need to work on.
Get feedback from people from a wide range of:

Professional backgrounds
Cultural backgrounds
Social backgrounds
Ethnic groups
Educational backgrounds
Physical abilities
Mental abilities
Just as you did with your self-assessment, you need to integrate the
feedback you receive from others as part of your professional development
plan; seeking ways to overcome those areas of weakness and improving your
ability to succeed in your chosen career.
Identify, evaluate, select, and use development opportunities suitable

to personal learning style(s) to develop competence
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Individuals learn by different means. Educators like to say that learners fall
into three categories: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. While there is some
truth to what they are saying, I don’t believe they’ve covered the whole
gambit of learning styles. Here are some other factors that need to be taken
into consideration:

Individual Learning (self-taught) vs. Classroom Learning – Some people
thrive in a classroom environment, while others learn best on their own. If
you remember from my personal testimony at the beginning of this course, I
mentioned that I ultimately became an engineering manager, without having
an engineering degree. That doesn’t mean that I didn’t study engineering
however. I studied engineering on my own, from books, as opposed to
learning it in a classroom.

Examples vs. Explanations – Some would call this visual vs. auditory, but I
think it goes farther than that. While some people need everything explained
to them, step by step, others learn better by seeing an example, and figuring
out the steps by themselves.

Concepts vs. Facts – Most modern education focuses on teaching facts. The
student learns those facts and learns how to spit them out or apply them at
the time that they are needed. Take multiplication for example. We learn our
multiplication tables, up to 12 x 12 in grade school. From then on, whenever
we need to know how much 8 x 8 is for example, we spit out 64. Great; but
what happens when we need to know something like 15 x 17? Most of us
reach for our calculators. However, someone who understands the concept
of multiplication can easily derive the facts that 15 x 17 is the same as (10 x
17) + (5 x 17). Since ten times any number is just adding a zero to it, we
have 170 + (5 x 17). Since 5 if half of 10, 5 x 17 is really (10 x 17) ÷ 2. So,
that means that 15 x 17 is 170 + 1/2 of 170, or 85, giving us an answer of
155. If you couldn’t follow that, you’re not a concept type learner.

Memorization vs. Analyzation – There are those whose minds function
very good for memorizing facts. Some of these people can memorize and
recite an incredible amount of information, much more than you could
imagine. Give them a textbook to study and they’ll come back knowing all
the terminology, with the definitions, even though it was a textbook in a field
that is totally foreign to them. Other people have trouble memorizing
anything, but their minds are very good for analyzing information, seeking a
solution to the problem, based upon available information.
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When Henry Ford became a financial success, his family tried to have him
tried for incompetency (obviously so that they could get their hands on his
fortune). In the trial, the opposing lawyer asked him to recite the preamble
to the constitution. He replied that he couldn’t. The lawyer jumped upon
this opportunity, proclaiming, “You see, this man doesn’t even know the
most basic of facts…” Wherein, Henry Ford interrupted him, saying, “But,
give me five minutes and I’ll find someone who does. Why should I waste my
mind, filling it with useless facts, when I can utilize it to solve problems?”
Henry obviously won.
Intensive, Short-Term Seminars vs. Long-Term Classes – The traditional

learning model in our schools is to sit students down in long-term classroom
situations, where they are fed the information they need to know. Once
someone is in the workplace, that style of learning is virtually impossible,
since the their schedule doesn’t allow long-term commitment to those
classes. However, brief, intensive seminars are a great way of increasing
these same people’s training.

Feed it to Them vs. let them Figure it out Themselves – Again, we’re
dealing with the classic teaching system of putting students in a classroom,
and having a teacher direct them. Some people learn better when faced with
a problem, given the resources, and left to figure it out for themselves.

As you can see from this, there are a number of factors to consider when
trying identifying the learning style of an individual. Each of those items I’ve
listed affects each of us as individuals. We basically fall on one side or the
other on each of them. To continue our own professional development, it is
helpful to know what our full learning style is. Taking evening college
classes to prepare ourselves for our next promotion, when we learn best
studying on our own, isn’t an effective use of our time. Nor are we likely to
learn the material as well when we resort to methods that are outside of
what works best for us.

You must take responsibility for your own continuing professional
development. Don’t expect your company to do it for you and don’t expect
your boss to do it for you. In many cases, continued growth and promotion
within a company requires additional training. While it is difficult to pursue
higher education while working, it is not impossible. However, there are
other alternatives open to you.
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With the way that technology is changing the workplace, it is unrealistic to
depend upon the education you have already received to keep you current.
Of the top 10 jobs in the world today, five of them didn’t exist when the
practitioners of those professions were in college. Technology is increasing at
an accelerating rate, entering into many new fields and changing many jobs.

Individual Training Programs
Programs like the one you are taking now are a great way to develop your
professional skills, increase professional knowledge and prepare yourself for
future promotions. Programs of this type provide you with certification for
new positions.

Professional Seminars
Professional seminars are a great way of broadening your professional

knowledge or deepening it in an area of specialty. A number of companies
offer these seminars, training on new technologies, new methods and how to
integrate them in the workplace. Additionally, most manufacturers of
medium to high-tech equipment provide training seminars in the application
of their technology in business. By being alert to the opportunities available,
you might be able to become your company’s expert on some emerging
technology.

Another good source for professional seminars is from trade shows. Most
trade shows consist of two parts, seminars and the exhibit hall. In the
exhibit hall, you will find new products and services that can help your
company, or just take your money. However, in the seminars you will often
hear about the latest trends, emerging technologies, and development of new
products.
Trade Journals
I mentioned earlier that during my engineering years I received 6 trade

journals every month. While it was impossible to keep up with everything
that was in all those journals, I was able to pick and choose the articles that
most interested me and appeared to have the greatest possibility of
application to my company, our products and our processes.
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By maintaining a file of those trade journals, I had a ready reference, in case
something came up that I didn’t remember clearly. Most trade journals
publish directories of the articles they publish every year. So, I could easily
search out and reference anything that they had written. Today, with the
Internet, it is even easier to reference these back issues and search for
articles that have information you need.
Personal Study
Part of my success as an engineer is due to my parents. As I was growing

up, one of the things that my parents hammered into me was, “Never say
can’t.” Any time I tried to say that I couldn’t do something, they would hit
me with that mantra. It got so ingrained in me that it affected my work style.
I literally don’t know how to say that I can’t do something. If I don’t know
how, I’ll learn how.

My first boss as an engineer actually complained about this. He said to me,
“You never say that you can’t do something.” I explained what my parents
had taught me and that the result of that was that when I didn’t know how
to do something, I’d go find a book and learn it.

Again, the Internet has made this easier for you today. If you don’t know
how to do something that applies to your job, it’s time to do a search on the
‘Net and learn about it. Whatever you need to learn exists somewhere on the
Internet, all you have to do is find it.

There are a number of learning techniques that have been used effectively in
business environments, most specifically for training individuals on a
production line. While these techniques aren’t so applicable to management,
managers need to be aware of them for the sake of training the personnel
working for them.

Action Learning
Otherwise known as “learn by doing,” action learning is your basic on-the-

job learning philosophy. In it, the individual is shown a task, then expected
to do it under supervision. Once they are able to complete the task, they are
left alone to do the job.
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While action learning is a great methodology for simple repetitive tasks,
such as assembly-line work, it doesn’t work well for more intellectual tasks,
tasks with a lot of variation, or tasks requiring a complicated decision tree. If
action learning is used in cases where there are many variables, it is
necessary to provide the worker with references for how to deal with said
variables, along with training on how to use those resources.
Another aspect of action learning in more complicated jobs is for the

individual to analyze their own actions, making a value judgment on how
well they did on the job they just completed. This evaluation is done with the
intent of seeking ways of doing it better the next time around. Lessons
learned are immediately applied, at least on an experimental basis, for the
next time the task is completed. In this manner, the worker can strive to
constantly improve their performance.

Coaching
Coaching is an ongoing process of learning in which an experienced

individual regularly oversees and evaluates the work of a more junior
worker. Based upon their observations and evaluation, they offer correction,
advice and additional one-on-one instruction.

Typically in a coaching situation, a particular coach is assigned to work with
each trainee. This is a long-term relationship, for as long as is considered
necessary to fully train the individual. More than any other system of
training, coaching resembles the old system of apprenticeship; where an
apprentice worked with a journeyman, until he had learned enough to
qualify him as a journeyman craftsman.

Exchange/Rotation
Having department members exchange jobs, or working on a rotation basis

is a very common method of cross-training workers in a factory to complete
a number of different tasks. This gives the supervisor a trained pool of
workers, each of whom can work a number of different stations. In the case
that one of his workers is absent, all he has to do is move another worker
into that position.

In this type of a situation, the trainer for the line workers will usually be a
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lead man, who knows all of the tasks in that part of the assembly line. There
might also be a floater, who is used to fill the line wherever there is an
absence, the line is falling behind, or there is a need to pull someone off of
their work station for training.

Induction Training
When new personnel are brought into a company or operation, there is a

real need to bring them up to speed as quickly as possible. Induction
training is a systematic training program, normally managed by the direct
supervisor, to bring the new employee up to speed on the corporate culture
and operations of a company as quickly as possible.

The supervisor will use standardized materials, which have been created by
the company’s internal training department. These materials should give the
new employee a feel for the company’s background, market, products,
culture and operations. From this point, the individual is then trained on
their specific department and job responsibilities.

In some companies, especially where a large number of new employees are
being processed at the same time, such as in the case of a workforce
expansion or opening a new division, the induction training will be
centralized for a short period of time. Instead of having the individual
supervisors manage their employee’s training, the Human Resources
department will train them as a group, and then turn them over to the
individual supervisors for further training.
With induction training, the goal is always to bring the individual on board
as part of the team as quickly as possible. Experience has shown that
employees who have been thus trained become productive much more
quickly than employees who do not pass through an inductive training
program.

Mentoring
While the training methods that have been previously mentioned are
predominantly limited to use with hourly employees, mentoring is generally
limited to use with people who are in staff and management positions. In a
mentoring situation, an experienced worker or manager takes a younger
worker “under their wing” to train them, mostly by passing on
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their years of experience. Because this isn’t just about training in how to do
a particular job, mentoring relationships can exist cross-department or even
from one company to another.
While some companies try and force mentoring relationships, assigning

mentors (experienced people) to work with particular mentees (junior people
in training), the most successful mentoring relationships happen when
mentors pick their own mentees. There is something almost like a sibling
relationship, or a father/son relationship in successful mentoring
situations. This suggests that one of the things that makes mentoring
successful is that the mentor sees something of themselves in the younger
worker and “adopts” them in a professional sense.

Truly successful mentoring relationships last for years and can guide the
mentee through several promotions and changes of position. At the same
time, while you are being mentored by someone else, you can also mentor
others who are junior to you. This doesn’t end the relationship with your
mentor, only adds another link in the mentoring chain. Eventually, those
that you mentor will be mentoring others.

As I said, mentoring relationships can cross departmental and even
company boundaries. In many cases, they start within one company, but as
the individuals grow in their professional career, one or the other may move
on to work in another company. This doesn’t necessarily mean the
mentoring relationship comes to an end; any more than moving to another
city destroys a family relationship. While the mentor may no longer help the
mentee with problems particular to the place of work where they met, they
might still help them with overall career objectives, learning life lessons and
learning how to function in newly promoted positions.

Shadowing
Shadowing is an effective way of training new staff members about company

organization, procedures, and allows them the opportunity to meet people
whom they will be interfacing with in their new job. When using shadowing
as a training method, the new employee is assigned to “shadow” an
experienced peer who does the same job. By going with them in everything
they do, and working together with their trainer, they find out about the
company’s procedures, paperwork that is required to do their job and how
their department interfaces with other departments in the company.
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Typically, shadowing continues for a week at most. After this time period,
the new person is given their own area of responsibility. Their trainer may
continue to work with them as a coach or mentor.

Structured Training Programs
Every company should have some sort of structured training programs.

These would be programs that have been professionally produced, either in
house or by a training consultant. Such programs are very useful for
induction training and in cases where many people need to be trained in the
same task or subject.

For most companies, developing structured training programs for every
individual task is cost prohibitive. However, there are always a number of
company wide or division wide areas that people need to be trained in.

There are a number of companies which offer pre-recorded training
programs in areas that are of common interest to a number of companies;
specifically in areas of corporate legalities, sales, and customer service.
These are an inexpensive way of starting a structured training program for
your company, without having to invest in creating your own training
material.
Self-Check 4.3-3 (Identification)
1. Are a great way of broadening your professional knowledge or

deepening it in an area of specialty.
2. Programs that have been professionally produced, either in house or
by a training consultant.
3. Is an effective way of training new staff members about company
organization, procedures, and allows them the opportunity to meet
people whom they will be interfacing with in their new job.
4. Is generally limited to use with people who are in staff and
management positions.
5. Is a systematic training program, normally managed by the direct
supervisor, to bring the new employee up to speed on the corporate
culture and operations of a company as quickly as possible.
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1. Professional seminars
2. Structured Training Programs
3. Shadowing
4. Mentoring
5. Induction training
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COMPETENCY BASED LEARNING

QUALIFICATION : FOOD AND BEVERAGE SERVICES NC II

UNIT OF : DEVELOP CAREER AND LIFE DECISION

MODULE TITLE : DEVELOPING CAREER AND LIFE DECISION

The unit of competency, “Develop Career and Life Decision”, is one

In this module, you are required to go through a series of learning

 Read information sheet and complete the self-checks.

You must pass the Institutional Competency Evaluation for this

LIST OF BASIC COMPETENCIES

No. Unit of Competency Module Title Code

1. Participate in workplace Participating in workplace 400311210

2. Work in a team Working in a team 400311211

3. Solve/address general Solving/addressing general 400311212

4. Develop career and life Developing career and 400311213

5. Contribute to workplace Contributing to workplace 400311214

6. Present relevant Presenting relevant 400311215

7. Practice occupational Practicing occupational 400311216

8. Exercise efficient and Exercising efficient and 400311217

9. Practice entrepreneurial Practicing entrepreneurial 400311218

UNIT OF COMPETENCY : Develop career and life decisions

MODULE TITLE : Developing career and life decisions

MODULE DESCRIPTOR : This unit covers the knowledge, skills, and

At the end of this module, you MUST be able to:

QUALIFICATION TITLE : Food and Beverage Services NC II

UNIT OF COMPETENCY : Develop career and life decisions

MODULE TITLE : Developing career and life decisions

This unit covers the knowledge, skills, and attitudes in

1. Self-management strategies are identified

Learning Outcome # 1 - Manage one’s emotion

Read information sheet 4.1-2 The performance criteria checklist will

If you have questions and clarification

After reading this information sheet, you must be able to:

 explain the various types of intra and interpersonal communication

Scholars categorize different levels and types of communication. These

 Number of communicators (one through many).

Note that each level of communication may be formal or informal, personal

Broadly speaking, the levels of communication can be categorized in a four-

Intrapersonal communication takes place within a single person, often for

 Self-concept is the basis for intrapersonal communication, because it

 Whereas self-concept focuses internally, perception looks outward.

 Meanwhile, expectations are future-oriented messages dealing with

Intrapersonal communication may involve different levels of communication

 Solo vocal communication includes speaking aloud to oneself. This

 Solo written communication deals with writing not intended for

Direct Interpersonal Communication

Direct interpersonal communication involves a direct face-to-face

Interpersonal communication can be categorized by the number of

 Dyadic communication involves two people. Example: Two friends

 Organizational communication deals with communication within large

 Family communication focuses on communication patterns within

Additionally, some scholars identify a category of impersonal

The process of interpersonal communication includes several stages over an

 Experimenting is the second step in interpersonal communication. In

 Intensifying follows when the experimentation leads to positive mutual

 The fourth step in interpersonal communication is integration, in

 Bonding is the final stage, in which the relationship is sealed (often

Knapp also outlined a similar reverse pattern for the unraveling of

 Differentiating mirrors the initiating phase but focuses instead on the

 Communication likewise plays a central role in the circumscribing

 Stagnating is the next stage, in which the relationship becomes flat

 Overt unpleasantness is evident in the avoidance stage, in which the

Mediated interpersonal communication involves technology that assists or

 Dyadic communication includes two people, with some of the

 Group communication includes a small group of people.