The seven habits. You ether know them and they’ve changed your life, or you’ve never heard of them. The PLP Grad Class of 2023 was introduced to them in our grade 8 year. I created a bunch of honestly crap work when I first learned about the seven habits because I had to. Alas, now because I have the opportunity to do this on my own I hope I can build upon the learning I did in the past.
I like to keep my MPOLs relatively short so I have an opportunity to elaborate and explain in a more conversational manner.
Be proactive
Being proactive means having the courage to change. I identified this pretty early all things considered, but it all came at once. I found it particularly confusing that it had taken me so long to figure this out. I feel like I have the skills to keep progressing in this area but it always seems to be one step forward two steps back. I know my mental health plays a role in this but it’s hard to have the motivation and ideas to make my learning stronger but not have the mental energy to bring it to actuality.
I show that I can be proactive by completing assignments on time and communicating with my teachers about things I could do better in. One example of this that I will go deeper into later is my writing. Every time there is an opportunity to improve I try my best to push myself and ask for critical feedback.
Begin with the end in mind
This skill for me focuses on thinking about projects overall and not forgetting what your working towards. This I did a lot in the poetry project. I knew what I had to do and thought about that the whole time we were working on practicing the skills we were going to use in the final product.
Put first things first
When I get overwhelmed this is the skill I always go back to. Sometimes being proactive doesn’t always turn out or things get the better of you. This I found in this year’s first project to be especially important. I love local politics and hope to one day become more involved but with our government project I definitely fell back on just getting the most important thing done first.
Think win win
Thinking win win helps you to keep a level head and reframe your potentially negative mindset.
Seek first to understand, then to be understood
This is the skill I feel school puts a lot of emphasis on. I am pretty good, in English at least, to understand. I pick up on ideas relatively quickly but expressing what I think is difficult. I mentioned this in my other MPOLs and it’s something I am constantly working on.
Synergize
To have synergy mean to have the ability to work well with others. I know I am a good leader but I am trying to learn to be a good group member. I hope to practice this in our upcoming project.
Sharpen the saw
This is where I think I am best at. I know how to take care of myself and grow my skills. If there is a time where I have the energy to learn something new I take it. I know what makes me feel rested and what doesn’t. I’ve been trying to read more and find other ways to intellectually sharpen the saw.
As a PLP learner I know that I have the opportunity to work on all of these skills. I know how to do this and in my TPOL I plan to revisit this post to see how I have done. I have a copy of this post in my craft so I can review it to keep me accountable.