Story Time: Growing up as a Hispanic in the US

I moved to the United States when I was 8 years old and since then I have dealt with the idea that I am different and some people aren't going to understand that. When I first moved here many of the neighborhood kids where confused as to how I spoke English, because according to them I was only going to be able to speak Spanish because I was from Mexico. What they didn't know or even consider is that I had gone to a bilingual school since preschool and that really I only had a couple years of English deficiency which I very quickly picked up from going to summer school before starting school in the fall.

Later in my life my residency status was put in question when all the commotion started to flood the media about illegal Mexican immigrants living in the U.S and specifically the Arizona immigration law. 

People who I had gone to school with since elementary school would ask me stupid questions about being here illegally and "hopping the border" when I had been living here on a permanent resident card for at least 6 years. But now I realize they didn't know any better, they were just repeating what they were being fed. Living in one of the bordering states sometimes made my family and I subject racial discrimination by people who only knew what the media told them. This made me want to hide my heritage for a long time and try to fit in as well as I could. It made me self conscious of my skin color and my accent, none of which was good for a developing teenager. 

It wasn't until recently that I really embraced my Mexican heritage in public. In high school I made a new group of friends that was genuinely interested in learning about my culture and diversity and this really helped me come out of my comfort zone. At this time I also noticed that many times I was the only Hispanic student in my AP classes and I felt proud to be doing well academically besides the basic stereotype that Hispanic students couldn't be as smart as Caucasian students. My senior year I won an award for my community service and great academic standing as a Hispanic student from the Mesa Association of Hispanic Citizens. It was truly life changing, it inspired me to encourage other Hispanic students to do the best that they can. 

I am currently attending OSU with a diversity based scholarship through the office of Diversity and Inclusion called Morrill Scholars Program and I have met a lot of wonderful people of many backgrounds through their programs and have been connected to lots of resources around campus. In fact I wouldn't even be taking this class had it not been for them recommending it. 

Embracing my heritage opens many more doors for me than being ashamed of it because of what some stupid people say, and I have really tried to become more involved in it since arriving at OSU. I am a part of LLDI (Latino Leadership Development Institute), which is helping me become a better leader and provides a community with like interests and backgrounds to call home. 

"I find that the very things that I get criticized for, which is usually being different and just doing my own thing and just being original, is the very thing that's making me successful."

~Shania Twain

Heart to heart

Being a freshmen in a leadership class has proven to be a little challenging because even though I am involved with multiple organizations on campus I am not in a "leadership" position. I am involved in a lot of mentor-mentee relationships and I took this class more as of a preparing to be good leader in the future. So when trying to find someone to ask for their opinion on my leadership style, the only person I could really think of ,that I have worked with and value her judgement, is my RA. I have a very close relationship with my RA and she knows how I work in a group environment, and in a leadership position because through her I got involved in Relay For Life as the team captain for our dorm team. 

We sat down and had a nice one on one conversation about the class and then she proceeded to tell me what she thought my strengths and weaknesses were. She did bring up a good disclaimer, saying that she hasn't really known me very long, and I considered it while taking in the input she gave me.

The constructive criticism she gave was nothing really foreign to me, because I have heard it before from other mentors in my life. But it was a little disappointing because I thought that since arriving at OSU I had changed that part of my personality. This struck a realization in me about how I act differently in different environments in my life. In the dorm I could act one way, whereas with my friends, or in clubs I could act another way, and this brought to light a weakness in consistency which I need to work on. 

The complements on my leadership style were taken kindly and with much of a rewarding feeling. That's the feeling you get when you know people notice your hard work. I'm glad someone notices my vision driven personality and my genuine desire to help people, because I live of those characteristics. 

Where do I proceed from here? Forward! All one can do with the good and the bad is see how they can use it to improve themselves and their life style. 

 Hiking on an hot day in Arizona, 

all you can do is move forward and up

like you should at any point of your life.

Advice is like a titration,

take in only what you need to see improvement 

but not enough to overwhelm yourself, 

Baby steps!

Good things come to those who wait.

One More Chance

Everyone in the world deserves at least one chance to do great things in with their lives. One chance to show their true colors and embrace their talents. But, with the way the world is right now that is nearly impossible. In one the many third world countries could be living the next Steve Jobs or on a hospital bed dying from a terminal illness the next Albert Einstein, and we wouldn't even know if we don't go out of our way to help these people. Everyone deserves to be healthy, safe, and educated. 

There are many great clubs and organizations out there that help do this, and those are the types of organizations I like to be a part of. Organizations that raise money to find the cure to illnesses like cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes are all a great way to give someone a chance. Programs like Latino Leadership Development Institute (LLDI) and First Year Collegian Learning Community (FYC) that teach undergraduate students to lead and have initiative help make more community conscious people who could also be the change. Or even philanthropies that raise money to give to the less fortunate, whether here or far away, are helping improve people's lives, and educating the population about world problems. 

In relation to the Social Change Model of Leadership, all aspects are needed to form a change. The goal is societal change, but as the model shows to reach this goal both group values and self values will changed/affected. By knowing yourself and being consistent with your feelings, beliefs and actions, you can know your strengths and use those to better the community around you. To make any significant change one has to remain committed to their goal, not just back away when the going gets rough. A strong individual can lead a strong group, and as much change as an individual can make, a group can make so much more. Collaboration and a common purpose can drive. Significant amount of change, and controversy with civility provides a healthy way to voice different view points about the same topic, may taking different backgrounds into perspective, which when making a community change is good because there are going to be lots of different types of people. We have to take into consideration everyone who we are helping.

Anywhere one looks the world will always need change, this is the basis of evolution! You never know what kind of change your help could spark, only because you gave some a chance. 

Ethical Dilemmas in Student Organizations

Dilemma:

Member wants to run for president (and would be a really good candidate) but they have a poor GPA. They only have a poor GPA because they tried to remain an involved member while balancing a a difficult time consuming major, and family problems. To be president a previous E-board position is required, and because of the poor GPA they don't fulfill that requirement. The person running against them had an E-board position, but they did a poor job on a relatively easy position. They are the only person running against them. 

Verdict:

Based on rule based thinking, I think the position should be given to the previous member of the E-board. The poor GPA candidate does not fulfill two of the requirements: minimum GPA, and previous position on the E-board, making it difficult to really know their potential. Also, they use their GPA as a reason for why they did not become a part of the E-board, but if they didn't care enough then to fight for their spot regardless of their GPA how do we know that they care enough now to be president? Besides that, the fact that they weren't able to balance school, family, and the organization in the past as a regular member is an indicator for disaster. The previous member of the E-board may have not been very good at their current position but that could be due to fact that they did not have enough room to show what they could really do. Given more freedom may encourage greatness. This dilemma is also an example of justice vs. mercy. 

Group Dynamics- Avengers Style

The Avengers

Characters:

Tony Stark/Iron Man (Information seeker/Opinion Giver)

Steve Rodgers/Captain America (Opinion Giver/Summarizer)

Bruce Banner/ The Hulk (Information seeker/Clarifier)

Thor (Mediator)

Natasha Romanov/Black Widow (Follower)

Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Follower)

Nick Fury (Encourager/Summarizer)

            The Avengers is a group of heroes, and with that comes varying leadership styles, personalities, and ways of executing their work. Tony Stark is both an information seeker and an opinion giver. He is smart, always trying to gather more details about the situation. That being said, he constantly gives his opinion, serving as one of the biggest personalities in the room at all times. His voice and viewpoint are always heard. Steve Rodgers, better known as Captain America, is a summarizer, always wanting to make sure everyone is on the same page. Additionally, Captain is an opinion giver who wants to ensure that everyone else knows all of the facts and details before proceeding. He is a reasonable person to have in the group. Bruce Banner/The Hulk is the information seeker and clarifier. A doctor by nature, the Hulk is always gathering information so he can calculate a plan of action. His natural intelligence also makes him a clarifier, elaborating on the plan of action for everyone to understand.

Thor is the mediator of the group, attempting to create harmony among all of the differing views. Despite having a strong personality, within The Avengers he takes on a mediation role in order to straighten out the issues. Nick Fury, the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., is the encourager and summarizer among his team. As the man who assembled the group, Fury is responsible for welcoming and ensuring the success of everyone. Finally, both Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Clint Barton/Hawkeye are the sole followers of the group. Although they each bring a unique personality and skillset to the group, they are both active participants in the dynamic of The Avengers. Black Widow is strong-willed as the lone female of the group, but she has conviction and will always follow through.

            The forming of The Avengers begins over a period of time in which the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. assemble the group. To “bring together a group of remarkable people and see if they can become more” was the vision of Nick Fury, who led the formation. Along with Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Fury assembles the heroes from across the globe. The members, including Tony Stark/Iron Man, Steve Rodgers/Captain America, Thor, Bruce Banner/Hulk, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Clint Barton/Hawkeye, and Nick Fury all come together under S.H.I.E.L.D.’s “Avengers Initiative.”

            The initial conflict and storming of the members of the group is evident due to the dominant personalities of each Avenger. Most prominently, we see Tony Stark clashing with Captain America. They both seek the greater good, but have different ideas of how to reach their goals. This conflict is followed by Stark butting heads with Thor, also due to their varying opinions. As the entire group is formed, storming occurs on a normal basis. Each member of The Avengers is used to playing by their own rules, so working together as a team is a huge adjustment.

            After the shocking and devastating loss of Agent Coulson, the members of The Avengers begin norming as a team. The death of their friend is the catalyst for normalizing them together. After working through their issues, they understand the greater purpose for their team to work together. The group’s personality is defined by the varying members’ headstrong qualities. United with the drive to succeed, The Avengers buckle down and work together as a unit.

            The Avengers clearly begin performing as a team when the Battle of New York breaks out. The group’s purpose is to answer their call to action: fight to save the world. This lofty goal can be worked towards once the Chitauri invades New York. They effectively utilize their specialized skills in a united front, working against the clock to save New York. Building upon their established foundation of forming, storming, and norming, the group works flawlessly together towards achieving their goal.

            Finally, the adjourning occurs once their mission is complete. The Avengers, despite not knowing how long their group would be together for, are proud of their accomplishments together. The end of their job doesn’t mean the end of the group, as they understand that they may need to unite again if they are needed.

            

Yeah I'm an ORANGE ESTJ, deal with it!

"Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for  a successful personality and duplicate it."

Bruce Lee

I have now taken the True Colors test two times in the past month and both times have given me the outcome of a pretty even tie between orange, blue and green. I definitely think though that I am an orange at heart. I live for excitement and adventure, I am a very optimistic person, and I love developing spontaneous relationships. I like being around other oranges, because I love the positivity and the energy that comes from people like me. I feel comfortable being the only one talking, and I like to talk A LOT, which may or may not be one of my weaknesses as well as my strengths. People may think i'm annoying and hyperactive, but really i'm just excited to do things, and whether people believe it or not, I also know how to relax and not be as excitable, I think that's more of the blue and green in me.

Taking the MBTI helped broaden the characterization of my personality. In the MBTI I was characterized as an ESTJ (extroversion, sensing, thinking, judging),  but I can also identify with the ESFJ. When I enter a new environment I definitely try to to get a feel for the situation before jumping in and using only my previous knowledge to fix/work on a problem, but if it a situation I already know then I don't see the use in spending unnecessary time figuring out a new way to do things. The extroversion section of the MBTI speaks for the orange in me, I "do my best thinking out loud and in dialogue with other, and get energy by being around people" (Exploring Leadership pg 137). The J and P are another of my split personalities, in the work/school place I am a J, I need stuff to be done efficiently and with order, but when it comes to my personal and social life I am way more of a free spirit type of person, I love going out and figuring things out as the night progresses. 

I am a pretty free willed person, but I am smart, I know how to behave myself in all different types of situations, and I know the point where I make people uncomfortable. 

I know myself, I accept myself, and I love myself, and really in the end that's all that matters. 

That Arizona loving....

Just Do You- Mission Statement

"The joy of life consists in the exercises of one's energies, continual growth, constant change, the enjoyment of every new experience. To stop means simply to die. The eternal mistake of mankind is to set up an attainable ideal." 

-Aleister Crowley

Purpose. Purpose can mean different things to different people, even the dictionaries can seem to agree on what it means, dictionary. com has 5 different definitions, so how am I suppose to know what is being asked? I would like to define it my own way, to me purpose is the value that you apply to your everyday life. I live with the purpose that everyday, I am at least going to help make one person's day better. Whether it's by telling a stupid joke, or helping out with a homework question, or even something bigger like helping with an organization who's goal is to improve lots of people's lives. With this purpose, I know that I will leave the world a better place, and who wouldn't be content with that? 

This purpose was highly influenced by the people and experiences in my life. I am a daughter, and a sister. My parents have set me on the right path to grow and experience things that many people go a lifetime without seeing. I have gotten to travel the world, experience different cultures, and this has made me a better more educated person. I have had the comfort of a loving and supportive environment, which allowed me to concentrate on and perfect my goals. I am also a sister, which provides another lifelong type of support that is always good to count on. But I am also an the oldest sibling, making me the role model for my siblings, that doesn't mean I have to be perfect, that just means I have to learn from my mistakes, and show them that life goes on. I am a 18 years old, the age of learning what you REALLY want to do with your life, this time without having your parents holding your hand throughout every step, its the time to make mistakes, to change your mind, but its also the time to grow and NOT make the same mistakes more than once. I am Hispanic, meaning many times I am a minority within my community, but I believe this has made me a strong and better leader, and I embrace my diversity because it gives me a little edge and it gives me the opportunity to educate people about my culture; also it puts me in a position where I can help influence other people of my race to do great things. I am extrovert, I love meeting and being with new people. There are many things that define me, but I think I'll just stop there, because honestly this is getting lengthy!

"Beliefs shape values, which influence thoughts and actions." 

-Exploring Leadership pg. 131

I live by a set of values which include: honesty, perseverance, kindness, humility, and compassion, among others. Everything I do is done with these in mind. One cannot be themselves and stand up for what they believe in if they don't know what they believe in. I keep these clear in my mind, so that when society comes and tries to sway me to be something I'm not I can stand clear of it. At the end of the day I want to be able to say that I approve or can at least justify every decision I made that day. 

Another thing! 

My logic is we each have to live with our decision, so why let them be influenced by someone else?

Aspire to be someone you would look up to.