Leadership – it starts with self-awareness.

Thanks to an event sponsored by the Agri-Life Council and the CALS Leadership Office, student leaders had an opportunity during the evening of Thursday, March 15th to deepen their self-awareness and their leadership abilities. The 2018 Spring Student Leaders Workshop, “Communication and Conflict Management: Insights into Yours, Theirs and How to Improve” was attended by twenty-three CALS students and facilitated by Dr. Rhonda Sutton, director of CALS Leadership Programs.

Students first took a quiz (which was NOT pass or fail) that helped them identify their preferred communication style. The participants then engaged in activities that provided them with insights into how these styles either help or hinder their communications with others. Next, students were provided an instrument that focused on their preferred mode for resolving conflict (again, no pass or fail given!).

The conflict style approaches were discussed with particular attention paid to how much each style focused on one’s level of assertiveness and one’s level of cooperativeness. Open discussion regarding both a fictional case study and real scenarios rounded out the evening, with an intentional focus on students engaging and interacting with one another.

Students were also provided tools for how to improve their communication as well as additional strategies for effectively addressing conflict. Dr. Sutton appreciated the opportunity to talk with the students and looks forward to future leadership workshops for our College’s student leaders.