Month: July 2023

Today’s dot was written by Kiara Larson from Minot State University’s LEAD 201 Collaborative Leadership Class.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve had the privilege of going wedding dress shopping with my sister-in-law in search of her dream dress. We went to four stores in total and each experience was completely different. It’s amazing how much the “vibe” of the store and employees affect the customers. Two out of the four experiences were really helpful and comforting. However, the other two felt chaotic and rushed without much assistance.

The two helpful stores made it a good experience by having a positive attitude and constantly offering solutions. There were countless times when we didn’t like a certain part of the dress and the worker always had ideas to fix what we didn’t like. The other two stores weren’t as patient. One store didn’t even have a private area for bridal groups so any random person in the store could see brides trying on different wedding dresses. Overall, it didn’t make shopping there a special experience.

There are millions of wedding dress stores so it might be challenging to make your store unique from the other options. The easiest way to distinguish yourself from others is to maximize the quality of your customer service. Weddings are stressful and brides are seeking some peace of mind.

This concept doesn’t only apply to bridal stores. Every company should hire employees that are competent, helpful, and adaptable to different types of people. Customers having a good experience will lead to positive reviews and more clientele.

Today’s dot was written by Kirstin Nelson from Minot State University’s LEAD 201 Collaborative Leadership Class.

Working at a daycare, having a positive and fun attitude at all times is vital to making sure that the children remain happy throughout the day.

Have you ever seen a grumpy parent or childcare provider who is clearly annoyed with a child’s endless questions or overall childish nature? I admit that I have been in this position before; it is easy to get frustrated when acting as a role model, but after a certain amount of time this child will stop asking questions and they will develop their parent/care provider’s grumpy attitude. Not exactly the outcome you want when it comes to children. But if that adult puts an effort into answering the child’s questions, and encourages curiosity and fun, that child will grow up loving to learn new things and have a fulfilling life.

It is important to keep this in mind when taking up a leadership position. Do you want the people working for you to have a positive and fun attitude? Do you want them to take their job seriously and always be professional? Leading by example is an effective way to set the mood of your organization or team. Be a role model to the people you are leading, and if you do a good job, they may just look up to you as a child looks up to their parent or caretaker.

Today’s dot was written by Kevin Vandal from Minot State University’s LEAD 201 Collaborative Leadership Class.

This school year, I am a member of a small music ensemble that traveled to local middle schools with outreach presentations. This task of developing and sharing music-based content with younger students was entirely new to me and the other two members, so thankfully we had access to valuable guidance from seasoned professionals.

The difficulty of pre-production complexities, such as planning topics, examples, delegation, and activities were all minimized in comparison to the unforeseen twists and turns of live performing: once we were dismayed to discover we had extra time to fill, another time a 7^th grader was disruptively devouring a sandwich – with his classmate’s rapt attention.

Some much-welcomed insight from our mentors led us to grasp one striking, fundamental concept. This idea was that our sole job was to exhibit. Display. We were not charged to instruct, discipline, or even entertain – our job was to put on a show. Simply make some music and knowledge and advice available for consumption.

Why was this a profound realization? This refined vision transformed our presentation approach… Without responsibility for classroom management, disengaged audience members had no reason to panic us. Official freedom to stray from our pre-determined script made the clock less of an enemy, as delightful dialog with curious youth had the potential to fill many minutes. We stepped back from thoughts of lesson plans and being fun for everyone and arrived at the mindset of merely channeling our passion for music in an accessible way. Communicating like this was very effective.

One of our coaches had this advice: be prepared to exhibit without any audience feedback but foster as much of this interaction as possible. As we found ourselves genuinely interested in our own exhibit, our audience became interested. What could have been a lecture became an invitation to a fascinating world. The next time you are sharing with a group, give this a try. Relax your self-imposed constraints and responsibilities then reveal your message to the world. Enthusiasm is contagious; no need to cater to uncaring onlookers. Just exhibit.

Today’s dot was written by Krista Permentier from Minot State University’s LEAD 201 Collaborative Leadership Class.

As I sat down next to my t-shirts, I looked at the abundance of tie-dyes I own. Each is made with the same products, the same procedure, and mostly the same design. However, each one is unique and very different from the next.

We get so used to the same procedure and design of our days at work, at school, and even in our home lives; however; what would happen if each day was different? Would it amount to pure chaos, or would it be a new breath and refresher of the joys of our everyday life?

Consider a tie-dye shirt. When you lay yellow and blue next to each other, you may get yellow and blue, or you may get a green gradient, Look at how a simple, yet subtle factor can change the entire experience.

Whether this be a t-shirt or a day, you should take charge of it yourself. Make your own subtle change, find a new path or design, place the rubber bands differently, or run on a different schedule. Watch as not only will you get something equally (or more) beautiful, but you’ll get a new experience based on the change.

Today’s dot was written by Maelyn Sanders from Minot State University’s LEAD 201 Collaborative Leadership Class.

This semester I really wanted to try new things and put myself out there. Rock climbing caught my eye, so I gave it a try. I was very fearful the first day. I didn’t want to look bad or make a fool of myself. However, after the first climb, I took off and found a new hobby to enjoy.

I learned three things from that experience: Risks are scary, people don’t want to fail, and people love to be comfortable.

I was so scared to rock climb, I almost backed out. I would’ve missed a great opportunity to find something new I love doing. When first climbing, all I was thinking about was, “What if I fail?” “What if all these people laugh at me?” but, people always fail. That’s the beauty in life. If people never failed, we would’ve never learned anything new.

When I had my first failed climb, I was met with support and advice on how to overcome. I gave it another try with more confidence and determination to achieve the climb. Lastly, comfortability. All I wanted to do was the easy, safe climbs. I knew I didn’t want to mess up, so I stuck with what I knew I could do with ease. But what is the fun in that? Never challenging yourself will lead you to destroy your imagination and you will never truly know what you could accomplish.

At least with risks, you are always winning, no matter the outcome. You might not win the big prize; however, you are gaining knowledge. Learning and growing as you go, and every good leader should be willing to learn and grow rather than sit and wait for destruction. So, take the risk, nothing to lose, everything to gain.