Graduate School Reflections

Writing this is probably the hardest thing I’ve done today. Admittedly, it’s been an easy day (it’s Saturday currently). Still, I’ve recently made it a goal to start writing and reflecting more frequently for two reasons: The first, as a way to get over my perfectionist tendencies. The second, as a way to improve the overall quality of my writing through practice.

In addition to working full-time at a design consultancy in Chicago, I am pursuing my Master’s at Northwestern in Learning and Organizational Change and a certificate in Designing for Organizational Effectiveness. This entails — you guessed it — a lot of writing.

In my first course this spring, I was thrust back into the world of academia after nearly a decade, and the most nerve-wracking thing for me was writing my first paper. APA formatting? Citations? And oh shit, what is a thesis statement again? After a few late nights and encouragement from my peers, I submitted my first paper for graduate school — all 1000 words or less! It took a lot of time and energy, but it was also rewarding. I have always enjoyed writing, but it does not come easy or fast for me.

I am passionate about making people’s careers and work lives more fulfilling. I want to empower people to do their best work possible to better themselves and their organization. This is why I am back in school and why I want to improve my ability to communicate through writing. So, as a part of my journey, I will be using this medium — er, Medium as a way to practice. My motto for this space is progress over perfection, so bear with me if you’re reading along.

In bits and pieces, I hope to reflect on my personal growth, my journey through grad school, and my thoughts on designing for organizational learning and effectiveness.

Here are my guidelines for writing in this space:

• I will take no longer than three hours total on each post (this might mean they get released in batches, but hey, I love a good time box).
• I will be writing my thoughts and anecdotes, reflecting on both school and professional work, and sharing some academic papers.
• I will always cite/reference other’s work in APA formatting.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading!