Ants with Your Order Today, Sir? The majority of people in this country would dream of working in an ice cream shop and sweeping rainbow sprinkles off the floor everyday; I had accomplished this aspiration. I found my way into the ice cream business as a lowly sophomore and stayed there until I was a senior, three seasons. By ice cream standards, this means I am an experienced veteran and can make a perfect soft serve swirl with my eyes closed. This particular ice cream shop was filled with only girl employees and was mainly a high school position; you may be thinking my boss is a pedophile, but he’s not. As a senior, one has to show others that she is maturing and put on a leadership role to convince onlookers that she is almost at a functioning adult level. I had always loved my job, but this past summer I stepped in the leadership role in a way that I never had before; I had to confront my boss with a serious problem. Before I jump to far ahead, it is important to note that I was quickly becoming a head girl within the establishment. Many older girls were leaving, and younger girls were filling the gaps. I became accustomed to orienting new employees that my boss didn’t have time for. It was a new challenge for me and demanded all my patience, which happens to be one of my faults. The accumulation of duties were moments of obligation in themselves, yet I consider the climax of these moments to have taken place in early August of 2015. During a lull in afternoon
Right after high school, I completed my certification of nursing aide. This allowed me to venture into the medical field early on and attain experience. I applied at Creekside Convalescent Hospital and became a well oiled nursing aide machine. After recognition from upper management I transitioned into a leadership role with included overseeing a restorative care program. This included overseeing and redeveloping a not so well structured restorative care program. I was in charge of setting the schedule, dealing with issues among employees,improving collaboration, improving work conditions, re-training the new curriculum of the program to the employees, and changing their way of charting . After making a lot of changes to the program, some employees quit and some stayed. After I while ,with my ideas and with the help of my supervisor we have improved our restorative care program drastically.In the beginning, we had a chaotic program without order and now, we still have some minor issues to work out, but it has improved. Here are one-two examples that I chose to demonstrate how my leadership experience has influenced my position and others.After taking over the schedule I decided to change the schedule to
In the United States, study after study continues to show that women have fewer opportunities to advance in the workplace than men. These disadvantages are a result of society’s views of women in leadership positions and how women may view themselves in these roles. Women have been making progress in terms of equality in pay and job positions, but significant gaps remain. Women who strive to be promoted into higher levels of responsibility in their companies often meet resistance that prevents them from achieving the goal of a senior or executive level of management. This barrier is referred to as the “glass ceiling” and it is a controversial issue in our country today. The glass ceiling called this because women are able to see the higher level positions, but can reach them because of an intangible barrier. One can look at the Fortune 500 companies, which are the most successful companies in the U.S. in terms of revenue to see how few women are in leadership positions. Clearly, women are significantly underrepresented in these companies, as less than 5 percent of these companies have female chief executive officers (CEO) today (Dockterman 105). Providing the opportunity for women to move into management positions, like CEOs, would bring a unique talent and a new perspective on how the company can operate to perform better (Buckalew 147). The “glass ceiling” is a real obstacle that creates an intangible barrier that puts women at a disadvantage in advancing in a company.
In the business world, it’s all about being assertive. The people who get the highest ranks are the most assertive in their occupation, but for women there seems to be a “catch 22” in their assertiveness. Assertive women in the workplace are often viewed as rude or pushy, therefore making it harder for them to move up in the high ranks of the company. However, if a woman is not assertive enough then the business might think she is not committed to the job she is doing. There is also a “glass ceiling” put in place for many women. A “glass ceiling” is a goal that one would think can be achieved but really it is an unattainable goal due to policies or corporate culture. Many women feel the impact of the glass ceilings as they start climbing the business ladder.
She had felt all that pressure that was recently put upon her fly away, “That’s literally the best word for it; relieved.” Aldina had gotten hired the three months after she had finished college and began working at Garden Court Retirement in Everett. Five years was the amount of time she spent at her very first job after college. “When you realize how good you get at your job and how awesome it is once you’re actually doing it, it’s an amazing feeling. You don’t have to think about it. You’re just a pro at your job,” Aldina
Acquiring a job, whether it be in a doctor’s office or a fast-food restaurant, can transform a person. Jobs tend to educate employees, both about themselves and life in general, either indirectly or directly. In Climbing the Golden Arches, nineteen year-old Marissa Nuñez discusses the work ethics she gained while being employed at her McDonalds. Within her essay, Nuñez mentioned how she faced both pleasant and unpleasant circumstances at her work, all which prepared her for her future career. As an individual who worked at McDonald’s, Nuñez learned how to fulfill her role of being an employee by becoming an expert at all the placed stations, dealing with the various types of customers she encountered on a daily basis, and by acting as an efficient team member. When Marissa Nuñez, who was a high schooler at the time, first applied for this job at McDonald’s, she probably did not apply with the intent of becoming a more responsible and efficient individual. However, as time went on and she utilized the skills she obtained from working long and hard at McDonald’s, Marissa Nuñez found herself transitioning from a high school student to a
transformation and changes in leadership styles that occurred as a result of my attendance to the
She writes that a female executive should, "Quit bein' a girl," and explains that a woman has choices, and is capable of growing into a role as a leader (Frankel, Lois P. 5) . She provides suggestions for behavioral changes, demonstrates how they can act more like women in the workplace and explains that her remedies to a stalled career are much like a diet, and must be committed to fully and applied consistently before they can have their intended effects. After all the mistakes women make in their careers have been identified, and Frankel's coaching tips have been explained, she describes how women can create a personal development plan with a final chapter dedicated to bringing her guidance full circle. She suggests that choosing just one behavior per week to focus on can help women become more aware of their actions, and understand how they sabotage themselves. Once women have replaced their self-defeating behaviors with more effective ones, they will begin to act more like the women they are capable of becoming and less like the girls they were taught to be.
“A&P” by John Updike is a great example of different types of leadership you see in the everyday world. This short story is about a boy, three girls, and a manager, all in this one little gas station towards the coast of Massachusetts that greatly provide views of a couple types of leadership, but in a more relatable way. The three girls, one of them being named Queenie, enter the store dressed inappropriately, Sammy, a boy who is employed there, doesn’t mind and is more attracted to the girls. Unfortunately, his manager, Lengel, is very disapproving of the way the girls are dressed and wants them out of the store. After the girls finish their purchase, Sammy decides to quit to impress them, but unfortunately, they have already left, leaving Sammy without a job and a dent on his reputation. In this story, it is clearly seen that certain character’s bring a leadership style to the story and are very different from each other because of the social status that each character is in.
When workers bring up their boss in conversation, words like intimidating or hard-nosed might be tossed around. Also, any good employee knows to look busy when their boss is around and to be on their best behavior. Bartleby, in Bartleby The Scrivener did not abide by these office rules many of us follow. Bartleby was a scrivener for a law office on Wall Street. In the beginning days of Bartleby’s new job as a copier, he exceled greatly surpassing his fellow co-workers. This inspirational work ethic soon turned sour when Bartleby refused to do any work at all around the office. Lack of discipline from the boss of the law office turned Bartleby’s “I would prefer not to” into a much larger problem. The boss being such a pushover
Gender plays a huge role in workplace 'success' and can be a big challenge especially if the employee is a woman in a male dominated workplace or career. No matter how 'hard-nosed,' 'ruthless,' 'workaholic' a woman may be, or how much personal success she achieves, there will always tend to be some type of obstacle to keep her from getting completely to the top of the corporate ladder. She must also still fight stereotypes that undermines her confidence or limits her potential. Since the early 20th century, women and minorities have sought equal opportunities in education and in the labor force with little success. These obstacles or barriers are all known as the glass ceiling.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump. My heart began to race as I climbed in my truck early Monday morning. Anticipation grew inside of me at the thought of starting my new job. Would it be difficult? Would I get frustrated? I kept asking myself these questions, but I didn't want to know the answers. All the confidence that I had built up before that day had diminished and I was left with dread. I tried to reassure myself that it was just a summer job and that I would never have to go through it again, but my anxiety had already overcome me.
Second year arrived within the seemingly shortest time I could imagine. Reuniting with my friends, I was determined that even if my advisory had somewhat changed, I would make the most out of my year. “I still feel like a first year,” I told my friend-Selena-multiple times, receiving a chuckle in response. New first years were streaming the school, and I began to feel a new responsibility. This responsibility buzzed in my mind like a bee until carried out. I was now a leader. Although the opportunity was a somewhat rare occurrence, I took every chance with a great pride that warmed me from my head to toes. Yet, this
when a hoped-for promotion never materialized. Her superiors told her that she hadn’t performed as well as they’d expected. Specifically, they told her she’d requested too much time off to Adapting to feedback is critical for managers who find themselves in jobs, companies, and industries undergoing frequent transitions. spend with her children,
The business world today is competitive. It's full of fierce, educated, and motivated people. For some people it's tough to rise to the top and for some people it comes much easier. It's not always about hard work! One might ask for a map to the yellow brick road, but few people are ever provided with it. Most people are stuck in an ocean making calculated guesses as to how they can reach land. Which route is the best? How much school is enough? How many certificates of accreditation is enough? How much work experience is enough? All of us ask these questions attempting to navigate our ships in a competitive world were only a few individuals ever get to their targeted career position. How many of those in leadership positions are women?
More and more women are rising to the leadership challenge, even in some of the most male-dominated industries. The increase in the number of women attending college, the increasing number of women in the workplace or starting their own business has demonstrated to men who own businesses that women can be both managers and mothers, thus showing their male counterpart that women can in fact "do it all".