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Reflection On Group Work

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According to my scores, I am someone who is more likely to lead with an emphasis on relationship, rather than on task. The result of this assessment surprised me, because I tend to be a perfectionist in regards to deliverables. However, I have never enjoyed delegating to tasks to others because of the control factor. My preference is to complete a task alone, because it is difficult to deal with personalities and politics within a group. If I am forced to work with a group, I am much more likely to make suggestions to my group members, rather than telling them what to do. This behavior stems from my desire to work in harmonious groups, which may explain my inclination to lead by relationship. Further, I believe that followers are humans, who have a life beyond accomplishing group tasks. For example, when I was queen of the DRYL, one of the princesses, Cheyenne, relinquished her title due to school and cheerleading pressures. Although some members of the DRYL thought I should convince Cheyenne to stay on as a princess, I did not want one of my followers to be stressed out. Even though the other princesses and I could have used Cheyenne’s help for fundraisers, I put her individual needs above the group. How could you change your style to shift the emphasis you give to task and relationships? What would that require? Considering that the Lebow College of Business emphasizes group work to prepare students for the business environment, I think that I am well versed in why the majority of my group projects fail. However, there are the rare occurrences where all group members participate equally, and that the project becomes a piece of quality work. Even though I believe that some college students slack in these types of group situations, I cannot label myself as completely blameless. Often times, I think that I am too “nice” to some of these group members by fostering peace within the group. However, increasing some of my task behaviors, such as defining role responsibilities and organizing due dates for deliverables, may increase the productivity of the group. When a group refuses to share leadership or defer it to one individual, there is no clear set of quality standards for the project. As a result, I must

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