A500.3.4.RB_RutbellGreg - Blog - Explore the Hunt Library

In this journal entry, I will 1. reflect on how I might use the Library as a resource for my studies 2. how scholarly information I found in the Library is different from the typical information I find when I Yahoo or Google a leadership concept.

Graduate students including myself use the Internet as a tool when doing research for assignments. Professors, instructors and course developers require students to do Internet research for assignments. Research on the Internet is very different from traditional library research and sometimes the differences can cause problems. The Internet is a huge resource of data and information but needs to used carefully and critically.           

The Hunt Library resources including books, journals etc. along with electronic versions and have been evaluated by subject matter experts before they are published. This process of "peer review" is the difference between an article in Time magazine and one in a scholarly journal such as the Harvard Business Review (original research and firsthand perspectives from leading business thinkers and researchers around the world). In addition, when books and other materials come into the Hunt Library system, they are structured and systematically catalogued and cross-referenced using standard processes and procedures followed by research libraries the world over. This process is the foundation for the way materials are organized in the Library and makes possible the many search functions of the Web catalogue.

On the Internet, "anything goes" that is "anyone" can post "anything" at "any time" for any reason" they want on a Web site with no review, approval or screening process including no standard process of identifying subjects and cross-references. This is both a strength and weakness of the Internet because it is either freedom or chaos depending on the point of view and shows the importance to pay close attention when doing research on-line. There are many solid academic resources available on the Net including journals and sites from universities and scholarly, scientific, business and research organizations. The Hunt Library includes one such academic resource. Using materials from those sources is not a problem. It is similar to going to the Library except it's on-line. It's the other stuff on the Internet I need to be cautious about and need to use several guidelines and critical-thinking standards:

1. Don't use only Net resources. Use a combination of both Internet and Hunt Library resources. Cross reference information from the Net against information from the Library and is a good way to ensure the Net material is reliable and authoritative. Using a combination of both Internet and Library resources adds to the quality and diversity of research. It can also identify additional ideas and input that were not originally identified at the start.   

2. Know the subject directories and search engines. There are several quality peer reviewed subject directories with links selected by subject experts including INFOMINE and Academic Info. These are outstanding places to start Internet research. Yahoo and Google and other search engines differ in how they work, how much of the Net they search and the kind of results they produce. Spending some time learning each search engine and how best to use it can help in research. Each search engine will find different things, it's a good idea to use more than one search engine.

3. Authority. There are several questions to ask to ask and verify about the author and authority. Who is the author? Is the author's name and qualifications given? Has the author written additional topics and subject matter areas?

4. Affiliation. There are several questions to ask about affiliation. Who or what organization is the sponsor of the Web site? Is the author affiliated with a reputable organization such as business, industry, university, government, non-profit, etc.? Does the information reflect the views of the organization or only the author?                                

 

5. Audience. There are several questions to ask and verify about audience. Who is the intended audience? What is the audience level the Web site is designed for? For example, don't use sites intended for high school students or sites that are too advanced and technical for the intended application.   

 

6. Currency. There are several questions to ask and verify about currency. Is the Web site current and dated? Are the dates of the most recent updates given? Internet resources should be up to date because getting the most recent information is the reason for using the Internet for research. Are all links and updated and operational? 

 

7. Content Reliability. There are several questions to ask and verify about reliability. Is the material on the Internet reliable and accurate? Is the information fact and not opinion? Is the information clearly stated? Is the research valid? Does the material have substance and depth? Is the author's language free from emotion and bias? Is the site free of grammatical and spelling errors? Are additional resources identified to complement or support the material on the Web site?

 

(MacDonald, Research Using the Internet)

 

There are additional critical-thinking standards:

1. Accuracy. Is this true? How can we find out it if this is true? There is a saying about computers: "Garbage in, garbage out." Simply stated, this means that if you put bad information into a computer, bad information will is what you will get out of it. The same applies to human thinking. No matter how intelligent and brilliant you are, you will make bad decisions if your decisions are based on false information. Critical thinkers don't only value the truth; they have a passion for accurate data and information. In the spirit of Socrates' famous statement that the unexamined life is not worth living, they never stop learning, growing and inquiring.

2. Precision. Everyone recognizes the importance of precision in specialized fields including: medicine, mathematics, architecture, and engineering. Critical thinkers also understand the importance of precise thinking in daily life. They understand that to cut through the confusions and uncertainties that surround many everyday problems and issues, it is necessary to insist on precise answers to precise questions: What exactly is the problem? What are the alternatives? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative? Only when we seek such precision are we critical thinkers.

3. Logic. Does this really make sense? When we think, we bring a variety of thoughts together into some order. When the combination of thoughts are mutually supporting and make sense in combination, the thinking is "logical." When the combination is not mutually supporting, is contradictory in some sense or does not "make sense," the combination is not logical.

 

(Nosich, 2012)

 

References    

MacDonald, W. Brock. Research Using the Internet (University of Toronto). Retrieved from

http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/reading-and-researching/research-using-

internet.

Nosich, Gerald M. (2012). Learning To Think Things Through - A Guide To Critical

Thinking Across The Curriculum (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

 

 

 

A500.2.3.RB_RutbellGreg - Blog - Tell Your Story

In this journal entry, I will discuss some standards that are most important in my life. I will focus on non-critical-thinking standards including:

·         fun

·         exciting

·         feels good

·         attention-getting

·         popular

·         chic

·         spontaneous

·         advantageous

·         beneficial to me

·         in fashion

Continuous Lifelong Learning and Education

I enjoy learning new things and keeping my knowledge and skills updated with the latest tools and processes. For example, this year 2013 I have completed several courses including: Stephen Covey - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Becoming a Leader - Jack Welch Management Institute at Strayer University and John Maxwell - Leadership and Teamwork. In the past, I completed MBA at American InterContinental University and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt at Lockheed Martin and the University of Texas at Austin. And a month ago, I started the MS Leadership at ERAU. Why do I do this? It is beneficial to me because it builds a better me and is beneficial to my Industrial Engineering position at Boeing because it makes me a more productive employee. The Boeing Learning Together Program also covers tuition, books and software costs and graduate level course programs are income and tax free.           

Traveling

Hawaii, Alaska and Canada are several of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. Beaches, crystal clear waters, mountains, greenery, snow, ice, icebergs and clean air. The Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite are absolutely fascinating. Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver are several of the most fascinating cities in North America. The Pacific Northwest is also an area of great natural beauty. I have several National Parks by me including Mount Rainier and Olympic. Washington State Parks are beautiful too. Add to this bald eagles flying overhead and salmon, halibut and trout fishing in lakes, rivers, streams and oceans. Traveling is fun, exciting, a good stress reliever and a great time for reflection experience. And it is a great opportunity to connect with family and friends.   

Salmon Fishing   

What an incredible opportunity to go salmon fishing. I am spoiled to live in one of the best salmon fishing regions in the world: Washington State, British Columbia and Alaska. Catching a king, sockeye or pink salmon is an experience. Salmon are very strong and fighters and it takes strength and patience to land them. Salmon are also a very beautiful fish and I have several displays that were professionally mounted by taxidermists. Seeing the displays is a good reflection of great times.    

Mentoring

 I have always loved mentoring along with it being a great learning and networking tool. I have played the part of being both a mentor and mentee. When I worked for Lockheed Martin on my Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Certification I was a mentor to several Black and Green Belts who were working on certification. I would coach them on projects, training and interpersonal skills including teaming. I had several Master Black Belt mentors who coached me on similar things. Mentoring is also a good tool for relationship building and friendships both professional and personal. I spent several years as a Senior District Committee Member mentor to The Boy Scouts of America supporting the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) initiative with the aerospace industry.                        

Servant Leadership

 

My philosophy of life is that we are here to serve others. Servant leadership is both a leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. According to Robert Greenleaf in "The Servant Leader" "The servant-leader is servant first. It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead". Robert Greenleaf recognized that organizations as well as individuals could be servant-leaders. Indeed, he had great faith that servant-leader organizations could change the world. This is my thesis: caring for persons, the more able and the less able serving each other, is the rock upon which a good society is built. Nothing is stronger than the heart of a volunteer. Volunteers make things happen and are people of impact. How do I help build a better society? I am a volunteer, mentor and coach at Northwest Harvest which is Washington's own statewide hunger relief agency headquartered in Seattle with the mission to provide nutritious food to hungry people statewide in a manner that respects their dignity, while fighting to eliminate hunger. Our vision is that ample nutritious food is available to everyone in Washington State. Today we continue to fight hunger across Washington State through our network of partner food banks, meal programs and high-need elementary schools, providing millions of nutritious meals each year to those in need. I am also a sponsor for World Vision - Books and Backpacks. For more than 10 years, Boeing has supported local teachers and school children through the Boeing Books & Backpack drive. Boeing employees donate school supplies to help support World Vision. Boeing employees also give of their time and energy by volunteering at World Vision to stuff  backpacks with school supplies for distribution to local area kids. Through World Vision, teachers from schools in which 70 percent or more of the students qualify for free and reduced-price lunch can "shop" twice a year to receive much-needed school supplies for the children in their classrooms.

Character

Character (and integrity) is who you are and what you stand for in principles, values, and beliefs. It is important to talk the talk and walk the talk. People will watch your actions. Am I a role model at home, work and in society? The former basketball coach John Wooden from Indiana State and UCLA is one of the greatest person I have ever met and known with "The Pyramid of Success." "Success is a peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming."

Perseverance  

It is important to be persistent and maintain a continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure or opposition. Never give in, give up or quit. Winston Churchill one of the greatest leaders ever who lead Great Britain and the Free World against Germany and Nazi's stated "Never, never, never, never give up." " Never give in, never give in, never; never; never; never - in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense." "Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." Winston Churchill’s speech ‘we shall fight them on the beaches’ is one of the defining speeches during the second world war. It uses the technique of repetition to very good effect.

"We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France,
we shall fight on the seas and oceans,
we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be,
we shall fight on the beaches,
we shall fight on the landing grounds,
we shall fight in the fields and in the streets,
we shall fight in the hills;
we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old.”

Sports

I have participated in several sports including football, weightlifting and powerlifting. Sports teaches lifelong skills including teaming, fitness and communications. Organizations such as Boeing promote eating, diet, health and fitness programs such as Boeing on the Move!

 

References

Greenleaf, Robert K. (2002). Servant Leadership - A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power &

Greatness. Mahwah, New Jersey: Paulist Press.

Littman, Jonathan & Sandys, Celia (2003). We Shall Not Fail - The Inspiring Leadership of Winston

Churchill. New York, New York: The Penguin Group.      

Nosich, Gerald M. (2012). Learning To Think Things Through - A Guide To Critical

Thinking Across The Curriculum. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

A500.1.5.RB_RutbellGreg - Blog - Intellectual Perseverance

In this journal entry, I will define intellectual perseverance including elements. I will reflect upon how intellectual perseverance will be important as I progress in my studies. I will include how intellectual perseverance relates to my concept of a good leader including professional and personal life. I will use the SEE-I process as a guide to organize my thoughts.    

According to Toastmasters International, intellectual perseverance is defined as "the disposition to work one's way through intellectual complexities despite the frustration inherent in the task. Some intellectual problems are complex and cannot be easily solved. One has intellectual perseverance when one does not give up in the face of intellectual complexity or frustration. The intellectually perseverant person displays firm adherence to rational principles despite the irrational opposition of others, and has a realistic sense of the need to struggle with confusion and unsettled questions over an extended time to achieve understanding or insight". The opposite of intellectual perseverance is intellectual laziness which is defined as "the tendency to give up quickly when faced with an intellectually challenging task". Physical perseverance (the human body) is different from intellectual perseverance (the mind thinking process). For example, sports emphasize "no pain, no gain" when using physical perseverance. (Intellectual Perseverance: Working Through Complexity and Frustration).                   

Intellectual Humility

Intellectual humility is awareness of the limits of my knowledge including egocentrism which is likely to function self-deceptively. This includes awareness of biases, prejudices, limitations of viewpoint, and ignorance. This does not imply weakness or submissiveness. Not having an awareness of this is intellectual arrogance and people who are often fall victim to their own bias and prejudice and claim to know more than they actually know. Intellectual humility will help be a fair-minded thinker along with knowledge of my ignorance can improve my thinking in several ways by recognizing prejudices, false beliefs and habits of mind that lead to flawed learning.  

Intellectual Courage

Intellectual courage is having an awareness of the need to face and fairly address ideas, beliefs and viewpoints which I have strong negative emotions and to which I have not given a fair hearing. For example, consider the following ideas: being conservative, believing in God, believing in capitalism, disbelieving in abortion, believing in capital punishment, I am a Christian, etc. No matter what side I am on, I often say, I am a "insert belief." I define who I am in relation to an emotional commitment to a belief and will likely experience inner fear when that idea or belief is questioned. I need intellectual courage to overcome self-created inner fear (linking my identity to a specific set of beliefs and overcome the fear of rejection by others because they hold certain beliefs and are likely to reject me if I challenge those beliefs.       

Intellectual Empathy

Intellectual empathy is awareness of the need to put yourself  in the place of others including their ideas, viewpoints and reasoning in order to understand them and reason  from ideas other than my own. How can I be fair to the thinking of others if I have not learned to put myself in their intellectual position? Different contexts and situations are needed to learn and understand.         

Intellectual Integrity 

Intellectual integrity (also known as character) is the recognition of the need to be true to your own thinking and to hold yourself accountable to the same standards one expects others to accomplish. When I have intellectual integrity, my beliefs and actions are consistent. We practice what we preach, for example. We don't say one thing and do another. I cannot be fair to others if I am justified in thinking and acting in contradictory ways. The opposite of  intellectual integrity is intellectual hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is a form of injustice. All humans sometimes fail to act with intellectual integrity. When we do, we reveal a lack of fair-mindedness on our part.

Faith In Reason

Faith in reason is based on the belief of giving the freest play to reason. Reason encourages people to come to their own conclusions, analysis and recommendations. It is the faith that with proper coaching and mentoring, people can think for themselves and develop viewpoints, draw conclusions, and develop clear, accurate, relevant and logical thought processes. They can persuade others by using reason with evidence. In the place of faith in reason, people can have uncritical or "blind" faith including: 1. faith in charismatic leaders (Hitler for example who manipulated and excited Germany to support genocide of an entire religious group), 2. faith in institutional authorities (employers, police, judges, priests, evangelical preachers, etc), 3. faith in some social group (business community, church, political party, etc), etc..  

Fairmindedness

To be fair-minded is to treat every assertion applicable for a situation with an open mind and attitude in an unbiased and unprejudiced way. We usually prejudge the views of others and put them in either agrees or disagrees categories. Being aware of the importance and need to treat all viewpoints alike without reference to one's own feelings or vested interests of friends, community, company, groups etc is the first step to fairmindedness.

References

Intellectual Perseverance: Working Through Complexity and Frustration. Toastmasters

International. Retrieved from

http://westsidetoastmasters.com/resources/thinking_tools/ch03lev1sec7.html.

Nosich, Gerald M. (2012). Learning To Think Things Through - A Guide To Critical

Thinking Across The Curriculum. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Valuable Intellectual Virtues (June 1996). Foundation For Critical Thinking. Retrieved

 

            from http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/valuable-intellectual-traits.