STAFF/TEAM DEVELOPMENT

MANY QUALITIES DEFINE A GOOD TEAM SUCH AS COMMUNICATION, EVERYONE BEING ON THE SAME PAGE WITH THE SAME GOAL IN MIND, DEDICATION, WORKING TOGETHER, EVERYONE IN THE TEAM BEING ABLE TO GET ALONG WITH EACH OTHER, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY THE WHOLE TEAM HAVING THE SAME VISION. IF THE PERSON WHO ISN'T WILLING TO LET OTHERS BE HEARD, HAVE ACCOUNTABILITY, AND BE CONSIDERATE OF OTHERS FEELINGS AND GOALS WILL EASILY SLOW THE TEAM DOWN. LEARNING FROM EACH OTHERS MISTAKES, HAVING DIFFERENT OPINIONS TO DETERMINE THE PROS AND CONS OF THEREFORE ELIMINATING OPTIONS THAT AREN'T GOOD FOR THE TASK AT HAND AND LEARNING TO COPE WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF THE PERSONALITIES WITHIN THE TEAM CREATES OVERALL GREATNESS WITHIN AND CAN ONLY BETTER THE TEAM AS A WHOLE.
MANY TEAMS ARE SUCCESSFUL AS WELL AS UNSUCCESSFUL. I BELIEVE BASED ON ALL THE QUALITIES PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED A TEAM CAN BE SUCCESSFUL. LIKEWISE, WHEN A TEAM IS UNSUCCESSFUL THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO TURN THE ATTITUDE AROUND TO A POSITIVE ATMOSPHERE. TO DO THIS, THE TEMA MUST BE WILLING TO LEARN FROM THEIR MISTAKES AND GROW FROM THEM AND REALIZE WHAT IT IS THAT CAN BE DONE DIFFERENTLY THE SECOND TIME AROUND SO THAT THE OUTCOME IS DIFFERENT.
TEAMWORK IS NOT SOMETHING THAT IS ACCOMPLISHED BY JUST ONE PERSON. THE WHOLE TEAM MUST PARTICIPATE AND BE DETERMINED TO CREATE A SUCCESSFUL AND POSITIVE ENDING.

COMING TOGETHER IS THE BEGINNING.
KEEPING TOGETHER IS PROGRESS.
WORKING TOGETHER IS SUCCESS.
-HENRY FORD

SELF-DISCIPLINE

I BELEIVE EVERYONE LACKS SELF-DISCIPLINE IN CERTAIN AREAS OF THEIR LIVES. I THINK THAT THIS IS BASED ON THEIR LIFESTYLE, HABITS, AND MAYBE IN SOME CASES ADDICTIONS. SELF-DISCIPLINE CAN EASILY BE DEFINED AS THE ABILITLY TO CONTROL ONES IMPULSES.
FIVE AREAS IN MY LIFE THAT LACK SELF-DISCIPLINE ARE:
1.) EXERCISE
2.) THE WAY I SPEND MY MONEY
3.) HOW MUCH TV I WATCH
4.) EATING JUNK FOOD
5.) GOING TO STARBUCKS
MANY WAYS THAT THESE 5 AREAS IN MY LIFE CAN BE IMPROVED IS BY CONTROL, TREATING MYSELF TO ONE AFTER ACCOMPLISHING A TASK, OR BEING COMMITTED TO ONE SUCH AS EXERCISE. OTHER MORE DRASTIC ROUTES THAT CAN BE TAKEN WOULD BE THERAPY, HYPNOSIS, OR PRESCRIPTION DRUGS.
IN MANY AREAS OF MY LIFE, HAVING SELF DISCIPLINE IS ABSOLUTLY ESSENTIAL. I AM ACCOUNTABLE TO MY EMPLOYER, TAKING CARE OF MY ANIMALS, AND MY HEALTH. I TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MY ACTIONS, MY WORDS, AND WHAT I BELIEVE IN.
"We are what we repeatedly do, excellence then is not an act, but a habit."
— Aristotle

YOUR MISSION

LIFE IS AN ONGOING PROCESS.
SO IS YOUR MISSION STATEMENT.

OVER THE YEARS YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES WILL CHANGE. YOUR PRIORITIES WILL CHANGE. YOUR DREAMS AND GOALS WILL CHANGE. THAT'S OK- BECAUSE CHANGE MEANS GROWTH. AS YOU GROW, CHANGE, AND BROADEN YOUR HORIZENS, ALLOW YOURSELF THE FREEDOM TO EXPAND AND REFINE YOUR MISSION STATEMENT.

LEADER IN THE FIELD

I'm sure your wondering why I placed a picture of myself on this blog. The reason behind it is to show my smile and more importantly my teeth. I am very interested in becoming a certified Dental Hygienist. That being said my leader in the field assignment consisted of interviewing my dental hygienist Samantha Wood. Recently we had got to know each other quiet well being that I did my 40 hours of shadowing with her and then I decided that she would be the perfect person for me to interview.
Samantha started college in the spring of 1996. At the time she had a newborn baby and found that to provide for her child, and future family she needed a stable income. Samantha completed all her prerequirements for the Dental Hygiene program at OU. During this time she unplanningly found herself pregnant again with her second child, which put a setback on her schooling. With having to stay home and take care of a toddler and infant, Samantha and her husband were living tightly on 1 income. Samantha was finally able to get help with her to young daughters from family and apply to the Dental Hygiene program in December 1999 for the fall semester of 2000. Luckily she recieved a letter in the mail asking for her to come in for an interview. While in the interview Samantha vividly remembers the doubt in the panel of instructors and directors of how she could possibly be able to raise two very young children and go to school full time. With the doubt in so many people she set out to prove them all wrong. While in Dental Hygiene school Samantha was unable to work being that school and her children took up all her time which she was extremely devoted to. Samantha graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2002 with a Bathelors of Sciences in Dental Hygiene. She currently works for a phenomenal dentist, Dr. Neifeh on 122nd and Penn. She is now divorced and has 3 girls. Her job duties include but are not limited to most importantly cleaning teeth, taking x-rays, keeping patients records, teaching appropriate dental hygiene, and making visual assessments. When asked what she enjoyed most about her job, Samantha responded "Building a relationship with all her patients." She says that it is a blessing to come to work everyday and adores her co-workers. She works 7:30 am- 4 pm Mon-Thurs and 7:30 am until noon on Friday.
Overall, I found this interview and visual of my surroundings to be a very big eye opener. It got me wondering if this is really the field for me, to appreciate the people who dedicate their lives to it and all the time that goes in to the education and continual learning of a certified Dental Hygienist.

FUTURE @ OU

My current path at OU has taken a complete u-turn. I came over in the spring 2010 as a transfer senior to take 1 class and applied to the Dental Hygiene program. After not getting accepted to the program I feel like I'm wasting my time this semester. The more I look back on my decision to come to OU to go to the Dental Hygiene after not getting accepted makes me rethink my career path. I tried to prepare myself for the worst case scenario (getting declined) but it never hit me until I actually got the letter in the mail. If I could do anything at OU I would like to be in the Dental Hygiene program, excel in my studies, and most importantly graduate with a degree from this prestegious school. I'm now currently scouting for other options I can take in regards to a career. I find interest in Criminal Justice, Juvenille Corrections, child development and maybe something else in the health sciences field. I look forward to seeing what my future holds!

ATTITUDE

ATTITUDE makes up both our inner and outer self. "Our attitudes are our most important assets" is a statement that clearly defines us as a person. Our attitude is seen by all we come in contact with and usually determines a good or bad first impression. This quality in an individual is very important when trying to build relationships with others. I believe to have a positive atmosphere among people a universal positive attitude is absolutly essential. The negativity or positivity can either make or break a team. From previous experience I think a positive attitude promotes togetherness, unity, and everyone having a voice that's is heard within the group, likewise, I have found that a negative attitude hinders productivity and sort of "shuts things down." A saying that I always remember when it comes to attitude is that "If momma ain't happy, noones happy."
There is one person inparticular who comes to my mind when I think about someone who has influenced me because of their attitude: my co-worker and right hand man while at work, Cheryl. Cheryl is a very dedicated person who is commited to giving every member expert customer service. She always comes into work with a smile on her face, regardless what the situation, and always looks for the positive side of problems which makes her a pleasure to be around 5 days a week.

LETTER FROM OU

YUKON HS SENIORS..
FIRST AND FOREMOST CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR UP AND COMING GRADUATION! I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE, EDUCATION IS GOLDEN. IF YOU HAVEN'T DECIDED WHAT YOUR GOING TO DO I HIGHLY RECOMMEND APPLYING TO COLLEGES AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. THE LONGER YOU PUT IT OFF, THE MORE PROBLEMS YOUR GOING TO HAVE GETTING TEST SCORES SUBMITTED, OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS TO THE COLLEGES AND GETTING INTO CLASSES YOU WANT. BE SURE TO ENROLL INTO CLASSES ONCE YOU GET ACCEPTED TO AS SOON AS THEY OPEN UP, THE SOONER YOU ENROLL THE MORE LIKELY YOU ARE TO GET INTO THEM. FINALLY, IF YOUR GOING TO GO TO OU DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE I DID BY THINKING THAT WHEN YOU APPLY TO THE NORMAN CAMPUS THAT YOUR APPLYING TO THE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER. THEY'RE 2 SEPERATE CAMPUSES AND IT'S YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO GET IT ALL SQUARED AWAY!
GOOD LUCK!