Class 12.4.08

I liked that we went back into the same groups we were in last time we met as a class. I think that was important because the group could continue their thoughts from the previous class and continue their discussion. Our group worked on developing some bullet points from each chapter to discuss as a whole class. (They may be scattered because I was typing them as we went along.) Some of the important concepts and questions we discussed included the ideas about the most powerful components of the Internet and how did business interact with the Internet in the past when they first encountered it? Invisibility is one. We then discussed how corporations implement the Internet during this time period? We then moved on to talk about the way people acted at work or the way employees have gone about their work. Has it changed or stayed the same? Is the way a person should conduct himself or herself in the workplace embedded in human nature? We also discussed the importance of the Internet on businesses. Is the Internet a good influence? What ways can is it a bad influence? Another topic we talked about in our group focused on people’s view of their boss or another authoritative figure. A person’s voice is essential on the Internet because the Internet allows people to speak without interruption. Our group conversed of the issue of a person breaking free from the typical, the usual. The way a business works is tough and will suck you in, however if you can set yourself aside of the standard, you will succeed. We talked about making mistakes and learning from them. We thought about how do business leaders feel about this? The CTM talks about Fort Business. When a person enters the real world, there is a lot of interaction with outside resources, compared to a number of years ago when business leaders attempted to teach a new employee to stay within the realm of their own office. The importance of networking is huge. A business succeeds with networking.

When we broke from our individual groups into a class discussion, I was very surprised with Prof. Dean’s response to the group work. I guess I did not realize that she was expecting us to make a power point, a new set of thesis, etc. CTM talks about employees voicing their opinion and not being afraid of asking questions. I was experiencing those same thoughts and feelings in class. I was too afraid to say something because I did not want to say something dumb or irrelevant. That is something I need to work on because I do it a lot in other classes as well. I need to voice my opinion and not care about whether it is a dumb comment or not.

Moving on, I give Yanina a lot of credit for her response to the CTM reading. It was thoughtful and intriguing. She definitely helped stir more discussion and move the class in the right direction. I like how she thinks outside the box. It allows me, maybe others, to think differently about the subject as well, stirring other feelings and opinions, which lead to a prolonged discussion. I understand where Prof. Dean was coming from when she explained her reasoning about her unhappiness with our group work. We are in the last few weeks of class and we should have known better to make a better presentation. That is our faults. I apologize.

Excited for next week and final projects!

Sam