- Through this activity, students build a sense of community through a greater understanding of individual differences and similarities in value sets and develop an understanding of the relationship between personal values and professional activities.
| Instructor Prep. Time | Student In-Class Time | Student Out-of-Class Time |
| Less than 15 minutes | 30-60 minutes | None |
None
Step-by-Step Procedure:
- Either as pre-work, or in-class, have students read a short article on personal mission statements.
- Have students spend 15 minutes thinking about what they would put in their mission statement IF they had to write one, and make a list--warn them that they will share their answers with at least one other person.
- Have students work in pairs (for 15 minutes) sharing and discussing their lists. Students should be paired with someone they don't normally work with.
- Next, each pair reports to the group what similarities and differences they found in their lists. Ask students why these differences occured?
- Conduct an instructor facilitated class discussion exploring how values might affect career choice in the major.
Suggestions for Use:
- This activity allows students to explore the diversity in the classroom, and consequently, the workplace they will enter, without forcing a diversity discussion. The topic of diversity is a likely outcome of the discussion rather than the focus. The best way to insure that diversity is part of the discussion is to lead the students into a discussion about the differences between values and goals and then help them come to a greater understanding of how we develop our values through interaction with our family and our community. Students will then come to a greater understanding of the fact that we, as individuals, bring our families and communities into the workplace, therefore it is essential to understand where others "come from" in order to work more successfully with others.
- The activity can be divided into two separate activities if class time or participant needs demand. The activity can also be conducted entirely online or as a hybrid assignment (doing steps 1 through 4 online and 5 through 7 as an in-class activity).
- Instructors may wish to rely on a professional from the advising or career counseling staff to assist in step 7. It is important to remember, however, that there is no professional more qualified to speak passionately about a career in any field or study than a member of that field’s faculty. (Career materials are provided in the references section to assist with specific career advice.)
- Barker, J. & Kellen, J. (1998). Career planning: A developmental approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
- Izumo, G., Bishop, J., & Cole, K. (1999). Keys to workplace skills: How to get from your senior year to your first promotion. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
- Krannich, R. & Krannich, C. (2001). Discover the best job for you. Manassas Park, VA: Impact Publications.