I am one of few to be able to say confidently that I have a rather strange work ethic. Rather than being able to get something done by just sitting down and really grind through any sort of task, I really prefer to work at it in bursts of energy based on my mood at the time. I can tend to submit things late just because I don’t have all that much motivation to get things done at the time, but I can also crank out a benchmark in a day if I get really committed to the assignment. Probably why this assignment is about a week late, I tend to work flexibly so that whatever I do is to the best of my ability and something I feel confident in doing. That being said, there are some strengths to my work ethic that I’m comfortable explaining.

Creative - I’m well aware this is one of the most basic and overused personality trait anyone can use to describe themselves, but I think I can say all jokes aside that I can think outside of the box a bit and bring some unique ideas to the table. If I start with a good idea for an assignment I can really make it my own and have a blast with whatever’s given to me. This can be both a blessing and a curse as every once in a while I twist the task just a bit so that I don’t always meet requirements just because I have so much fun working on certain creative assignments.

Flexible - This comes in handy primarily with group projects. My approach is that chances are whoever is taking the lead of this assignment probably has a way better idea of what it should look like, and if I work to make that dream a reality it’ll get a pretty decent grade. I do enjoy meeting in the middle and collaborating to make even more elaborate ideas, however, I have no objections to letting partners take over a bit and get better at their own craft. I’ve been working on projects since middle school, so at this point, I’m well aware of what I want isn’t going to be exactly what a group creates.

Resourceful - Now, this is a bit more specific, however when it comes to more creative assignments I tend to instantly have an idea of what I want to do, and what I need to do to make that happen. Pretty much anything that involves storytelling I’ve already had something in the works just sitting back in my subconscious waiting for an opportunity. I love projects, and I love being able to apply everything I know academically to a fun and exciting project.

In conclusion, my work ethic is a bit sloppy, disorganized, and unrefined however if I put my mind to it I can actually put out some pretty cool stuff (so I’m told). I know that if I just do the work this can come to my advantage I the academic field, it just takes me some time getting comfortable in school so that I can consistently use my time to make creative projects and that all starts with time management and self-motivation.  

Charismatic, creative and energetic. These traits have more or less defined me as a person throughout my life. Friends, family and teachers have all described me this way for years. The traits have also helped me much in life up to this point and I believe they will continue to help me in the future.

Charisma the savior

My charisma has helped me much in life especially at Science Leadership Academy. I have been able to make great friends at SLA because of my charisma. The students at SLA have become some of the greatest friends I have ever had. Without them I would not be the person I am today. Without them I would have gotten much lower grades on a few essays. These friends have allowed me to vent to them about the stresses of life and have helped me work on ambitious projects with them. I can’t wait to see how my Capstone turns out because I will need all the help I can get. My charisma has also allowed me to be offered many opportunities that I would have not gotten otherwise. I have a position at UrbEd in part because of my charisma. Without my charisma I would not be nearly as successful as I am right now. My charisma will help me collaborate greatly with people in DigVid and have a great time doing it.

Blindingly creative

Creativity is my strongest trait. Without my creativity none of the projects I have ever committed to would have turned out as good as they have. Examples of this are my first and second projects at SLA. My first project I had to make a self portrait that described me and who I wanted to be. I decided to take a silhouette picture holding a briefcase, camera and wearing headphones. Each of these things represented something essential to my life. The headphones represented my interest in listening to and making music. The suitcase represents me goal of becoming a lawyer when I am older. The camera represented my interest in pursuing a filmmaking career also. If I wasn’t creative I think my portrait would have been less original and not as interesting. My second project was a mini magazine about myself. The most. Creative part of this project to me was the soundtrack I made to go with it. My creativity will help me make creative scripts, ideas, and many other things for the films we make with DigVid.

Contagious energy

The energy I leave my house with is unmatched. I am always excited to see a new day and work on new things in the world. This energy seems contagious. The people around me will eventually pick up this energy after spending sometime with me. This is great because people who don’t enjoy the work they are doing or just having a bad day can have their mood improved because of my energy. This will be extremely helpful in the more boring parts of making films in DigVid.

CTE DigVid

My charisma will make me a great collaborator in the filmmaking process. I will be able to work through any disagreements with ease. My creativity will help me come up with great ideas for films that will make my films stand out from the bunch. My energy will be able to pick anyone up and lighten their mood.

I am   

   Imaginative

       Objective

       Straight Forward

No matter what, everyone in the world has strengths and weaknesses; things they do good and things they do...not so good. We tend to find these strengths and weaknesses through life experiences over time and when we receive feedback on the things we’ve done. But, if you’re an SLA DigVid student, you find them through taking a personality test. After taking the personality test, we were split into groups according to personality type (mine being INTP) and told to discuss our findings and pick out our favorite strengths about ourselves. These were the results:

Originally Imaginative

One of the strengths I received was “Imaginative and Original”, which means that someone like me always has original and innovative ideas because our imaginations are always going one thousand miles per hour. This is a key trait to have when in creative spaces and tends to help us most when we are given complete artistic freedom on a task. As I read the description for this trait, I thought back to the many projects I’ve done for school over the years and can totally attest to letting my imagination run wild with all the possibilities of what I could do to knock my teacher’s socks off. I can also say that with the older I got, the more intricate my creations became due to my expanding knowledge of the world and my heightened attention to detail.

A Lost Art

Another one of the strengths I got was “Objective”. Being objective means listening to and stating facts in an unbiased and fair manner. Objectivity usually leads to one being more open-minded--also one of my strengths according to my test results--because situations can be viewed from, and solved with, multiple view points in mind to establish the best conclusion for all people involved. I feel that, in today’s climate, the idea of being objective and open-minded has gotten away from so many of the world’s people. It hurts to see because if only we knew how much better we could be if we decided to open ourselves to ideas opposite our own.

Straight Talk No Chaser

The final strength I decided to report on is “Honest and Straightforward”. This is basically telling it like it is and calling it how we see it. Sometimes people with my personality type can be honest to a fault because we accidentally hurt people’s feelings without even realizing it. However, us being straightforward is never done with malicious intent, we just believe that honesty is always the best policy.

I know that these strengths of mine will have a great influence on my performance in DigVid throughout the year. When combined, they will help me collaborate, create, and give honest feedback to not only my peers but also to myself so that we can be the best filmmakers possible. These traits will help me gain a perspective like no other through the experiences in this course and further who I am across all aspects of my life.

3 Strengths Blog

BY Zoe Zisser

Regarding the “16 Personalities” test, my results concluded that I was a mediator type (INFP). There are 16 different kind of “types”. Each of these have both positive and negative strengths and weaknesses. Each of them are commonly very truthful to the person. The website decides your type by taking a quiz with questions that follow the track of mind of the person. Depending on the last question you answered, the next set of questions will be made for you. At the end they evaluate your answers and fit you into the certain personality type. My type, Mediator is apart of the diplomat grouping. According to my assessment I have a set of strengths and weaknesses that fit into my personality type.

Seek and Value Harmony

In my life I truly do value everybody and everything surrounding me. I strongly dislike discourse and negativity. I believe strongly in energies of different people. Very person and every place has their own kind of energy and it’s important to know what kind of energy can bring positive energy and what can bring negative energy. Negativity is something I as a human being really do not handle well, whether this may be in a social, mental, physical way, negativity is never a good thing to be apart of, and as a mediator personality type it’s very easy to avoid such and gravitate to good energy. I never like to be apart of something that opposes harmony between people. I feel like our lives and our time is too precious and limited to let things like that get in the way. I will always go looking for the harmonizing approach to make certain situations better. This is a very truthful strength to me as a person because the people and the things I do in my life are all very peaceful and subside in harmony, and if it isn’t I always go looking for ways and strategies to become more harmonizing. I’d never want to be above anyone, I feel we as humans are all equal and we should always remind ourselves of that.

Open Minded and Flexible

Being open minded and very flexible can translate to taking what comes and making the best out of it. Mediators take naturally at being very easy going and good for whatever life throws at us. Being able to adapt to circumstances is a very important strength to have because almost everything in life is random, hardly anything is always going to be a certain way forever, so it’s very beneficial to be able to compromise with new changes. This can apply to life a lot. Nothing in anyone’s life is going to be the same way forever, people and things are always changing and there’s no way any of it will stop, so it’s important to always have an open mind when it comes to change, and be ready to take things as they come. I am this way for everything I do, I find no reason to dwell on things I can’t change or understand, the point is always to adapt and move on and learn something from whatever life throws at you.

Passionate and Energetic

As a mediator it is common to be able to get very passionate about things that matter to me. When I care about something I care with my whole being. It’s always all in for everything I do, my head and heart are all thrown into everything I do. Having a lot of energy can relate to this as well. I am always present with energy and a good mindset for things I am devoted to. I feel when you care about something, it’s crucial to do such with every fiber of your being to never cheat yourself out of something you care deeply about. This brings many opportunities for when I find things I’m passionate about or very intrigued about, because I know once I find that thing it will open many doors I will be ecstatic to venture through.

Conclusion

Have you ever felt that you’ve let people walk all over you, acted too selfless around your friends, or just taken a little bit too much to heart? If so, I can relate 100 percent. It’s not really unusual for someone to act like that. Tolerance, altruisticness, and pensiveness are all a part of human character, especially mine. Although I may often tend to have a low self-esteem, I wouldn’t dare to miss a goal I set for myself, let my friends down, or let my thoughts get into the way of doing something I love.

Open for Options:

As I play Ultimate Frisbee and run for Cross Country, Part of my job is to be a team player. Apart from encouraging other players to do the very best they can and giving players advice for future meets, being a team player also means developing tolerance while listening to other people’s opinions, no matter how much they contradict with what I have to say, or how much I disagree. It’s important to admit that you don’t know all of the answers than to claim that you do when you really don’t. Not only are you lying, but you are also taking the risk of decreasing your reputation.

Contribution to my Community:

Apart from sports, I also participate in a few other extracurricular activities, such as an Improv club at my school, where we encourage each other to be creative was we play games and perform skits off the top of our heads. Outside of school, I work as the Graphic Designer for UrbEd, an organization that aims for a quality and efficient urban education for all. Being very motivated to do good for my community makes me altruistic. I’m selfless and I love to bring people together to do a world of good. I wouldn’t refuse any offer to help others in need.   

A Pensive Personality:

I’m also a thinker, especially when it comes to work and social life. Never do I submit any writing assignment or essay without putting a huge amount of thought into it, making sure the vocabulary and structure are what I planned for it to be, and then proofreading it afterward. I’m not the type of person to always start the conversation, but I always love to be a part of one. Me being a thinker means that I may recite things in my head before I write it down (so I won’t have to erase), or say it out loud.

Though sometimes my selflessness could be too much for other people, I’d hate to let someone down. I am in SLA Digital Video CTE, and in that class, we do a lot of group work when it comes to making our own videos. Being a thinker means I really consider how the audience is going to see our product. I really want to make sure that everything is planned out carefully before we start filming. Being tolerant means I don’t reject any ideas from anyone else. I would rather build off of them. One we settle on an idea, I’ll do whatever I can to bring that idea to life. It would then be unlikely for me to substitute something in for my own idea, because of how that would make me selfish. All of these personality traits make me into the person I am now.

Introduction:

In this essay, I will discuss three strengths of mine that I believe affect my personality and my relationships the most. In the next three paragraphs, I will go into depth about each of these strengths. Hopefully, by sharing these strengths, you will gain a better understanding of me as a person and as a thinker.

Rational:

I believe that being rational is one of my greatest and most useful traits. Being rational allows me to make decisions that are backed by solid reasoning, as well as be logical in situations that require as much. It also helps me manage my time and estimate how long something is going to take. If I was not a rational person, I would have a much harder time managing my life on a daily basis.

Straightforward:

Being straightforward with myself and with my peers is a great strength to have. It allows me to give high-quality and realistic feedback to people when they ask for it. I am able to communicate more clearly with people because of it, and I can back up claims with factual information. I also do not sugar-coat things. I say things as they are because white lies will not change anything, they will only delay finding the solution to an issue.

Hard Working:

Out of all of my strengths, I believe that being hard working is my greatest strength. Because I have a good work ethic, I am able to get work done efficiently and to the best of my ability without spending too much time on each task. When it comes to something that I am interested in, I dedicate a lot of time to it and push myself as hard as I can. I hope to learn to do this when it comes to things that I am not interested in much.

Conclusion:

I feel like these three strengths will influence my time in CTE Digital Video a lot. I think they will allow me to get an interesting and unique perspective on what we will be doing in class, as well as allow me to take away more from each lesson that is taught. Overall, I hope that these strengths positively impact my time in CTE Digital Video and continue to progress and help develop me into a better person.