The class I had today got really interesting after we were told to work in teams of three...
My teacher of Human Resources Management is a new one for me, after 10 semesters. This is because that course is usually part of Industrial Management and the like, while I am just your typical Engineering student who prefers to be in front of a machine rather than people.
Regardless, I had quite an interesting experience today. I arrived a little earlier than normal, I was listening to the Stuff You Should Know podcast episode on Toast bread, waiting for the teacher to arrive. My classmates are all from 4th, 7th and even 2nd semester. From my generation, there were maybe other 3 people, so yeah, I felt kinda old there.
Anyways, the teacher comes in. Sheâs quite talkative and her vocabulary is quite⌠rich. She asked us to form teams of three, so we had to abide.
I didnât know anyone, and I am quite shy, I decided to stick with the only other classmate I had a decent relationship with and team with him. After a quick look around, it seemed to me like everyone else had already teamed up. We all registered our names in a piece of paper and she proceeded to utterly destroy my hopes at being at a management position. Or something.
She noticed there were a couple of teams that were formed of two people. Other than ours. It was at that moment, that I knewâŚ
She used us to teach us about learning to listen to instructions. She asked for teams of three. Fair enough, I was ready to abide, but of course she kept going.
She asked one of the other teams, âWhy did you guys made a team of two?â.
âBecause we already know each other well.â
âOh, so you think nobody else is worth teaming up with, huh?â
She asked the same question to another team of two.
âWell, none of us had a team, so even though we didnât know each other we decided to team upâ
She respected that reply, makes sense.
You may be wondering what did I answer?
âWell, everyone else seemed to have a team already, so we settledâ
OH BOY did I get scolded. But I was able to see her point.
One of the teams does not feel like inviting some stranger to their team. Me and my team were like âWelp, looks like everyoneâs fineâ and didnât look any further. And only one team was willing to do what they could even if they didnât know each other.
As an Engineer and an overall nerd I feel like I could have replied in many ways. âWell teacher you told us the limit was 3 people, not that it was a mustâ. âThere is no way to prove they actually didnât know each other, and they still didnât look for a third person anyways, it seems to me like a reply made to please you rather than telling you the truthâ. Whatever, the reality for me, is that I should have been at least a bit more proactive and look for someone to join my team.
In the end, all of the teams were merged to be made of 3 participants, and those two guys who didnât know each other got to stay together. Meaning I didnât get to team with my friend, which was annoying, but understandable. I tried to be open with my new team and I think we will be able to work just fine!
Quite an interesting lesson. Even if my way of being has a difficult time following it.The rest of the class was quite the standard affair. Learning a bit about history and concepts and stuff. I didnât even write anything down. đ
I am quite interested on your thoughts on this one. So Iâll expect them!
