Personal Assessment Reflection BA 302 -­‐ Organizational Behavior Fall 2012 Pal Zech November 15, 2012

Values are important in determining what my organizational goals are. My

values were shaped early in my life. Raised in a religious community, with many rules that dictated the religious, cultural and even educational norms. Everyone I knew desired to follow the beliefs and behaviors. If you did not comply, you were rejected socially. I broke free of conformity by leaving everything I knew to start a new life alone with three children in my early twenties. Ostracized by everyone, including my own mother, I focused on goals of providing a healthy bright future for my children. The need to achieve was great. I was driven, and it showed in my eagerness to apply myself in all areas. How does this all apply to the work I am doing now, what are my strengths and weaknesses that I am currently dealing with? These are very good questions that deserve an in depth assessment and reflection of myself. An understanding of a person’s personality is important in work behavior,

and taking the Big Five Personality test the traits naturally pulled in low extravert score, a reflection of my childhood. I am cautious in getting know new people by being reserved and inhibited. Once I am comfortable with the group, I am sociable and friendly. Scoring higher in being open to new experiences and conscientious helps me try out new things without reservations, this stems from my adventurous nature. For example taking an online class and finding different ways to work

through the obstacles that come up. Our text states that conscientiousness refers to the degree to which a person is organized, systematic, punctual, achievement oriented, and dependable. I would say that I show these types of behaviors ninety percent of the time. And when I fail to be dependable I am highly conscious that I have disappointed someone and have anxiety until I find a way to fix it or move forward. For example missing two chats in one day was a terrible show of being punctual and dependable. Why did I allow this to happen? Besides relying my memory and on my phone, a quick look at the calendar on a computer would’ve helped, as a new phone that didn’t capture old calendar information and my memory failed me. Relying on