Lessons From a Weekend of Training Cadets

October 5, 2008 James Connors

US Civil Air Patrol members practice searching...

This past weekend, I spent my Friday, Saturday, and most of Sunday out in the Blue Hills reservation just south of Boston, MA training the cadets of Boston Cadet Squadron. These young adults are members of Civil Air Patrol, the volunteer organization that I have been a part of for eight years now. Our goal for the weekend was to work as a single team while we trained in Emergency Services, survival, and overnight camping. At least that had been the plan.

I have been instructing these same topics for a number of years now but of late, my lessons have focused on learning through my teaching. Working with cadets that are from ages 12 to 18, I have found it a challenge for me to properly orient my instruction and leadership style to suit the varied needs of the cadets in our squadron. Timing can be ironic - I'm currently a teaching assistant and candidate for Teach for America. This means that I've been working in the "teaching" area for a while now and I am just starting to notice the issues that come along with being a teacher.

There are such varying levels of support needed by our cadets - everything from complete autonomy to complete and total supervision. There are a few that I would trust to be out in the woods for weeks on end but others that I would prefer to have a physical leash to. How does one cope with these situations? How do I change behavior when I don't have the "full" story on cadet conditions, attitudes, and history? Answer: you do your best and work as a team.

In order to make legitimate change with these cadets, I need to alter behavior. Through my experience, I have found this to be a difficult task, though not impossible. The United States Air Force Academy taught me many things about leadership and one of the most powerful tools we experienced was the power of peer accountability. This is the idea that you are responsible for the actions of your teammate, and they are likewise responsible for yours.

We are making changes in the way that we work within the group. I am changing my role within the power structure. We will go back to basics in order to obtain the correct temperment and attitudes. We will remove priveledges such as talking, break times, and "fun" activities if need be. We will provide structured rituals such as current event and news reviews, squaring of corners, and the buddy system. Finally, we will delegate responsibility to the lowest level possible while enabling those levels to make good decisions.

Hopefully, these changes will create the environment necessary for proper learning to take place, for friendships to form, and leadership to flourish. My goal for these kids is for them to develop into leaders with a sense of purpose, drive, and self respect that their peers in inner-city Boston do not have. I want them to be constantly thinking about the group, not just themselves, I want them to work as a team.

If you have suggestions for making this process easier, please email me at james(dot)m(dot)connors(at)gmail(dot)com or leave a comment here for people to share.

[Edit: removed "children" from first paragraph 10.10.08]

Learn to Let It Go...

August 5, 2008 James Connors

Image via Wikipedia

Maybe it's that time.

How do you know when it is time to let go? I find this to be one of the hardest things to do in my life. Whether it be parting ways with that extra snack that you were about to eat, or saying goodbye to a close friend. Sometimes the RIGHT thing isn't fun or interesting or even popular.

I believe that the way that we make decisions is a direct reflection of who we are as individuals. So many times in our lives we give into the group, let our "friends" influence our choices, or otherwise forfeit our ability to choose for ourselves and be independent.

I'm making a choice. I'm letting go.

Maybe it was the crappy weekend that you had. Perhaps it was a fight you had with a best friend. Perhaps you were let down by someone that you thought you could trust. No matter what the issue was, it's time to let go. Dwelling on the past doesn't bring more insight - just pain... especially when it's a bad memory.

I have made many mistakes in my life, done a lot of things that I wish I could take back. That said, I am starting to let go. The United States Air Force Academy was a really hard and sucky place to live. I decided that the straight up misery I experience wasn't worth the end result (I had decided I didn't want to fly anymore). So I left.

After leaving, I had to learn how to be a human again - I was a robot. Cadet James Connors now needed to become a normal person again. For a long time I hurt and was down about my decision. I had nightmares about the sucky parts of the Academy, the affects it had on my life and my relationships. Eventually they started to fade intot he noise.

Now, I only remember the good parts of the Academy. I have let the bad stuff go.

While in Ireland, I had repeated dreams of going back to USAFA and rejoining. The visions would leave me restless in the morning because I honestly wish I could go back most of the time. Then again, most of the time, I don't remember the bad parts. So it's up to me to remind myself of why I went and why I left.

Everyone has challenging situations and experiences in their lives. Some of them turn out really well, some totally suck and still other scome out with a mix of both. Let go of that nasty bits. They aren't going to help you move forward with you life. Do yourself and everyone around a favor, let it go. Just be. Stop worrying - you can't change it now.

America Can Learn A Thing or Two; Part Two

June 13, 2008 James Connors

WASHINGTON - DECEMBER 05: A crowd gathers for the annual lighting of the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree on the West Front of the capitol December 5, 2007 in Washington, DC. This year's tree, a 55-foot balsam fir from Vermont's Green Mountain National Forest, is decorated with strands of energy-efficient LED (Light Emitting Diodes) lights as part of the Captiol's commitment to save energy.

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

One of the biggest energy hogs for any building would be the lighting and the climate controls. I've seen varying amounts of integrations both in the US as well as abroad. I have to say, though, the Irish design and architecture do a great job of using their designs to reduce the consumption of energy for airconditioning and lighting. By leveraging open dynamic cooling, novel insulation methods, and available lights, the United States could reduce their consumption of energy.

One of the first things that I noticed when I walked into the Quinn School of Business was that the atrium was wide open... I mean WIDE open. The ceiling was transparent to let in as much light as possible - there were even trees freestanding on the ground floor. It gave the entire building a spacious, airy feel that limited the use of artificial light as much as possible. It was always bright and this allowed supplemental lighting by way of indirect light - it wasn't as harsh on the eyes at all. Take note, USA.

Where the two come together is another interesting thing that I've never seen anywhere but Ireland. At the top edge of a line of windows on the exterior of buildings, there is a grill arrangement with angled slats. These slats angle off the light depending on the sun's position in the day. It allows two different savings. First, by giving a shade to the window, there is no need to lower shades which would block out too much light and therefore require the use of lighting. The second is that by reducing the need to tint the glass, as is the custom in the states, colder climates such as Ireland will be able to utilize the natural convection heating and not need to turn on the heaters.

When it comes to design, besides the transparent ceilings and the like, there are a few design characteristics that Ireland just nails. The first was that shade above windows - that's great for reducing consumption. The second really noticeable and beautiful design feature is the use of what I would call buffer space inside windows. Basically one completely clear pane of glass is either outside the line of the building's walls or flush but then about a foot or two behind that is the interior pane. By creating an open buffer, a wall of air, between the structural glass, heating and cooling efficiency is greatly improved. It's similar to how double paned glass keeps windows from leaking heat but on a grander scale. Colder air in the shadows would be able to cool the heated air in the sunny parts to make for a temperate average temperature.

By combining technologies such as these with designs discussed here, I think that the United States could do a lot to reduce electricity consumption and ultimately the need for oil dependency. More to come this week!

America Can Learn A Thing or Two; Part One

June 6, 2008 James Connors

Image via Wikipedia

This will be the first of a few posts that I wanted to throw together that address some of the lessons that I think the United States can learn from countries like Ireland. CNET published a story about how green technology could make Europe a technology power house - story found here. At the same time, this is a chance to try BlogDesk as a remote blogging software tool.

Anyone that has gone outside of the United States will know that we waste a lot of energy (in the US). I have a feeling that I'm going to be a little shocked upon my return. Maybe, just maybe, someone with some pull will read this and make some changes. It's really not hard to conserve a little bit but making change is the difficult bit.

I'll address some background first. The Irish consider themselves "hardy folk" as Mary McClosky put it upon our first meeting. They keep the heat down, take short showers, turn out the lights when not needed, and unplug appliances when not in use. It's an attitude of conservation brought on because electricity costs are EXCRUTIATING.

Not only does Europe pay amazingly high prices for gasoline, equivalent to ~ $8.20/gallon, but the energy costs are easily twice what we pay in the US. Just looking around cities in Europe, it is clear that costs are a significant issue on everyone's mind - there are barely any cars on the roads and many that are use diesel fuel instead of unleaded gasoline.

What these environmental factors breed is a culture of conservation. The "hardiness" is less about being strong willed and more about being sensible. I've learned that it is possible to use all that you need and not overuse. In reality, it's very easy to do but hard to keep in mind. Just keeping in mind that I should unplug the computer or turn off the lights has been a large change mentally for me just because I've been so conditioned to not care.

One thing that Ireland has that makes this easy is that every outlet has a circuit-breaker in it with a switch. I can shut off the power just by throwing the switch and it keeps power from flowing to the machine or appliance. It's stupid simple but apparently is too difficult for Americans to ever want to implement.

Take aways from today's entry would be:

Foster a mindset of conservation
Use what you need and no more
Unplug when done
Switch off when leaving
Find circuit breaking plugs to manage power leaks

Thanks very much for reading and I'll see you next time!

15 Days To Go

June 6, 2008 James Connors

I promise that I will write more... I promise, promise, promise.

As the headline says, our program has 15 days remaining before we leave the Emerald Isle for the harsh realities of the United States. I don't mean that to be a negative statement but rather a sobering fact. We've been in a world where a dollar means nothing, where cars run on the wrong side of the road, where it rains every day (almost). Returning to Boston is going to be a shock to our system much the same way arriving in Dublin was - but we're "normal here" (not many of us are actually normal to begin with so... I'm not sure how to put that into thought, sorry).

Our impending departure illicits a whole plethora of emotions, mostly panic. There are a mulitude of things to wrap up here before I can even think about heading home. Our internships have projects that need to be delivered (more on mine in a few), we have a portfolio and research project for BU that no one has even looked at. On top of that, I just don't want to leave. I like the abstract world that we live in. My decisions here don't necessarily have real-world impact. Allow me to unpack that.

First, our grades don't matter. They do, but they don't. Whatever mark that we earn from University College Dublin is then passed through a matrix to yield a conversion to the "American" system. That matrix tells me that a 70% is an A... you tell me if you wouldn't laugh a little bit. Euros are funny money. Long past are the days that we were converting the currency in our minds. Pints are well over $7 USD and just hopping on the bus feels like an investment (over $2.70 each way). On top of all that, I speak differently. It's sloppy, inprecise, and sort of bugs me. I'll say something such as, "Oh, he was acting like a fool, like" and my questions no longer have the proper syllabic emphasis, e.g. questions don't end with your voice being "high" we sort of put it in the middle.

Did I mention that my rambling has gotten worse? That sentence was how many lines long... geez.

The moral of the story is that we're changed but it's as if we're in a playground. Our choices here don't impact our career (in theory). Mostly, I'm thinking of my internship with that thought. I'm using this experience as an opportunity to practice being at a real internship, practice for Accenture and EMC this summer. It's actually really helpful to see what I'll be able to get away with and what won't fly even whenconsidering what the different expectations will hold. I guess it's like I get to expell all the bad habits now... to include blogging while at work (oops).

So now that the kvetching is over, let's talk shop a little bit. I've been living in another culture for so long, I sometimes forget that all of you are sort of watching this game from the bleechers. I love Ireland. Despite the ups and downs in my personal life and the various other concerns that have come up, this semester will go down in my Wikipedia page as one of the best experiences ever. I am eternally grateful to my parents, Paul, Laura, and Brian, for their unending support, latenight phonecalls (my time, not theirs) - I could not have been here in Dublin without their support.

By the way, remember that melodramatic post a while ago about needing to find that "BIG" answer... some sort of wholistic change? Well I found it. Let me tell you a secret - it was with me the whole time. Basically, I got a dose of reality - some would call it a good smattering of perspective. Not only have I finally grown to see my parents as good friends instead of those people that try to embarrass me all the time, but I've found myself. I've found the internal value in myself that doesn't require external validation for me to know that I'm me and that's really ok.

While my world no longer plays like a Las Vegas slot machine, I can tell there are going to be many, many new adventures to be had and all I have to do is be patient for them. Hopefully you all will be a part of that with me. I intend to quintuple efforts for this blog between now and my return. There will be a few post-return entries that will hopefully have some interesting stories. Then I'll be archiving these posts into my other blog, http://www.jamesmconnors.com under their own tags so they don't disappear when the jamesindublin domain expires. Thank you for stopping by - I hope to see you next time!

Irish Education or American, You Decide

May 4, 2008 James Connors

This semester, I have been studying abroad in Dublin, Ireland through the Boston University Dublin Management Internship program. Unlike many of the other BU abroad programs, we directly enroll in a host institution rather than taking classes at a Boston University student center. This means we are taking the actual Irish classes along with Irish students as they work towards their degrees. This interaction and firsthand experience has allowed me to gain an interesting perspective on differing educational systems. Here at the University College Dublin Quinn School of Management, the curriculum, course requirements, and credit hours are very different for equivalent degrees in the United States. There are a number of reasons that I think the educational environment is different here. First, students do not pay for their school tuition, the government does. As much as it is elitist to say, I think this may contribute to student buy-in as far as the educational process goes. Since they have no financial responsibility, as compared to US students, students may not take classes as seriously as they might otherwise if there was a financial stake in their coursework.

Second, many Irish students have a three year program to earn their Bachelor's Degree as compared to the American four year system. When looking at the curriculums, the Irish spend their entire university career in the college of their major taking courses that relate directly to that major. There are not the same sorts of "general education" or "elective" course requirements as we have at Boston University. It seems that by reducing the course load of outside classes, Irish curriculums are able to graduate students a year faster than most American colleges. I wonder whether this has an effect on the work place and hirability. One might question maturity and experience given students are hired into firms for full time work at the age of twenty-one rather than our traditional twenty-two.

Finally, the Irish curriculum and teaching style that we are experiencing is very different from that which we are used to at Boston University. Classes are almost exclusively lecture style with little to no classroom participation and minimal feedback. The instructor will generally talk about notes they have prepared in a PowerPoint presentation or an Adobe PDF that then displays on a projector. Classes tend to be about three hours long with a break in the middle and meet once a week. In contrast, the longest class I had experienced prior to UCD was two hours, met twice a week, and was VERY interactive. Even our large lecture style courses tended to interact either by cold-call, interactive clickers, or other real-time feedback.

I have not yet formed my opinion about what system is "better" since I have not really gone out and experienced what it is like to work alongside these students. In a little over a week, I will be starting an internship in downtown Dublin where, among other goals, I hope to experience firsthand what it is to work in Ireland. I personally prefer the BU system and curriculum because it works better for me, or perhaps because I have grown up with it, so to speak.

What do you think? Does the Irish system of education sound better to you? Is it more fun? If you were a hiring manager, who would you rather hire? Post a comment or drop a line to james.m.connors [dot] gmail [dot] com and let the community know what you think.

The Gratitude Campaign

April 16, 2008 James Connors

I wanted to take a few minutes to blog a really great organization that I’ve found. It’s called the Gratitude Campaign and the mission is simple - say thank you. They have a very nice video that explains everything about it but let me share why I feel so strongly about this organization.

Some of you may know that I spent some time at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado as an Active Duty Air Force cadet. In that time I came to a new understanding of what it meant to love my country, to be proud of my job, and be willing to give it all up so that others may live in freedom. I’m no longer affiliated with that institution, nor do I hold any current ties to the military.

However, I do have friends there. I have friends in Colorado, Florida, Arizona, Kansas, and all of the other States. I have other friends that are in the Middle East, or on a boat on an Ocean somewhere. All of these friends are in the profession of arms, they are the professional fighting men and women that serve our country without asking for more than some shoes to wear and some food to eat. I also know that they don’t get much more than that.

In the Vietnam era, our country was fighting a highly unpopular war. The country was more or less in revolt about our involvement in that conflict and hated everything attached to it. So it was no surprise when riots welcomed home soldiers returning from the fight of their lives, shouting their slogans and hatred at the men and women who had put their lives on the line to do as their country had asked them to. This concept rocks me to my core. I understand the politics around our current military engagement and I say forget about those details. You don’t have to support the war, but I think you should support the men and women that are serving our country. That doesn’t mean you have to go out and buy cell phones for every soldier or even offer to make a dinner for the family while the soldier is away. It’s as easy as saying thank you.

I’ve found a simple thank you to be one of the most meaningful gestures that anyone has ever offered to me while I’ve been in uniform either for the Air Force or for the United States Air Force Auxiliary, Civil Air Patrol. Immediately following the tragedies of 9.11, I can remember people opening doors, buying meals, and saying thank you for my service. I felt embarrassed at the time because I didn’t think I deserved the thanks but they weren’t thinking of me, James Connors - it was the uniform, the soldiers they were thanking. Now, six an a half years after that day, we’re starting to forget about those soldiers that are still away from their families and friends. We’re forgetting about the men and women holed up in the sand. We’re overlooking those people that are fighting for their lives in a battle to keep our country free from fear and terror.

So, this is what I ask: please go to the website, www.gratitudecampaign.org and watch the video. Then, the next time you see those whom have been fighting for your rights and your freedom, give them the sign. It doesn’t take words or grand gestures. You don’t have to buy their lunch or write them letters. Just give thanks in any way you can, as simple as a sign.

For more information about The Gratitude Campaign visit their website at www.gratitudecampaign.com.

The Gratitude Campaign

April 16, 2008 James Connors

I wanted to take a few minutes to blog a really great organization that I've found. It's called the Gratitude Campaign and the mission is simple - say thank you. They have a very nice video that explains everything about it but let me share why I feel so strongly about this organization. Some of you may know that I spent some time at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado as an Active Duty Air Force cadet. In that time I came to a new understanding of what it meant to love my country, to be proud of my job, and be willing to give it all up so that others may live in freedom. I'm no longer affiliated with that institution, nor do I hold any current ties to the military.

In the Vietnam era, our country was fighting a highly unpopular war. The country was more or less in revolt about our involvement in that conflict and hated everything attached to it. So it was no surprise when riots welcomed home soldiers returning from the fight of their lives, shouting their slogans and hatred at the men and women who had put their lives on the line to do as their country had asked them to. This concept rocks me to my core. I understand the politics around our current military engagement and I say forget about those details. You don't have to support the war, but I think you should support the men and women that are serving our country. That doesn't mean you have to go out and buy cell phones for every soldier or even offer to make a dinner for the family while the soldier is away. It's as easy as saying thank you.

I've found a simple thank you to be one of the most meaningful gestures that anyone has ever offered to me while I've been in uniform either for the Air Force or for the United States Air Force Auxiliary, Civil Air Patrol. Immediately following the tragedies of 9.11, I can remember people opening doors, buying meals, and saying thank you for my service. I felt embarrassed at the time because I didn't think I deserved the thanks but they weren't thinking of me, James Connors - it was the uniform, the soldiers they were thanking. Now, six an a half years after that day, we're starting to forget about those soldiers that are still away from their families and friends. We're forgetting about the men and women holed up in the sand. We're overlooking those people that are fighting for their lives in a battle to keep our country free from fear and terror.

So, this is what I ask: please go to the website, www.gratitudecampaign.org and watch the video. Then, the next time you see those whom have been fighting for your rights and your freedom, give them the sign. It doesn't take words or grand gestures. You don't have to buy their lunch or write them letters. Just give thanks in any way you can, as simple as a sign.

For more information about The Gratitude Campaign visit their website at www.gratitudecampaign.com.

2nd Week and Still Going Strong

January 30, 2008 James Connors

Ireland 049.jpg Check out more photos at my Flickr Page!

Hey there, all. It's been a couple days since I wrote last - must be having fun, right? Well absolutely! It's been a very busy week so far - an absolute gas. To cover in this post: food shopping, sight seeing, and horse racing. Hopefully this will be a good read and you'll enjoy it. Remember, you can subscribe to the bi-weekly newsletter to the right and find out how to get in touch with me at the contact page.

FOOD SHOPPING

Food shopping is one of those things that everyone takes for granted in the United States, isn't it? I mean, how many times do you really consider where, when, for how long or plan extensively your shopping trips? Yes, you may have shopping lists, a general time when you want to go but here in Ireland we do it a little different. First, there's a caste system of food shopping locations. For quick or urgent needs, one would walk to the Centra or Spar for their needs. If it's time to find a specific or hard to find item, one might get on a bus to the Tesco for higher quality and moderate prices. Finally, for general shopping and the purchase of staples, one would plan a trip to the city center to find and Aldi or Lidl. These are foreign owned, discount markets with stocking habits of Walmart super center and the cramped confines of Johnny's Fresh Market.

Here's another one for you - you need your own bags! This is such a twist. I mean, stroke of genius for sure, but sooo inconvenient when compared to shopping in the US. I had over a week's worth of groceries on the first weekend but I was hugely confused, embarrassed, and upset when I realized I had no way to get the food home, no one to help bad, and the people behind me were getting rather heated with me. Needless to say I figured something out but the 6km trip home was not gentle to my hands with the overstuffed bags etc. This gets me thinking about things - what are they trying to teach? One, don't be lazy, you can bag yourself. Two, don't waste, buy reusable bags combined with the financial disincentive of having to pay for your bags. Finally, buy what you need for the week. I had done a big shopping run for a week plus some staples. This earned me three large fabric bags to tote everything back to campus. That walk home taught me that it's best to just buy what you need for the week and leave the rest for later.

SIGHT SEEING

Over this weekend, we took a walking tour with a representative from the Erasmus Student Network (international student union type thing). We saw many of the staple locations around the city centre. We got to see Dublin Castle as well as many of the night hot spots around the city. We even saw a small time rapper doing a budget music video -we're talking Youtube production. I thought it was a really interesting trip and definitely helped with my sense of direction. As one could imagine, Dublin isn't really a planned city - New Yorkers curse the place often. If you're into Boston's layout, you'll feel much better about Dublin for sure.

After a nice lunch at Bewley's cafe on Grafton street, we ventured west towards St. James Gate - the beloved brewery of the Black Gold: Guinness Stout. This was such an improvement to the old facility that they don't even compare. The Guinness Storehouse is an amazing facility that's part museum, part amusement park. Starting on the ground floor, visitors make their way up 7 floors to the gravity bar - a 365 glass bar on the very top of the facility - looking at, touching, smelling, experiencing all of the steps to the brewing process. It was a really great trip and the post tour pint was scrumptious.

HORSE RACING

Sunday was another action packed day here in the Emerald Isle. After an early wakeup, it was off to the Leopardstown Horse Track for the AIG championship hurdles. It was a really nice location, professional security, catering, etc. Top notch for those that can afford it. I wonder if this is just a small version of the Kentucky Derby? Anyways, it was to the pub to get a pint (required for all school sponsored trips) then to register with the bookies. 40 Euro later, I was scouring the reports, the breeders notes, the critics and all just hoping to be able to pick out the horse that would make my fortune. The whole day reminded me of Mrs. Knight telling me how she used to be top notch at picking horses at the races back when she was younger - I definitely could have used her skills that day, haha.

Oh! I should note that when I got there, a structure on the far side of the field was burning - that was different. Apparently one of the TV camera stands caught fire and burned to the ground. Soon after, a bunch of large corporate helicopters came swooping in dropping off their precious cargo. At the end of the day I walked away with 36 of the 40 euro... I consider it a success.

Well, that's the bulk of the news from me this week. I'm hoping to get a newsletter sent out in the next couple of days - I'm trying to get out and enjoy the nice weather while it's around and get these posted up when it's crummy outside. Friday, we're going to Belfast with the other BU program so stories from that trek will follow soon after.

I hope all is well with you all - I'm missing you!!