Every class I've ever been in has taught me things about the subject I'm studying, and things about myself. Sometimes they are lessons I want to learn. Sometimes...not so much.
Overall, this class has been pretty positive. I have learned about properly citing my sources, how to format things to be more readable, and how to be aware of language that might be overly gendered or offensive. I've also learned that, while my personal love of "five dollar words" isn't suitable for a professional setting, neither is the jargon-rich, stilted, and hyper-professional writing style I learned in the Army. It seems I am, once again, trying to find the middle ground.
I also learned some important lessons about biting off more than I can chew in a single, online semester. I learned that my familiarity with word processing programs peaked about 15 years ago. I learned that it's difficult to collaborate online while trying to work around the very busy schedules of four or five virtual strangers. And I learned, once again, that the Army mission is unrelenting, and utterly unconcerned with whatever else might be going on in your life.
Hopefully, there are more lessons like this out there for me. Because, goodness knows, I seem to need a few more!
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Monday, June 20, 2016
Resume
Darcy A. Lowman-Craig
XXXX XX Ave, Beaver Creek, MN | xxx-xxx-xxxx | darcy.lowman@gmail.com
Objective
·
Obtain an entry level Social Work position
focused on working with veterans.
Education
A.A.S| May 2007 | South
Central Technical College
·
Major: Intensive Care Paramedic
Bachelors | May 2018 | South west
minnesota state university
·
Major: Social Work
Skills & Abilities
Management
·
Provided direction and guidance to five combat
medics as a Squad Leader with the South Dakota Medical Command.
·
Wrote yearly evaluation reports to allow for
soldier’s advancement and identify areas of weakness.
·
Managed
all disciplinary and award processes.
Communication
·
Taught the
US Army Resiliency Training Program, 20 hours per year.
·
Lead Sexual Harassment Prevention Training
Program
·
ASIST Suicide Prevention Certified
Leadership
·
Member of
SD Army National Guard Honor Guard
·
Veteran’s Outreach Director for Team RWB
·
MN DFL State Delegate, member of Inclusion
Committee
·
Victim’s Advocate, Compass Center
Experience
COmbat Medic | SD Army
National GUARD | July 2005-Present
·
Provide routine and emergency medical care to
soldier and civilians in all conditions
·
Worked in a medical lab setting, including phlebotomy,
proper sample handling, and recording of test results
·
Operated an immunization clinic, including
assessing patient safety, administering vaccine, completing appropriate
documentation, and site clean-up.
Patient Care Technician | Sanford Health | Feb
2008-sept 2012
·
Provided direct patient care for children in
the radiology department
·
Receptionist
duties, including answering phones, checking in patients for appointments,
customer service to all patients.
·
Maintain
facility cleanliness
·
Keep
monthly logs for health and safety.
·
Emergency Medical Technician | Gold Cross
Ambulance | Sept 2005- Feb 2008
·
Provided Emergency medical care to patients in
a medium sized US city
·
Provided community outreach via car seat
safety checks, community CPR courses, and various safety awareness classes
·
Provided routine transport for medically
fragile patients to area and regional medical facilities.
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Changes!
Our assignment today was to alter our blog to make it more professional. Mine had a very simple layout, which appealed to me because I like the clean look, but also because I felt it looked more professional to begin with. So I was initially pretty confused as to what I was going to do.
Luckily, blogger makes this very easy. They have dozens of blog templates, so I looked through all of them, and picked a new selection. This new look is still fairly clean and simple, but the font style is a more professional look. The headers are a different color from the text, making them stand out and improving readability. And the posts themselves are surrounded by a border, marking each individual blog post as a separate entity.
I hope this will help improve the look and feel of my blog. More to come, in the very near future!
Luckily, blogger makes this very easy. They have dozens of blog templates, so I looked through all of them, and picked a new selection. This new look is still fairly clean and simple, but the font style is a more professional look. The headers are a different color from the text, making them stand out and improving readability. And the posts themselves are surrounded by a border, marking each individual blog post as a separate entity.
I hope this will help improve the look and feel of my blog. More to come, in the very near future!
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Teamwork
The military is typically seen as a place where working as a team is central to everything, and there is something to that. However, it's a very different type of teamwork than the civilian population is familiar with.
A military team is a team in the sense that everyone has a role, and everyone must fulfill their role for the job to be done. However, it's also something of a dictatorship. The team leader is in control. Everything takes place at their instruction. There are situations where another team member may have to step up, take initiative, and make a decision in the absence of the leader; however, that team member is often in the dark as to whether they will get an award for their actions, or two weeks extra duty and the resentment of everyone else. There often doesn't seem to be any middle ground on these teams.
The manner in which the job (or, in our terms, the Mission) is carried out tends to be laid out to the point of micromanagement. You not only have to do your job in a way that gets the desired results: you have to get the desired results in the EXACT way that your leadership wants you to get them. Their way might not be the easiest, fastest, most accurate, or best way to do it, but it is the way you are going to do it. Why? Because they said so.
One area in which we really do tend to excel is in our ability to rely on our team members. Every member of the team has to have an intimate understanding of, not just their job, but all the other jobs as well. Before we even start on a mission, everyone knows who does what, and who will take over each job in the event that the person assigned that job can't do it. The reason for this is obvious: Our teams are often dealing with life and death situations. In order to get things done, our contingency plans have to have backups, which will also have backups and contingency plans of their own. The flip side of this is that, if someone fails to fulfill their obligations, the consequences are severe in the extreme. And not just in actual combat situations. One of our favorite lines is "Train like you fight." While being 10 minutes late coming in from lunch, neglecting to clean your room, or losing your ID card might be pretty meaningless errors in most situations, we often deal with them rather harshly, so to another favorite saying: "Excellence is a habit".
When I started my military career, I was the person being dictated to. I did as I was told. I didn't offer my opinion, and I certainly didn't recommend a "better" way to do things. As I moved up in the ranks, I was finally able to bring up ideas for improvements, but I also gradually started to be that "give no quarter" leader. These days, I pretty much tell people what to do and how to do it, and expect them to hop when I say "Frog". It's something of a bad habit, honestly. My kids certainly like pointing out that "I'm not one of your soldiers!!"
I'm looking forward to a more collaborative style of teamwork. Perhaps unfortunately, I'm in the position of team leader, as usual. I'm sincerely hoping that, this time around, my team mates will let me know if I'm getting a little too...controlling. If I get to the point of directing and dictating, rather than asking, listening, and collaborating, someone should probably give me the internet version of a sock to the shoulder and a "Mellow out, Sarge!"
A military team is a team in the sense that everyone has a role, and everyone must fulfill their role for the job to be done. However, it's also something of a dictatorship. The team leader is in control. Everything takes place at their instruction. There are situations where another team member may have to step up, take initiative, and make a decision in the absence of the leader; however, that team member is often in the dark as to whether they will get an award for their actions, or two weeks extra duty and the resentment of everyone else. There often doesn't seem to be any middle ground on these teams.
The manner in which the job (or, in our terms, the Mission) is carried out tends to be laid out to the point of micromanagement. You not only have to do your job in a way that gets the desired results: you have to get the desired results in the EXACT way that your leadership wants you to get them. Their way might not be the easiest, fastest, most accurate, or best way to do it, but it is the way you are going to do it. Why? Because they said so.
One area in which we really do tend to excel is in our ability to rely on our team members. Every member of the team has to have an intimate understanding of, not just their job, but all the other jobs as well. Before we even start on a mission, everyone knows who does what, and who will take over each job in the event that the person assigned that job can't do it. The reason for this is obvious: Our teams are often dealing with life and death situations. In order to get things done, our contingency plans have to have backups, which will also have backups and contingency plans of their own. The flip side of this is that, if someone fails to fulfill their obligations, the consequences are severe in the extreme. And not just in actual combat situations. One of our favorite lines is "Train like you fight." While being 10 minutes late coming in from lunch, neglecting to clean your room, or losing your ID card might be pretty meaningless errors in most situations, we often deal with them rather harshly, so to another favorite saying: "Excellence is a habit".
When I started my military career, I was the person being dictated to. I did as I was told. I didn't offer my opinion, and I certainly didn't recommend a "better" way to do things. As I moved up in the ranks, I was finally able to bring up ideas for improvements, but I also gradually started to be that "give no quarter" leader. These days, I pretty much tell people what to do and how to do it, and expect them to hop when I say "Frog". It's something of a bad habit, honestly. My kids certainly like pointing out that "I'm not one of your soldiers!!"
I'm looking forward to a more collaborative style of teamwork. Perhaps unfortunately, I'm in the position of team leader, as usual. I'm sincerely hoping that, this time around, my team mates will let me know if I'm getting a little too...controlling. If I get to the point of directing and dictating, rather than asking, listening, and collaborating, someone should probably give me the internet version of a sock to the shoulder and a "Mellow out, Sarge!"
Monday, May 23, 2016
I can't stay in forever.
That's really what it comes down to. I've spent 18 years channeling my desire to help others, my need to be a part of something bigger than myself, and my drive to challenge myself into my military and health care careers. It's been an amazing ride. It's been beautiful and brutal. The phrase "blood, sweat, and tears" is over-used in this line of work, but it's nonetheless accurate. I can't say I've enjoyed every moment, but I've certainly appreciated it. The Army has provided me with adventure and travel, with hardship and growth, with an education, and, at the end of the day, with my family. The medical field has shoved me into close proximity with the best and worst that life can hand out.
But the fact remains: I cannot do this forever. Whether I am talking about the military, or my time on the ambulance, I am talking about a young persons game. The physical demands start to wear on you. The hours wear on your family life. The emotional toll can, if anything, be worse. Eventually, wanting the best for the profession means figuring out when to walk away. I eased my way out of health care; using the birth of my third child as a reason to stop working. I hadn't had the luxury of staying home with the older two, so I jumped at the chance to do so with the last two. Watching my husband go in for his 12 hour nursing shifts, day after day, helped me realize I did not want to be doing that anymore. I'd been planning on nursing school since I was three years old. It took a lot to let that dream go, but I had other things to focus on. Child number 4 followed closely behind number 3.
As my youngest got older, I realized I was approaching a turning point. Just about the time I waved her off to kindergarten in a big yellow school bus, I would also be submitting my retirement paperwork to the SD Army National Guard. What on earth was I going to do with myself? I hadn't anticipated being in my late 30's, and trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up! I had no idea where to start, so I did what any modern woman would do: I crowd-sourced it.
Okay, that's not entirely accurate. What I actually did was start talking to friends, colleagues, and military mentors. One of them asked me "Think about what you do now. What is your favorite part of it? What is the part you never get tired of? And how can you make that a career?" The first two questions were easy: I love teaching the Army's Resiliency Program. Its an undervalued program, designed to teach soldiers how to better function under stress by identifying their values, their thinking traps, their confirmation biases, and their strengths. Presented in the right way, it can be life changing. Presented in the wrong (and more typical) way, and it's just another "death by PowerPoint" briefing the leadership needs to check off the list four times a year.
The final question was the kicker: How do I make this a career? I agonized over ideas: corporate speaking, becoming a teacher, digging up some sort of civilian contracting job that would keep me working with soldiers...none seemed like quite what I was looking for. Brainstorming with friends one lunch hour, one of our officers, a Major, came up behind me. "You know," she said, "It sounds like you should really look into becoming a social worker. That's what I got my degree in, and if you want to have that kind of direct impact on people's lives, it's the best way to go."
That kicked off a two hour conversation (which probably meant that somewhere a higher ranking person than me was sitting at a desk, not getting paperwork they needed, and cursing my name), months of online research, and a college application mailed in on a whim. I didn't start panicking until the acceptance letter arrived; I had literally paid off the last of my student loans two weeks prior. More online research led to another application; this one to the Veteran's Administration's Vocational Rehab Program. By some miracle, I walked into a meeting two days prior to registration day...and five days before the first day of classes, and walked out with an education plan that funded my education through my Master's of Social Work.
Now I sit in a desk, surrounded by fellow students the same age as my oldest son. The same age as the young soldiers I lead. Part of me want to call them kids. Part of me had to remind myself that so many of the soldiers we lost in Iraq and Afghanistan were no older than they are. Leadership taught me that people tend to reach your expectations, so it's best to set them high. While an abundance of life experience tends to come in handy, most of these fresh-out-of-high-school college students are better prepared for the university than I am. Hopefully we all have something to learn from each other.
But the fact remains: I cannot do this forever. Whether I am talking about the military, or my time on the ambulance, I am talking about a young persons game. The physical demands start to wear on you. The hours wear on your family life. The emotional toll can, if anything, be worse. Eventually, wanting the best for the profession means figuring out when to walk away. I eased my way out of health care; using the birth of my third child as a reason to stop working. I hadn't had the luxury of staying home with the older two, so I jumped at the chance to do so with the last two. Watching my husband go in for his 12 hour nursing shifts, day after day, helped me realize I did not want to be doing that anymore. I'd been planning on nursing school since I was three years old. It took a lot to let that dream go, but I had other things to focus on. Child number 4 followed closely behind number 3.
As my youngest got older, I realized I was approaching a turning point. Just about the time I waved her off to kindergarten in a big yellow school bus, I would also be submitting my retirement paperwork to the SD Army National Guard. What on earth was I going to do with myself? I hadn't anticipated being in my late 30's, and trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up! I had no idea where to start, so I did what any modern woman would do: I crowd-sourced it.
Okay, that's not entirely accurate. What I actually did was start talking to friends, colleagues, and military mentors. One of them asked me "Think about what you do now. What is your favorite part of it? What is the part you never get tired of? And how can you make that a career?" The first two questions were easy: I love teaching the Army's Resiliency Program. Its an undervalued program, designed to teach soldiers how to better function under stress by identifying their values, their thinking traps, their confirmation biases, and their strengths. Presented in the right way, it can be life changing. Presented in the wrong (and more typical) way, and it's just another "death by PowerPoint" briefing the leadership needs to check off the list four times a year.
The final question was the kicker: How do I make this a career? I agonized over ideas: corporate speaking, becoming a teacher, digging up some sort of civilian contracting job that would keep me working with soldiers...none seemed like quite what I was looking for. Brainstorming with friends one lunch hour, one of our officers, a Major, came up behind me. "You know," she said, "It sounds like you should really look into becoming a social worker. That's what I got my degree in, and if you want to have that kind of direct impact on people's lives, it's the best way to go."
That kicked off a two hour conversation (which probably meant that somewhere a higher ranking person than me was sitting at a desk, not getting paperwork they needed, and cursing my name), months of online research, and a college application mailed in on a whim. I didn't start panicking until the acceptance letter arrived; I had literally paid off the last of my student loans two weeks prior. More online research led to another application; this one to the Veteran's Administration's Vocational Rehab Program. By some miracle, I walked into a meeting two days prior to registration day...and five days before the first day of classes, and walked out with an education plan that funded my education through my Master's of Social Work.
Now I sit in a desk, surrounded by fellow students the same age as my oldest son. The same age as the young soldiers I lead. Part of me want to call them kids. Part of me had to remind myself that so many of the soldiers we lost in Iraq and Afghanistan were no older than they are. Leadership taught me that people tend to reach your expectations, so it's best to set them high. While an abundance of life experience tends to come in handy, most of these fresh-out-of-high-school college students are better prepared for the university than I am. Hopefully we all have something to learn from each other.
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