April 2023 by Kara Adama
Summary of Project Overview
I identified the need for self-improvement after starting my National Society of Leadership journey in 2021 amidst a world-wide COVID 19 pandemic. Over the course of several years, I worked my way through both certificate and credit courses. It started with an Orientation and Leadership Certificate earned by June 2021. Then I moved on to earning the Foundations of Leadership Certificate in July 2021 and its corresponding credit course thereafter. My journey continued over the next year to earn the Advanced Leadership certification and course credit in 2022. Then I ventured into the Executive Leadership Certification course where I was asked to chose a Better World Project. As in my Better World project I wanted to address the problem of my own personal growth as it related to developing effective leadership skills that could be later used to support stronger communities, organizations, and more, I chose the "Better Me, Better World" project. The goal I set for myself was to learn to be equipped to meet the 9 Principles and Behaviors of Leadership as I participated in activities related to the 5 Leadership Development categories of intellectual pursuits, emotional care, ethics, physical development, and service to others. Participating in the "Better Me, Better World" Project enabled me to persevere forward despite personal challenges and an ongoing global pandemic.
Purpose and Background
As mentioned above, I chose the "Better Me, Better World" project to help me become my best self to contribute to my community. I participated in activities from five personal development categories: intellectual pursuits, emotional care, ethics, physical development and community service.
My intellectual pursuits goal was to complete the 530- hour Medical Billing and Coding course and pass my certifying exams by early February 2023 so that I could eventually find a remote job in either medical coding, medical billing or medical administrative assistant.
My emotional care goal was to reduce my feelings of isolation and improve communication in relationships with family members, friends, and neighbors.
My physical development goal involved becoming more physically fit, reduce weight and establish a program that could be continued after project completion.
The ethics goal I pursued was to increase my understanding of various ethical situations pertaining to the health field.
Lastly, the service to others goal was to perform service to others in the form of helpful advice to my students and their families in the form of encouragement and practical tips for better studying and improved English learning.
Activity One: Intellectual Pursuits
I applied and was accepted into the health services online Medical Billing & Coding certificate program on October 17, 2022. Once I received program access, I developed a schedule that aligned with my completion goals and worked on that schedule from October 2022 through January 2023. The course was 530 hours long. I decided to divide that by 120 days (4 months at approximately 30 days), to set up the milestone of completing 4.5 hours every day. I set up milestones based on midterms and final exams as follows:
Midterm 1: November 2, 2022
Final 1: December 2, 2022
Midterm 2: January 1, 2023
Final 2: January 31, 2023
My first milestone was to complete the medical coding midterm by November 2, 2022. I actually completed it early on October 25, 2022. Completion of the medical coding final by December 2, 2022 was the second milestone goal I worked towards. I finished almost a month earlier, on November 4, 2022. The third milestone to completion was the midterm for medical coding/billing by January 1, 2023. This was again completed ahead of schedule, on December 6, 2022. Lastly, was completion of the course with the final by January 31, 2023. This requirement was completed December 19, 2022. Throughout this program and upon completion, I have reflected on my growth in understanding medical terminology, health insurance, and medical billing/coding. I have always been interested in the healthcare field, even once receiving a scholarship to become a nurse. So pursuing this enabled me to enjoy the academia of the healthcare profession and tie it in with a career that allows for my enjoyment of being organized and attend to details.
Activity Two: Emotional Care
I created a list of family, friends and neighbors that I could contact by October 2, 2022. Every Wednesday, or as needed, I utilized the list to send out text messages on the following milestone schedule:
-October 5,12, 19, and 26
-November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
-December 7, 14, 21, 28
-January 4, 11, 18, 25
-February 1
With a changed work situation, Wednesdays became a challenge to keep up with and I switched more often to Saturdays when I found myself feeling more isolated than at mid-week. To meet this goal, I had a list of family members who lived out of the area, my neighbor and several friends. I contacted them either on Wednesday or Saturday as my schedule allowed by text or Facebook Messenger. This activity was challenging at first as I am a shy person. Over time, I found myself more easily able to initiate conversations as I saw the positive responses of those I contacted. I am appreciative of my small circle of family and friends who helped ease the feelings of isolation during the pandemic.
Activity Three: Ethics
I researched to find five articles or one free online class in ethics related to the health field by October 2, 2022. I read one article every month by the 30/31st of the month on the following milestone schedule:
-Article 1: October 31, 2022
-Article 2: November 30, 2022
-Article 3: December 31, 2022
-Article 4: January 31, 2022
-Article 5: February 6, 2022 [project end date]
I read the article “What Covid Has Taught the World about Ethics” by October 31, 2022. Then, in November, I read “Mental Health Apps Are Not Keeping Your Data Safe.” Next, in December, came the reading of “Addressing the Ethical Issues at the Heart of the COVID-10 Pandemic.” In January 2023, I read “Why VIP Services Are Ethically Indefensible in Health Care.” Finally, in February, I read “The ethical dilemmas behind plans for involuntary treatment to target homelessness, mental illness and addiction” before the February 6, 2023 final deadline. I didn't always find this activity easy to complete as I was juggling work and the studying related to activity one above. In time, I recognized the importance of being aware of ethical concerns and how it could impact people's thoughts and actions.
Activity Four: Physical Development
I researched and found dance/aerobics programs offered for free on Roku channels by October 2, 2022 and then participated in them every Sunday and Thursday. My milestone dates were:
-October 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 27, and 30th
-November 3, 6, 10, 13, 17, 20, 24, and 27
-December 1, 4, 8, 11, 15, 18, 22, 25, and 29
-January 1, 5, 8, 12, 15, 19, 22, 26, 29
-February 2
I participated in the FitOn fitness program every Sunday and Thursday from October 2022 to February 2, 2023 with the result of becoming more physically fit, tried to reduce weight and established a program that could be continued after the Better Me Better World Project completion.
Activity Five: Service to Others
I organized social media posts to share with my tutoring clients by October 5, 2022. I had the milestone goals below to make education-related posts every Monday:
-October 3, 10, 17, 24, 31
-November 7, 14, 21, 28
-December 5, 12, 19, 26
-January 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
-February 6
I initially posted on Mondays per my proposal until my job situation changed and my method of contact with the students changed. Then I created a ClassTag group for my private students that continued with me [after I left a tutoring company] to receive relevant educational posts as well as gave helpful advice on a one-on-one basis, as needed on Slack.
Outcomes
I would now like to share the impact the project had on my community, myself and my leadership skills. Engaging in the intellectual and ethical pursuits in medical coding/billing had an impact on myself, giving me a back-up job I can do in case of job loss in a recession, increased knowledge of medical anatomy, coding and billing, along with a greater understanding of changing ethical concerns in the community. Participation in the physical development goal helped me strive to be more physically fit amongst a stationary job. The emotional care and service to others activities were mutually beneficial to me and the community. I put forth more effort than normal to interact with others, and they benefitted from my encouragement and/or knowledge. Participation in all these goals within the project impacted my leadership skills to become more socially knowledgeable and interactive with others, as well as learn the importance of flexibility to changing circumstances on achieving goals.
Additionally, during the 18 week timeframe of this project from October 2022 to February 2023, others were impacted and involved in my Better World Project. First, various personnel in the ed2go Medical Billing and Coding program helped me with my intellectual goal. Family, friends and neighbors assisted me in my emotional care and physical care goals. Lastly, the students and families that I teach were impacted by my service to others goal.
Reflection
-STRENGTHS: The greatest successes of my project was the completion of the intellectual pursuit of finishing a medical coding and billing course. Other successes of the project were becoming more aware of community ethical concerns and reaching out to others for emotional support.
-WEAKNESSES: The completion of the physical aspect and service to others were the weakest areas that needed improvement.
-OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE: For the physical aspect, I would be more pro-active in setting actual physical fitness goals to track my progress and combine it with healthier eating to achieve weight loss. For the service to others, I would be mindful that changes in available communication format can affect project completion and format that the service to others tasks can be delivered. Thus, I would have a back-up form of communication ready and multiple ways to access the materials.
-PERSONAL GROWTH: I have learned that I thrive in individual pursuits and that I have a harder time when outside threats influence my goals. I learned to have greater flexibility in overcoming challenges by seeking alternative pathways. I have come to have a better understanding of the numerous ethical concerns that influence others thoughts and actions.
Conclusion
My "Better Me, Better World: Project met its original goal. I was able to become my best self to contribute to my community. I participated in activities from the five personal development categories: intellectual pursuits, emotional care, ethics, physical development and community service. As demonstrated in the outcomes section, my "Better Me, Better World" Project had lasting impacts on myself, family, friends and those I teach. The project implications show that through personal self-development, I can have leadership impact on others. In the future, I can continue to establish pathways from this project in both the education and healthcare sectors. I can continue emotional care and physical development strategies that will strengthen me as a leader. I can continue pursuing my understanding of ethics and use that knowledge in my interactions with others. I have learned, as Hellen Keller stated, "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."
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