In the last few months, I have had the opportunity to work with the Local Llano, local food shed initiative.
I have been able to work with and meet some very interesting people, including those overseeing the project, working on the online presence, the local producers and growers of food in the area and many others.
As part of my work, I traveled to interview many farmers and market gardeners from the surrounding area and was able to visit several of their farms. I also traveled to the different farmer’s markets to meet new producers to gather information about them and their operations that I submitted to be added to the Local Llano website.
In addition, I had the opportunity to be part of the planning committee for the annual “Taste of the Llano” fundraising event that supports the Local Llano. That same weekend, I participated in presenting Local Llano programs to a Homeschool Conference in Plainview by setting up a booth and doing a short presentation.
I also took part in many of the “Learning Cohort” conference calls, which were a good learning experience, in diverse subjects. In addition to my work, I was able to volunteer in the community, which gave me the opportunity to hone presentation skills.
At the beginning of this time, I was asked to set several goals, they read as following;
[Through my work, I also plan to meet goals that challenge me in the following areas: The first, in communication, to become a more proficient communicator by identifying the other party’s communication style one person at a time (written, verbal, email, text, etc.). Second, is to increase my leadership skills by being decisive in each course of action taken even if it feels a little uneasy. Third, is to broaden networking skills, by stepping out of comfort zone to speak to people I just met, that I could learn from.]
For achieving the goals listed, I had to try different forms of communication with the people I came in contact with, in order to better communicate with them. Not all were receptive to the same communication style so I made the necessary adjustments. By making adjustments, I was able to increase communication effectiveness dramatically. Second, I improved leadership skills by making intentional decisions on a given matter. The decision was made intentionally and promptly with the information I had available to me at the time. This also proved to be effective. Not all decisions were the best course of action, but I was able to see an increase in leadership in different areas by making the best possible decision. If a decision came in short I was able to adjust later. Finally, I was also able to sharpen my networking skills. I did this by going out of the way to make a connection that otherwise would not have been possible. In the end this translated into more content for my work.
Overall the experience was a very positive one and one that I would recommend.
