11/05/2025
Showcase Three exhibits how honors experiences have strengthened my ability to communicate, connect, and lead in diverse professional settings. Each artefact represents a different style of communication and collaboration, but all share a common thread of interpersonal growth and the skill of elicitation.
Elicitation represents my ability to guide purposeful conversations that draw out meaningful insights and reflections from others. This skill encompasses active listening, empathy, and structured questioning to promote authentic dialogue while keeping the conversation comfortable and practical. Through experiences such as conducting interviews and discussion panels for honors contracts, or facilitating client/athlete check-ins during my internship experiences, I have strengthened my capacity to read cues, adapt tone and phrasing, and foster trust. This skill reflects both interpersonal awareness and social analytics. Through the development of elicitation, I am more able to uncover valuable information, deepen understanding, and build strong professional connections.
For my Honors contract in Abnormal Psychology, I created and hosted a podcast titled “Mind Over Misunderstanding" featuring a certified Licensed Clinical Social Worker. The project aimed to bridge classroom theory with lived professional experience by exploring topics such as trauma, anxiety, and therapeutic practice. Preparing for and conducting this interview challenged me to design purposeful questions, manage conversational flow, and frame nuanced perspectives with empathy and professionalism. The accompanying research paper expanded my understanding of frameworks and ethical considerations in clinical settings, reinforcing how intentionally designed communication can deepen learning and human connection. Together, this artefact represents my ability to elicit insight from a practising professional, from a nuanced perspective.
As part of an Honors contract project, I organized and moderated a live, international Q&A panel featuring university students from India, Poland, Canada, Kenya, and England. The discussion explored global healthcare systems, emphasizing the cultural, political, and economic differences that shape access and quality of care. Leading this event required adaptability, active listening, and cultural awareness to balance diverse perspectives and maintain a respectful, inclusive dialogue. I learned to facilitate meaningful conversation across linguistic and cultural boundaries while ensuring each participant felt heard and valued. This experience strengthened my confidence in cross-cultural elicitation and directly supports my future in sport science and strength & conditioning, where building trust across global and diverse teams is essential.
This document contains my planning notes, script and other information I used in preparation for and during the live Q&A. Having a framework to follow and utilise throughout the duration of the panel was beneficial, although I found myself using it less and less as the conversation developed and became more authentic.
While assisting in a research project on fatigue and performance indicators in collegiate female soccer players, I worked closely with athletes to collect, interpret, and communicate data in a way that was both professional and personally engaging. This experience taught me that research extends beyond metrics: it depends on trust, empathy, and clarity in every interaction.
I learned to translate physiological findings into language that athletes could understand, reinforcing the value of communication in evidence-based performance work. This balance of technical precision and interpersonal awareness has shaped how I approach coaching and athlete development, reminding me that effective strength and conditioning begins with understanding the person behind the data.
Working with the women's soccer team at Furman University during my research experience was certainly challenging. I had personal friendships with many of the subjects which had to be considered in our interactions, so as to maintain professionalism in communication and the research proceedings. My skills of elicitation were consequently refined to compartmentalise my personal and professional endeavours.
Across these three experiences, I’ve grown in my ability to communicate with clarity, empathy, and purpose. Effective leadership is defined by these skills, in both health and performance settings. Through my honors podcast, I learned how to elicit meaningful dialogue and synthesize complex ideas; through the international panel, I strengthened my confidence in leading inclusive, culturally aware conversations; and through research with student-athletes, I learned to translate data into practical understanding. Together, these experiences have shaped my identity as a communicator who values precision, trust, and connection. As I move toward a career in strength and conditioning, these skills continue to guide how I coach, lead and build relationships that empower others to perform at their best.