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Introduction
Introduction
My sense of belongingness in iDesign has grown significantly since the beginning of September, and it seems like everyone else's has too. We have all come so far, and have had many shared experiences. We made simple circuits, wrote code, practiced our teamwork skills, brought our ideas to life, and made the most out of our successes and failures. I believe these experiences have formed the bedrock for our collective belongingness today, even if some of those experiences did not involve direct interaction or socializing. What is more, I believe our sense of belonging has helped create a space where feedback is more cordial and laid back. At least, that is my perspective. And nowhere has this belongingness shined brighter than in the woodshop.
Themes: Belongingness, feedback
Belongingness is awesome
Belongingness is awesome
Project 4 was to use the materials and tools in the wood shop to create what the Main Course Site called a MessageBlox. Essentially, this was a small wooden "clamshell" that could store our CPXs for projects like music boxes, door knockers, or timers. But due to the timing of Mountain Day, we were not expected to finish them. Instead, our goal was to "reflect on the experience of being in the sessions and working with the tools" (Main Course Site).
This process-focused approach was awesome. When it was combined with Kris Camp and Audrey's accessible teaching methods and the laidback, low-stress atmosphere, the woodshop became an echo chamber for belongingness. People helped each other out, shared tools (like hammers, saws, clamps, and chisels), and cheered each other on as their clamshells slowly took shape. Nafisa helped me get oriented in the workshop in terms of tools and their usage; Rosalind and I learned the drill press; Taylor and I kept shooting each other smiles. While I was already fairly comfortable with the saws, clamps, and chisels (I had learned them in Fundamentals of Maker Culture), I came away with awesome experiences from the drill press and combo sanders. All in all, our communal belongingness felt like it flourished rapidly, especially during day two.
My board!
Post-drill press!
Chiseling a channel for the CPX cord
Clamping the wood blocks flushed for combo sanders!
Feedback is scary
Feedback is scary
Even though I fell into the demographic that did not finish their clamshells, I am proud of myself for hitting the pause button. If my previous reflections have not already made it clear, I am a recovering perfectionist. If I do not complete an assignment that is my definition of "perfect," 9 times out of 10 I feel like a failure. This happens even if I get an A on something. If it does not live up to my standard, then it shows that I could have done better. What is more, this feeling of failure rears its ugly head whenever I get feedback that is not "Great job!" "Awesome!" or some other phrase of validation. Even when the feedback is meant to be constructive, I hyper-fixate on how my "mistakes" have made something "bad." I am sure these habits are not limited to me. You have probably read about them a million times. But boy do they suck.
Belongingness and feedback are critical for growth
Belongingness and feedback are critical for growth
Luckily, classes like iDesign and practices like reflecting, meditation, and therapy have been extremely helpful for my metacognition. Now, I can identify these thought patterns as they occur roughly 7 times out of 10! However, old habits die hard. And the evil power couple that is perfection and fear of failure still occasionally drags me down into cesspools of research, workaholism, editing, and fast food (granted, I also take longer to do things because I am a massive over-writer and have ADHD).
But that does not mean I am not improving! This is why I am framing the MessageBlox as a success: I followed the standards set by the instructions, not my own. Plus, if I kept working on it for my final project, it would be a great opportunity to get honest feedback and ideas. Instead of using feedback as a metric for success/failure, I could use it to measure progress and potential. And since the culture of iDesign and the Makerspace pivots around these tenets, I just know that this mindset will amplify my sense of belonging all the more.
Know what? I'm satisfied!
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