Dr. J's Blog

Students fear failure. It's not just a failing grade many students fear; it can be the fear of not receiving a perfect score each week for all required learning activities. I've worked with many doctoral learners who earn less than 100 points for their discussion posts in a previous week and believe they have failed. All they can focus on is the loss of points, even if it just six or eight points. The same holds true for written assignments. A less than perfect grade somehow indicates failure because "they have worked really hard", "put a lot of effort into the assignment", and "should be awarded full points". Some learners may believe I have somehow been excessively critical or nit-picking with my feedback, when it did not meet their expectations.

I attempt to change the...

Without question, the business world has been changed and "business as usual" is no longer the case, and it may likely never be again. For those who are fortunate to still have gainful employment, the change in responsibilities has created a new focus on how work is performed. Those who are essential workers must guard their lives in a manner unlike anything they could have imagined. Those who made a transition from working in an office environment to becoming remote employees may now find themselves feeling a sense of performing in isolation.

One of the challenges for becoming a remote employee is the lack of interactions and camaraderie available in a physical office environment. This is an especially difficult learning curve for those who were used to working in an open...

What is the "new normal" like for you now, especially as related to your workday? Do you believe you will ever go back to business as usual, or work in the same manner you did, now that you have learned how to adapt and work in a different manner? Are you feeling that you are able to cope with conditions related to your job, or is a matter of just surviving each day of your work week?

Life for many has become a matter of adjusting and adapting, and doing this at a rapid pace, sometimes with the proper tools and resources, and often on the fly. The initial sense of confusion and uncertainty is now growing into panic and increased agitation for many. Those who are employed are attempting to work at home, in spaces they never imagined they would be working, and feeling somewhat off...

Life establishes a rhythm and a pattern. It is often referred to as the status quo. As the world continues to evolve, you may either feel as if your life is adapting along with it, or your career is never changing, growing, or moving forward. Days go by and nothing changes. Your thoughts of the future are focused on getting ahead and perhaps how you'll create better traction for advancing the knowledge, skills, and talents you possess. Perhaps you feel under-appreciated, you've been over-looked for positions, and/or you believe you are under-paid for your role. Whatever the case may be, your daily routine may have been consumed with timely thoughts about achieving a better future.

Then when a significant lifetime event occurs, such as a worldwide crisis, it creates an...