Moving from a classroom to building a home..
To begin a new journey at a new place brings challenges of its own. Adapting to the new place and people, initiating conversations, making new friends is all a part of the process of overcoming the challenges.In the first week of college itself, we were provided some guidelines to help with this entire process, through a workshop conducted by Priyanka Kumar. We were informed that this workshop was to be a fun, interactive session to have an experiential learning on Values of IGTC and for rapport building amongst the class. It was meant to give us valuable insights as to what we should expect during our time at IGTC.
The session started with her emphasising on the fact that no matter what happens, people will always be an integral part of any institution/company. Hence managing and communicating with people effectively is an essential skill to develop. She mentioned that everyone at her company calls themselves ‘Workplace Experts’ and by the end of the day, we knew why it was so.
The workshop started with a few warm up activities and then the class was divided into four groups.Each member from the teams were asked to answer ten questions and interact with one another. They were light hearted, ice breaker questions like ‘which is your favourite song?’ or ‘what is your dream holiday destination and why?’. All these questions helped us to truly understand each other’s preferences. We had had our formal introductions on day one, but this was more like the informal introduction amongst ourselves. As the activities went on further, a clearer picture started to form in our minds. Now the strength and qualities of our classmates started to become evident to us. Along with that we got the opportunity to share our hidden talents with the class. Some sang songs and some read their poetry and writing pieces. It unwittingly became a platform for artistic expression. By the end of the day, we knew who was good at singing, who was interested in reading and writing, whose perspective matched ours, who is a good listener, thinker,speaker, entertainer and much more. All of the students became keenly aware of each other's talents, areas of interest, perspectives,/individual outlook towards life along and therein, the similarities and differences between us.
Each activity had an underlying message to learn from,and Priyanka ma'am let us realise those lessons by our own practical experiences first, before discussing her insights. With the help of a simple and easy going game of charades, we were introduced to the great values of IGTC! And thereafter every group was assigned one of the four values. The four values of IGTC: Inspiring Excellence, Nurturing Curiosity, Infusing Optimism and Seeking Innovation.
Each group had to work together in describing how the particular value feels, looks, smells and tastes like. To explain each and every point, we naturally had to dive deep into understanding those values first, making us realise its true essence and significance. To put our thoughts into words, presenting them creatively on a chart paper really set the ball rolling. As a team, we discussed our ideas together, systematically divided the tasks amongst ourselves while learning to manage time well, to complete our tasks precisely within the given time frame. It is while practically performing in such time bound activities when one learns proper responses required to remain competent in such stressfully restrictive situations. The last Activity was to test our divergent thinking at its peak. We were asked to prepare a small street play focusing on the value assigned to us earlier. It was a particularly interesting task which challenged and tested our collective abilities; it brought the most joy and satisfaction to us in its end. It required maximum effort but also gave us maximum joy. In this experimental journey, anecdotes were shared, feelings were expressed, we reasoned each task and empathised with each other. Through this, bloomed a meaningful connection within us. The people who were only batchmates - strange faces, when the workshop began, began to mean more to each other - becoming familiar companions.
Not only did it allow us to share our joys and have good fun but also taught us some valuable practical lessons which would enhance our knowledge. The credit of the success of this workshop belongs to Priyanka Maam for planning and executing it so well. To implement all aspects of an ideal learning workshop is a particularly difficult task. And yet, Priyanka ma'am crafted such an enjoyable and meaningful set of activities which perfectly delivered to us the theme of the workshop in a way that made it grasp their significance with ease. The way she executed her excellent plans with such flawlessness - is indeed a testament to her mastery in the field. This experience in its entirety was one of the most memorable learning experiences. I take this opportunity to again thank Priyanka Maam and The entire IGTC team for arranging this program and for letting us experience this wonderful experience.
We found our people, our comfort zones and found the courage to be willing to step out of them to work, if need be. It amazes me how a single workshop could change an outlook to this point - what was then a strange unfamiliar place, has now begun to feel like our new home. One conversation led to another, then as the words swept deeper and deeper into our minds, our voice began to fade and our hearts were conversing silently.
Manasi Bhanage
PGPBA - IGTC batch 32
