Reflective
Analysis
12/0202/40/91 Ann Kendi Kinoti
REFLECTIVE ANALYSIS N0948597
International Fashion Business
Throughout the first half year on IFB you have covered many topics and worked in various learning experiences and techniques. You will find it useful to reflect on your experience and learning in order to help you manage and shape your further development through the course. This Reflective document will help you identify and develop the skills and knowledge you need to maximise the potential of your work. The document is structured to enable you to reflect on how you have managed your time, approached your research and how you have engaged with others. Complete the document by reflecting on your learning and progress against the module brief and learning outcomes.
Module Leaders BA International Fashion Business
Stage 1 Team Experience - What aspects of your teamwork went well? • I was on time • I was able to communicate effectively amongst each other to produce a viable outcome Did you face any challenges and how did you overcome these?
• Lack of input from some of the members • Inability to meet up due to COVID-19 - Took input from participating members and used the information to finish the task in the most suitable manner. - Formed a WhatsApp group and scheduled multiple zoom meetings to be able to effectively communicate with other members.
How did you personally contribute to the teams? Did you feel you benefited the teams? How? What did you learn about yourself? - I do believe my contribution to the team was highly valuable. - I contributed to forming the groups, took initiative when others wouldn’t and constantly engaged my research progress to the team. - I also took charge of the creative layout of all our presentations
Stage 2 Consider the outputs from your first half year: FASH30013 Team Presentation and individual proposal FASH30015 CGF Report, Team Presentation, Poster submission and Opportunity Report Consider and reflect on your achievements using the Learning out comes detailed below. Visuals can be used where appropriate.
Learning Outcome 6 Exercise self-management skills in managing workloads and meeting deadlines. E.g. Consider: A. What skills did you use to try to manage your workload? B. What tools did you use to manage your time? C. How did you cope with unexpected challenges to your deadlines? D. How did you prioritise your personal goals?
A. I believe that I have always been a master of managing workload. Coming up with visually satisfying TO-DO lists in my diary, creating MUST DO reminders on my phone, setting alarms and making timetables suited to when I am most and best active; but this has been a harder since joining the course, because I realised that my mastery had been limited and completely tailored to a particular type of workload. Since joining the International Fashion Business course I had to adapt to new means. The one that has saved me more times than most is, communication. A skill that wasn't really considered in my prior workload management skills. I found myself engaging more with my course mates to discuss our progress, share ideas and the Crown Jewel of it all: MOTIVATE EACH OTHER. This skill alone has kept me on my toes constantly; because the more I interacted with others, the more I realised I was not alone and everyone was giving it their very best at every moment. In return, this made me more focused in my work and consistent with the timetable I had prepared to manage my personal reading time and assignments.
B. Some of the tools that helped me through this was my pretty to-do list diary, my reminder sticky notes on my desk board and finally; my phone, that not only reminded me when it was time to move on to my next task but also made sure I was awake and ready on time to accomplish it all. C. For some reason; when it's just about time to hand in your work the craziest things tend to come up, as if life is pointing a finger at you for that one time you decided to procrastinate. If it's not your laptop acting up, your mood swings kicking in, your monthly periods trying to kill you, your friend calling in with a dilemma or even the sudden yet so often need to consume everything in the fridge after every hour...at that moment, all these challenges seem unmanageable and out of your control. In all honesty, the only thing I've needed to do and blessed to be capable of doing; is calling my parents. They listen to all my drama, thoughts of sadness, happiness and turn my overwhelmed self to a calm and composed me. This I am beyond grateful for. Of course not forgetting the occasional walks here and there too. Those seem to help clear my mind. D. Prioritising my personal goals has not been hard. Having travelled 4,468 miles and a bit more to get here, has by default demonstrated the importance this degree holds to me. The thought of all the hard work my parents put in for me to be here is all the motivation it takes to make this process, course and journey the most important goal in my life at the moment. I wish I had more to say but that's the only thing that gets me out of bed in my gloomiest of days and up and running the next day when I lacked the energy to continue.
Learning Outcome 9 Present the outcomes of your work using appropriate visual language and digital technologies. E.g. Consider: A. What tools/opportunities did you use to develop your IT skills. B. How did you develop your understanding of how to use visual messages to improve the content of your work? C. How much do you feel you have developed your skills? What further opportunities have you identified?
A. Before joining the course; I had begun my exciting experimental journey towards learning Photoshop and Illustrator on my own through YouTube but the course stood out as such new territories, thus forcing me to push my experimental brakes and resorting to my other creative programs. Programs I am more conversant with. Programs that save me more time to give into my new course. More time to understand it and fully adapted from a design course to a business course. It started from drawing and designing all day to reading and writing all night. A transition I'm still getting used to. The most I remembered writing was in my high school years and my foolish love poems in my broken hearted days; so to come in and have to write for my dear degree’s life... I decided to invest my time into fully understanding the course and the rest of the time, using programs I am more comfortable with to create. B. Having studied fashion and design prior to this course and being an artist in drawing, music and YouTube; visual communication has been a part of me. I involve it in everything I do. Therefore, developing and adapting them to this course has not been difficult. The only matter that arose from time to time, was the need for more time to fully express my messages within my work in accordance to the course requirements. C. My skills have definitely improved and my eye for creativity heightened. I'm able to construct visually pleasing products in a short amount of time, as well as recreate designs to suit my vision best. I am confident in my grow thus far and believe only greater things lie yonder for my creative journey.
Learning Outcome 10 Critically reflect on your work to support your academic and professional development E.g. Consider: A. What strengths have you identified in your work - skills/knowledge? B. What existing skills did you benefit from? C. How have your ideas developed? D. What gaps have you identified in your skill set? E. What further development do you need - how does this relate to your professional development/career goals? F. How have you evaluated your work - what have you felt proud of? Have you been able to be self-critical?
Having made it to the second half of my course; I am proud to say, I have survived! So much has happened since joining the course that would have caused me to give up but I didn't! I found strengths within me I didn't know I had. I had to deal with isolation and lockdown due to covid-19, I had to mourn my Grandmother's passing alone and away from my family. I had to show up for online classes bright and early with enthusiasm a hunger for knowledge. I had to work in online groups despite our differences to achieve our learning outcomes so as to hand in the work on time and finally, I had to sit down with myself each day and listen to each and every single thought that tried to make itself present in my life. Through all those experiences, I have come to learn of my different sides. Sides of myself that stand in for me, proud and loud when I need them. I have become a better listener, more goal oriented and I have come to appreciate the unseen hard work of others; because especially now during these trying times... when none of us are near each other, all we have is faith and hope that everyone is doing their part and their best to get things done. and become more creative and consistent with my work. The he best part is; I have become a broader deep thinker! The course and my surrounding has pushed my thought process through hoops and loops, made me more inquisitive and at the same time given me more insight to information I knew so little about. I feel the need to research more and I'm always on a need to know. These are definitely strengths I believe will help me push through the twist and turns of life a little stronger and bolder. My extrovert self too helped me through this tough times, as I will email my tutors if there was a concept I did not understand. I would also reach out to my course mates for some encouragement and idea exchange. As for the creative side; I would find myself always open and willing to create even if it meant helping out my friends in different universities by sharing my created knowledge whenever I could.
Within my strengths I have definitely noticed a thing or two that need improvement. These include not taking more time to myself for personal care in and evaluation every once in a while. The other is, inability to trust the process fully because of how long it takes to receive results. I am learning slowly but surely, that a moment to breathe and take a walk through nature as I let my mind wander through life's wonder, is a rejuvenating experience that I need to share with myself often. Through this, I will be able to declutter all the negative thoughts and awaken a new reassuring peace and faith in within me and in the progress of my work. At the moment; the knowledge I'm receiving each day is only opening doors to new possibilities for my future career and goals. It is also showing me my boundless capabilities to adjust and finally break free from any challenges I may come across. I am proud of my journey thus far and will strive each day to become a better version of myself, so that only the light that shines within pierce ever so brightly through all my work and deeds. Please find attached pictures from my walks and previous assignment layouts spread out throughout this document.
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