12 Aug, 2015

Try This: Discover Your True Color

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T18:48:01-04:00August 12th, 2015|Categories: Miscellaneous|Tags: Capacity Building, Try This|0 Comments

During my college resident assistant orientation, we went through multiple leadership and staff building exercises. One assessment that stood out most was the True Colors™ assessment.

True Colors™ * is a personality test developed by Don Lowry in 1978. Originally created to categorize four basic learning styles to identify the strengths and challenges of these core personality types, True Colors™ helps us to understand different personality temperaments.

The concept behind True Colors™ is we aren’t put into the box of one, with the understanding that our personality traits are fluid and can adjust based on our environment or circumstances. True Colors is a way to understand the how our behaviors and motivations relate to our own to increase camaraderie, improve communication, and limit potential conflict.

This was particularly useful when I started working with my fellow RAs. When we took True Colors, we were excited to see that we each embodied one of the four personality types: Orange, Gold, Green, or Blue. After a while, we would refer to each other by color only, and when conflict arose or when we came together for meetings and to plan activities for our residents, we were able to understand why someone made a particular decision as well as how to work together.

True Colors™ can be used by college residential staff, supervisors, teachers, and more. I would venture to say that it’s particularly useful for school social workers, counselors, teachers, and anyone else that works with younger people as it can help you tailor your lesson plans and weekly counseling sessions based on the color of the young people you’re working with.

One thing worth mentioning: While you may dominate in a particular color, there’s no better or worse color. Each color is design to compliment the others, and you can flow in and out of your dominant color throughout your lifetime. Before reading on, I highly recommend you take the assessment. Here’s the official link to purchase True Colors™ for your staff or students. It includes the assessment as well as a detailed report of your colors by ranking and cover different areas where your color can come into play such as an work environment, school, childhood, time management, and how others may perceive you. Here’s a sample report. (And no, I’m not affiliated with True Colors™.)

If you want to take the exam without purchasing, check out this assessment based on True Colors developed by Lone Star College, or the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill’s version created by the university’s Department of Campus Recreation.

Once you take the assessment, come back and read more about the colors:

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5 Aug, 2015

Why Do Ice Breakers Suck So Much? (6 Tips for Bypassing the Awkwardness)

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2023-10-09T12:31:25-04:00August 5th, 2015|Categories: Workshop, Program, & Curriculum Design|Tags: Facilitation, Workshops|0 Comments

I don’t like ice breakers.

From the first workshop I remember attending to the workshops I attend now, I don’t like ice breakers.

I don’t even like including ice breakers in my own workshops. When you’re done developing your workshops and you’re all excited, nothing let’s you down quicker than remembering you forgot to include an ice breaker.

“Tell us one interesting fact about yourself”. “Choose an adjective that describes you using the initial of your first name”. “Two truths and a lie”. Announce that you’re about to start an ice breaker activity, and be prepared for the deep sighs and low groans.

(And everyone knows your two truths are lies too.)

I thought it was because I’m an introvert. There’s nothing more anxiety-provoking than sitting in a circle and waiting for your turn. Your heart begins to beat faster at the thought of speaking in front of strangers, hoping that your voice doesn’t crack or that you stutter. For me, I don’t like being the center of attention (which is odd as a workshop facilitator). But it’s not an introvert thing. Even the extroverted of the extroverts I know don’t care for ice breakers.

One of the reasons we hate ice breakers is because they feel forced. Participants come to your workshops already with the mindset that they’ll be interacting with each other in some capacity. The difference between an exercise within a workshop versus an ice breaker is that the interactions within an exercise can be more natural and allows participants to talk to one another without the icky discomfort that comes with ice breakers.

Whether you like ice breakers or not, they’re here to stay. Here are some tips on creating ice breakers that make sense and are enjoyable (at least as much as an ice breaker can be enjoyable):

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1 Jul, 2015

Try This: How Does Health Care Look Through the Reproductive Health, Rights, & Justice Frameworks?

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T18:47:08-04:00July 1st, 2015|Categories: Equity & Justice|Tags: reproductive justice, Try This|0 Comments

In March, I began consulting with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Bureau of Maternal, Infant and Reproductive Health around engaging community stakeholders on health equity and reproductive justice. I was initially intrigued because this was the first time I’ve heard of a city health department being interested in incorporating the reproductive justice framework into their work. Last week, the DOHMH held a community gathering of 65 local organizations on how to engage the community in this work, and I assisted in introducing the reproductive justice framework to those in the room who were not familiar with it. It was a great opportunity to assist the DOHMH in utilizing the reproductive justice framework in their work as they connect with local providers, community groups and activists, and I look forward to working with the DOHMH as they become more engaged with the New York City community.

During my presentation, I broke down the differences between the reproductive health, rights, and justice frameworks into two using Forward Together’s groundbreaking report A New Vision for Advancing Our Movement for Reproductive Health, Reproductive Rights, and Reproductive Justice (2005):

Reproductive Health: A service delivery model that focuses on addressing the reproductive health needs of women. The people affected are patients in need of services and/or education, and the key players are people who work as, or are allied with, medical professionals, community and public health educators, health researchers, and health service providers.

Reproductive Rights: A legal/advocacy based model that focuses on the protection of an individual’s right to access to reproductive health services. The people affected are individuals who are encouraged to actively participate in the political process, and the key players are people who work as, or are allied with, advocates, legal experts, policymakers, and elected officials.

Reproductive Justice: A community organizing model that focuses on intersectionality as a way to organize communities to change structural inequalities. The people affected are community members who are organized to lead against reproductive oppression and other injustices, and the key players are people who work as, or are allied with reproductive rights, reproductive health, and social justice and other justice organizations.

To go further, I used a health topic to demonstrate how it could look under each of these frameworks. Let’s take a look at an example on minors consenting to HIV treatment in New York State:

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17 Jun, 2015

Here’s How to Create Your Potential Client Questionnaire

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T18:45:07-04:00June 17th, 2015|Categories: Consulting|Tags: clients, consulting|0 Comments

Note June 2019: I’ve updated my client questionnaire. Take a peek here.

Starting off on the right footing with a potential client is important. I do this is by using potential client questionnaires: one for potential clients that are interested in my program evaluation consulting services and one for people who want to invite me to be a speaker for their event. Today, I’m going to focus on the questionnaire I’ve developed for individuals who are interested in my program evaluation consulting services.

A client questionnaire helps you get a snapshot of where your potential client currently is, what problem they’re hoping you can solve, and how they see themselves using the final product in the future. A client questionnaire also helps you to gain clarity on what the client needs, so as to avoid repeatedly going back to the client throughout the project to for more information.

I use a client questionnaire as a preliminary way of connecting with the client. Some people are good at responding to a request, getting on the phone, and taking it from there. I like to at least know a little about the organization/agency, their experience with working with external evaluators, and what programs or services they want me to assist with before I have contact with them.

I also use the client questionnaire as part of my client connecting phase before I start a project:

Client questionnaire
Phone conversation
Face to face meeting (this can be done in person if the client in located near you, or over Skype, Google Hangout, and the like)
If all goes well, review and sign contract
Get to work

If you don’t have a client questionnaire, I highly recommend you create one. You don’t need any elaborate software. Mine was created using Google Docs. If you don’t know what questions to ask, here are the questions from my questionnaire. Feel free to use the questions that work best for you, and update it after every couple of clients to address any recurring issues you’re having:

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10 Jun, 2015

Ask Nicole: How I Passed the LMSW Exam on the First Try

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T18:44:35-04:00June 10th, 2015|Categories: Public Health & Social Work|Tags: Ask Nicole, Social Work|6 Comments

Here’s a question I recently got from a Raise Your Voice reader:

Hi Nicole! I am currently studying to take the licensed master of social work [LMSW] exam in my state. I’m a little nervous because I’ve been out of graduate school for a few years now. While I’ve been working as a social worker since then, I feel so far removed from studying that the thought of actually taking this exam brings up a lot of anxiety for me. Can you share what you did to take the LMSW exam and pass it on the first try?

Before I give my advice on preparing for the LMSW exam, I want to share the process I underwent that led me to pass on my first try. As a disclaimer, this is what *I* did. In no way am I’m advocating for anyone to do the same.

I graduated from my social work graduate program in May 2010, and I took the LMSW exam on March 31, 2014. I’m mentioning this for one important reason: While I do recommend taking the exam as soon as you’re eligible to take it (which depends on your state. There are some states that will allow you to take the exam during the final month of your graduate program), it is possible to take this exam and pass it years after graduation.

Things I Considered Prior to Registering For and Taking the Exam:

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Try This: Discover Your True Color

Why Do Ice Breakers Suck So Much? (6 Tips for Bypassing the Awkwardness)

Try This: How Does Health Care Look Through the Reproductive Health, Rights, & Justice Frameworks?

Here’s How to Create Your Potential Client Questionnaire

Ask Nicole: How I Passed the LMSW Exam on the First Try

Things I Considered Prior to Registering For and Taking the Exam:

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