I do not think that I have enjoyed a single group project during my time here at CSU. I am all about being part of a team and working together to accomplish things; but when it comes to my school work, grades, and time, I simply do not like to deal with it. You have to coordinate with people who you haven’t likely met yet and who have completely different working styles than you. Now, that may be the whole idea behind grouping people together for projects, but that doesn’t make it awesome.

My style

I personally am extremely laid back when it comes to group projects. I used to be the person who did all of the work and picked up the laziness of my group members, but then I decided to switch it up. I have yet to get this feedback, but sometimes I think that I may be considered a slacker in comparison to my average group member. A great number of people I have worked with get their portion of the project done plenty of time before it’s due. Me? Like many of the other things that I work on, I usually wait till the last minute. I often wonder how my waiting till the eleventh hour to get my part done makes my group members feel.

Something tells me that no one really cares about my working style once the grades come in. I may procrastinate, but I always get my part done, and in excellent quality too. So that is kind of why I don’t consider myself a slacker or a weak link. Now I have definitely worked with some of those in my college time. It amazes me how some people seriously will not do anything to contribute, like at all.

Who are you?

That is my favorite question. Part of knowing who you are is understanding how you work in relation to others and with others. Are you the over-achieving group member who does the work for everyone, or are you perhaps the more laid back group member who just does what you’re told? It’s important to know how you work and to refine your process and adapt to different circumstances. I don’t think people are going anywhere anytime soon, so if you can’t beat ‘em, work on a group project with ‘em.