Assignment 2: Portfolio of Visions – Family and Home

As you complete the assignments for your Portfolio of Visions, you will have the opportunity to consider in depth how you feel, act, and dream about specific areas in your life.

This week, you will complete your first subject area for the Key Life Areas section of your portfolio, “Family and Home.”

This will allow you to reflect on the goals you hope to achieve within your family.

Be sure to review the template document found in the Portfolio of Visions area of the Course Information page.

A.   “Family and Home” Key Life Area B.   Goals C.   Objectives D.   Action Statements

Note: This Assignment will also be part of section in your Final Project.

Refer to the Portfolio of Visions, Proposal Project, and Research Project areas of the Course Information page for appropriate handouts/templates, assignment details, and submission requirements.

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APA Formatted Title Page

Portfolio of Visions

Life Mission Statement

Develop a life mission statement for yourself. A mission statement captures the essence of where you want to go and what it means to exist. It is a very general statement about what you want to do with your life. The question at the end of your life will be, "Did I accomplish my mission in life?" It may be helpful to start your mission statement with "My life mission statement is…"

Sample Life Mission Statement

My life mission statement is to assist individuals and organizations to maximize their potentialities: Here is an example of a life mission statement:

“My life mission statement is to live with integrity and empathy, become a positive force in the lives of others and apply my gifts of intelligence, charisma, and optimism to cultivate the growth and worth within the lives of individuals around the world.”

Life Vision Statement (minimum 1 page)

A vision statement expands on the mission statement and further elaborates upon how the mission will become actualized.

Sample Life Vision Statement (minimum 1 page)

“My life vision is to provide influence toward creating a world where an individual has the ability to contribute with their full potential; where each person applies their intrinsic genius and leadership to foster outstanding value, peace, and worth. My life will be rich with laughter, family, friends, compassion, and learning. I will strive to live each day as though I had the power and inspiration essential to influence the world. Through genuinely listening to and serving others, I will strive to learn new philosophies and gain a deeper understanding for myself and those that surround me. I will seek to increase mastery over life’s trials and hardships through expanding my awareness and influence. Throughout my life, I will act in ways that allow me to rise above and become a beacon of light for those who elect to follow or lead along my journey. Through my adulthood, I will trust my dreams, visions, and aspirations to ensure I never become a prisoner of fear. I will remain humble and use my own personal victories and accomplishments to create value for others. I strive to continue to seek new and innovative sources of knowledge and for learning and growth. I will continue my evolution as a spiritual being and never lose sight of the fact that I have the power to create; create my own reality and my own environment that can be occupied with each of my dreams and desires. When my end days come, I want to be able to say, "I may not have reached the Moon, but I have most definitely landed on a star.” I choose to make a difference in this world.”

My Walden Path (minimum 3-4 pages)

Begin by reviewing all of your journals written while participating in the Walden University MSL program. How has this experience evolved your theory of leadership? How does this evolved theory inform your life mission? Draw upon your "End of Course Reflection Journals" to discuss how you have changed and how your leadership has changed.

Provide a detailed description of the most important things that you have learned during your time in the MSL program. Recall some of your expectations upon entering Walden University and describe to what extent those expectations have been met. How has your MSL experience shaped who you have become? How does who you have become enable you to more fully live your life mission and vision?

Final Stages of Life (minimum 3-4 pages

Address each of the following questions as you what you hope to have accomplished throughout your life:

· How do you see your final stages of life?

· What do you want to have accomplished by the end of your life?

· As you consider your final stages of life and the possibility of having more free time, how do you see yourself using your free time?

· What do hope to have learned about life in general?

· What is truly important to you when you think about creating a meaningful life for yourself and those you love? It is not about what we have but what we do with our lives that will bring us the most joy. You can have all of the toys in the world and be truly miserable.

Key Life Areas:

Goals

A goal is something that you want to achieve. It is the "what you want to do." Goals can be relatively short term (1 year) or much longer in duration. Because of its general nature, a goal is not always measurable in and of itself, but provides direction and focus for more specific statements known as objects and action steps. The farther away in time the goal is away from this moment, the less we can see in terms of how to accomplish it. For example, if you reflect back upon your decision path to attend graduate school, the farther away you were from making it happen, the less you knew about how it was going to happen. As you moved closer towards making your decision, it became less a statement about "I want to attend graduate school" and more a statement of "I want to attend graduate school at Walden University."

There are many key areas in life that afford you opportunities to become successful. Write at least one goal for each key life area. Include goals for 1 year, 5 years, 15 years, and 20 years:

Sample Mental and Education One–Year Goal:

To develop a tribal leadership program for indigenous people around the world that is steeped in indigenous traditions and is aligned with their spiritual practices.

Action Statements

An action statement is just what it implies. It is a statement of intended actions in order to achieve a goal. It helps us to outline what we have to do in order to accomplish something of interest.

Sample Action Statement

In order to create a tribal leadership program, I will find a platform and the resources to create this program. Since I do not have the resources on my own, I will find like-minded people who share this vision to help me fulfill my dream of helping indigenous people improve their lives. I want to accomplish this within five years.

Objectives

Objectives are measurable statements that are aligned with individual goals. The statement has a definite time frame associated with it and often includes specific numbers.

Sample One–Year Objective:

I will write a proposal by July 31, 20__ for funding the pilot tribal leadership program at one American Indian reservation.

Use the format described above to write your Portfolio of Visions. Write at least one goal and action statement for each key life area. Write at least one objective for each goal during the first year only.

Listed below are the several key areas:

I. Family and Home

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

II. Financial and Career

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

III. Spiritual and Ethical

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

IV. Physical and Health

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

V. Social and Cultural

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

VI. Mental and Educational

Establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 5 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 15 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

· 20 years

Goal:

Action Statement:

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Objective:

Final Paper Outline

Life Mission Statement

Life Vision Statement

My Walden Path

Key Life Areas:

· Family and Home

· Financial and Career

· Spiritual and Ethical

· Physical and Health

· Social and Cultural

· Mental and Educational

For each area establish at least one Goal and one Action Step for the following time periods:

· 1 year

· 5 years

· 15 years

· 20 years

In addition, also include an Objective for each of your 1-year goals.

Final Stages of Life

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You must have an APA formatted title page with every application.

Capstone Research Project

Chapter 1 –Introduction/Overview (week 3)

The Importance of Introductions/Overview:

Setting the stage for a study, the introduction establishes the issue or concern leading to the research by conveying information about a research problem . Unfortunately, too many authors of research studies do not clearly identify the research problem, leaving the reader to decide for himself or herself the importance of the issue that motivates a study.

Further the research problem is often confused with the research questions—those questions that the investigator would like answered in order to understand or explain the problem.

The introduction needs to create reader interest in the topic, establish the problem that leads to the study, place the study within a larger context of the scholarly literature, and reach out to a specific audience.

You will write an introductory overview providing the reader with sufficient facts about the subject of study. If the study is about an organizational or community issue, then you will describe the dynamics, including how long the problem has been occurring. You should provide enough specific and credible scholarly data from your search of the literature so that the reader can fully understand the circumstances and dynamics with which you are working.

Chapter 2 – Problem Statement (week 3)

The Importance of the Problem Statement:

When researchers begin their studies, they start with one or more paragraphs to convey the specific research problems or issues. They also present in the first sentence information to create reader interest in the sentences that follow the first sentence, authors identify a distinct research problem that needs to be addressed.

In applied social science research, problems arrive from issues, difficulties, and current practices. The research problem is the issue that exists in the literature, in theory, or in practice that leads to a need for the study. The research problem in a study begins to become clear when the researcher asks, “What is the need for this study?” or “What problem influenced the need to undertake the study?”

You will write a precise explanation of the specific problem to be solved. While symptoms often lead to the discovery of more deeply rooted problems and they are important to identify, it is imperative that you differentiate between the symptoms and the problem or you will be offering the wrong solutions, which may be fatal in the real world.

For example, while it is common to say that "the problem is that morale is low" this is only symptomatic of a much larger problem such as a failure of leadership. Another example is saying that "the problem is gang violence in my community and it is on the rise." This too is symptomatic of a larger problem such as a scarcity of resources or a sense of hopelessness. Therefore, be sure to not only discuss the symptom(s) which help the reader understand the larger framework of the problem, but to also clearly identify the problem that is to be solved.

Chapter 3 – Purpose/Significance (week 4)

The Purpose Statement:

Whereas introductions focus on the problem leading to the study, the Purpose Statement establishes the direction for the research. In fact, the purpose statement is the most important statement in an entire research study. It orients the reader to the central intent of the study, and from it, all other aspects of the research follow. In other words, the Purpose Statement indicates why you want to do the study and what you intend to accomplish and is the central, controlling idea in a study.

Clearly state what the purpose of the study is and explain the study's significance. The significance is addressed by discussing how the study adds to the theoretical body of knowledge in your field or expertise.

Explain how your research makes an original contribution to the body of knowledge. You will address the significance of the study and its importance to your organization or community.

It is especially critical that this chapter be well developed. Without a clearly defined purpose and strong theoretical grounding, your Capstone project is fundamentally flawed from the outset.

Chapter 4 – Research Question(s) (week 4)

Identify at least one, but no more than two, research questions. The research questions will guide and shape the rest of your paper. Specifically connect the research questions to the Problem Statement (in Chapter 2) by elaborating on how you think the two are related.

Begin the research questions with the words “what” or “how” to convey an open and emerging design. Focus on a single phenomenon or concept. Use open-ended questions without reference to the literature or theory unless otherwise indicated.

Chapter 5 – Methods (week 5)

In this section, describe the methods you used in order to solve the problem. If you used interviews, surveys, or observations, then describe those procedures in this section and include a description of how you conducted them.

Include detailed measures you used to protect any participants who might participate in surveys and/or interviews.

If you did not conduct interviews, surveys, or observations, explain what you would do in the future if they were needed to complete your study.

Also, include a thorough description of your literature search techniques (website links you are using, libraries, accessed, etc.).

Chapter 6 – Literature Review (week 6)

Use the literature to help you explain the phenomena under study. In this section, provide a summary of the literature and discuss how it works in light of the problem you are trying to resolve. This chapter, however, should not merely string together what other researchers have found. Rather, you should discuss and analyze the body of knowledge with the ultimate goal of determining what is known and is not known about the topic. The literature review thus describes and analyzes previous research on the topic

This should be an exhaustive study of the most pertinent literature on the subject. It will strengthen the paper by providing some historical context for the evolution of the theory if this applies. It will also strengthen your paper if articles can be found that run contrary to the major theories being presented. It is important for the student to remain completely objective when writing this paper to ensure that the student is not working to believe something to be true that otherwise is not. For example, some take the position that individuals can “lead” themselves, yet a fundamental definition of leadership is that it involves followers and without followers you do not have leadership.

Therefore, the proposition that people can lead themselves appears to be false. If, however, your position is that you do believe that a person can indeed lead "self," then it is incumbent upon you to find literature in the refereed journal resources that would support this contention. If you are not able to find literature that supports, your argument then you must clearly indicate this as part of your findings.

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Chapter 7 – Findings and Conclusions (week 7)

Describe your findings in this section. What did you learn from your exhaustive study of the problem? What would be your anticipated results of your findings if you had used surveys, interviews, or other tools? What did the literature suggest is the most appropriate way to solve your social impact problem? What are the implications for future research? What conclusions are you able to draw from your research?

Chapter 8 – Recommendations (week 7)

Describe your recommendations as though you were making a presentation to a meeting of senior managers, a city council, a community planning board, a board of directors, or government officials. What have you learned from your study of the problem that provides the basis for making recommendations to solve the social impact problem?

Appendices (optional and if used include in week 7)

Include in this section copies of interview forms or survey instruments used as part of your study. Do not include full reports that you have cited or an abundance of reference materials. Label each item separately according to APA guidelines and rules.

Acknowledgments (optional and if included, include in week 7)

In this section, acknowledge any individual, group, or organization without whose help your paper could not have been written. While it is always nice to acknowledge the support of family members who provide tacit and emotional support for us to complete our education, this section is to acknowledge people who provided actual support and without whose help your paper could not have been written (e.g., librarians, special advisors, consultants, organizations, etc.). Therefore, do not include family members unless they provided substantial input into the creation of this paper.

List of Cited References (ongoing between weeks 3-7)

In this area, include only a list of all of the cited references you used. Be sure to list all of your refereed journals, books, monographs, reports, etc., as well as any websites you used to gather material.

Annotated Bibliography (ongoing between weeks 3-6)

Provide a list of references along with the annotations (see instructions in Doc Sharing if you need a reminder) you used during this course. You will begin including your annotated bibliographies (5 at a time) starting in week three. You will add five different annotated bibliographies each week for at least a total of 20 different sources.

Bibliography (optional and included in week 7)

Provide a list of any source material you reviewed but did not use in this section. Include the links of websites that you visited but did not use. This will become a helpful resource for you should you decide to revisit this social impact issue after graduation. It is also a very helpful tool for other researchers interested in the same social impact subject.

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