Two Things I Didn’t Know
The first thing I learned about the social work practice while at Mille Lacs County is that not all situations will play out how you want them to. Of course I knew that in a general sense; however, there were many situations that I was a part of and/or heard about at the county where things didn’t go down how they were expected to, wanted to, or maybe even should have. This job can be unpredictable with clients as well as with judges and that is something that we just have to cope with because not everything is in our control. I found it hard not being able to control some situations but I learned that a lot of things are out of reach and sometimes that is okay.
The second thing I learned was that as a social …show more content…
I have had a passion for helping people since as far back as I can remember and that passion has only heightened with my schooling and experience at the county. I believe I am a very open-minded, empathetic, patient, and hard working person; additionally, I believe I can kick butt if I have to. At the county I realized that a lot of situations don’t call for an “easy to get a lot with person”, rather, a tough person who needs to kick some butt and help get people in a different place. I found this especially in child protection. So with that, I believe that I have the right passion for the work and also the qualities that a social worker may need. Overall, I have known I wanted to be a social worker since my sophomore/junior year in high school and I can’t help but feel so much excitement with the opportunities that I have had and that are arising, as well as with how close I am to finally getting to do what I …show more content…
Being at Mille Lacs County, we worked with a lot of Native American’s and I actually have had a decent amount of education on that specific culture; however, it also made me realize how much more I could know, especially through conversations with the individuals I was working with. So not only do I want to grow in my cultural competence with Native Americans, but with all different cultures that are not my own. I think that my peers and professors can help with this in a great way. I have learned so much already, especially in SW 345, and have faith that that will continue with my education and passed down knowledge from my professors. Additionally, I have learned and will continue to learn from my peers while hearing their personal experiences as well as them passing their knowledge to me. I find the biggest thing when learning about culture is listening to people’s stories and experiences and really paying attention to the details and that is something I plan to continue to