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Natalie
My name is Natalie, I started this blog as a Newly Qualified Social Worker working with adults. I have now progressed to a level 3 Social Worker and want to continue sharing my experiences.

Self Awareness

 

I am probably not going to be putting a new blog up for a couple of weeks. I have volunteered for a project that is going to keep me pretty busy.

I find that I am definitely the person that volunteers to do stuff. I'm the one that speaks up in meetings. I am the one that provides answering in training courses or classes.

I do not see any of these as a bad thing but I am also aware of how this can stop other people having opportunities. If I get there first to volunteer or give the answer other people do not have the chance. Luckily I feel like I am pretty good at allowing silence when I am on a visit. I understand that some people need longer to process so I give them the chance to do so before commenting further. I think that when I am in a class or a course part of me feels sorry for the person running it and I don't want them to feel like nobody is interested in what they have to say.

On the other side I have definitely had feedback that I need to step back at times and let other people have a turn or a try. It feels like such a tricky balance to get because I am aware that I do this so I try and wait to give those opportunities but it feels like others do not choose to take it. I know that some of this is because I am more extroverted. I have a bigger personality than other people and depending on who I am in a group with I can take over.

This is not new information to me and is something I try to be aware of. I think self-awareness is important in our role because when helping other people there can potentially be a lot of clashes in views or values. We have to know what we can set aside and what we absolutely cannot accept and need to speak up on.

I saw something today that had a list of twenty or so sentences to test your values. Some talking about working with specific people such as sex offenders whereas others mentions actions that you may have to take such as removing the child of an asylum seeker. Some of these I will never need to worry about because I have no intention of working in children's services but others had me questioning my values and what I would be comfortable with.

In terms of the positives of being the person who volunteers I get to take opportunities that some people never even get offered. I get to be involved in projects, work on certain aspects of my teams work and learn new things. Although I have been qualified a while due to Maternity Leave I am in that weird limbo land where I know what I am doing but I also don't. I know how processes worked but not necessarily how they work now. I know what was in the local area but not as much anymore. I have been in my team for a while but am still an ASYE. It is a strange place to be because I think of myself as a long term Social Worker but in title I am still a Newly Qualified even though I graduated over 2 years ago.

I think the important thing to think about when doing anything in life is how will it improve me as a person or what I can provide for the people I work with. It is okay to admit that we don't know something or that you aren't the best person for a particular situation. Showing awareness of your own weaknesses or difficulties takes a lot of reflection and a lot of confidence in who you are. It makes you a better Social Worker and in turn gives people a better experience when working with you.

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