GLAD and Motivating the Middle!

GLAD and Motivating the Middle

This year I was lucky enough to take part in GLAD here at Bridgewater State. Admittedly when I was first introduced to GLAD, I was a little nervous but I was also extremely excited and ready to learn about being a better leader. Looking back on GLAD now I can say wholeheartedly that I have learned so much and I feel that I have been able to grow so much.

When we were assigned to read Motivating the Middle, I was admittedly very interested and intrigued to see what this author ideas the author would have to offer. As I started reading, I definitely found myself resonating with the idea of "thirds". Although I had never heard of this before in terms of breaking down an organization, however, it is something that makes so much sense.

Thinking about the top, middle, and bottom thirds, I began to think about my organization and who fits into what category. I also began to think about myself in terms of which third I see myself in. After reading through the book, I felt that I could see myself moving between two different "thirds". Knowing how I view myself in terms of my organization, I began to wonder how others in my organization viewed me. In having this reflection myself, I definitely think everyone who gets the chance should read this book and have this self-reflection. We can all be top third members at different times. We can all be middle third members. We can also be bottom third members at times. In being able to recognize the attributes of each third in ourselves, we can work towards being a better member within our organization. Obviously, nobody is perfect and it can be hard at times to balance school work, work, Greek Life, and other commitments. However, even just making the taking the time to see how you are as a member is a step in the right direction to being a more aware member.

I just believe that Motivating the Middle provides the perfect way to understand the dynamics of an organization in a way that doesn't put down specific groups of individuals because they act a certain way or put another group of individuals on a pedestal. The author of this book is able to accurately recognize how each third is important to an organization and recognize how these thirds work together to create a balance amongst them.

Without a doubt, I would recommend this book to anyone who was interested in reading it!