Blog #10: My Major Analysis

My Music Major Fits…

…My Personality:

I am very extroverted--I love to be around people, and feel very lonely when I am not.  I also love to listen to music, to play music, to sing music, pretty much anything music.  There are very few songs I don't like, secular and sacred alike.

…My Communication Style:

I tend to speak with an authoritative tone that is not overbearing, but instead comforting.  I also speak eloquently and use gestures to enhance my message.

…My Calling:

I was called to use my gifts and abilities in music for ministry at the age of 17 in Yakima, WA at a youth conference.  I originally applied as a music major to Northwest University, but after one semester decided it was best to go for the general music major.  I made this decision because I didn't want what my diploma said to affect what kind of job I got--if I decided to work in a school, I could work in a school.

…My Aspirations, Goals for the Future:

In line with the calling God has upon my life, I plan to graduate in one semester's time.  In January I will begin the search for a church in need of a full time music director.  While I would prefer to stay in the greater Seattle area, I realize this might not be possible and will look for jobs out-of-state as well.  If I can't find a job before I graduate, I will look for a job either on-campus in Admissions or something similar to that, or possibly a job in the area.  I would continue to search for a full-time music director position somewhere.

Blog #9: Mock Interview Reflection

1. How did you prepare for the mock interview?

For the mock interview, I answered most of the 34 interview questions that Professor Gillespie posted in detail, as a way to plan out what information my answers would consist of.  I also chose some highlights I wanted to make sure I covered, such as my summer work as a music director at a camp, my work at Bethany Christian Assembly in their music department, etc.

2. Did you research the organization or business which you were interviewing for? What was their mission statement? What values does that organization or business advance? Did you research the field or the specific job to anticipate answers? How did you adapt?

I did not research an organization because this was a mock interview and I wasn't necessarily focused on any one church in my interview.  I tried to be as general in my answers in terms of not letting my denominational opinions and such show.  At one point toward the end of my interview, Professor Gillespie asked an "illegal" question about my political point of view.  It was asked in a directed question format, where the interviewer was hoping to get the answer he was looking for.  He told me the church is United Church of Christ, and they support Obama, then asked if I would be okay with that?  I felt pretty good about my answer, except for the part that I wasn't supposed to reveal my own personal opinions of being a Republican.

3. What did you do well for the mock interview?

I think I did well at containing nerves.  I also felt pretty good about my body language--I made a point to lean forward and be engaged in a conversation of sorts with the interviewer.  I also kept an upbeat, positive tone to my voice.  I felt really prepared for the interview in terms of what I wanted to say, and I think that showed with how at-ease I was in the interview.

4. What could you do next time you interview to improve?

Not say "um" 91 times in a 10-minute interview….  I would also be able to improve by researching the company prior to the interview.

3 Interview Questions

TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF...
Well, I am currently a senior at Northwest University in Kirkland, where I am studying music and also minoring in communication. I'm involved with Northwest Choralons, which is our ministry choir that travels to various churches, schools and other venues during the spring to sing and worship with people. I'm very excited for this final year of Choralons because I will be singing a solo for the song "Forever Reign", you may have heard it originally done by Hillsong. Choralons is the highlight of my time at Northwest, because I am so passionate about ministry through song and the power that is behind that group. I see myself directing a similar choir in the near future, whether that be a youth choir or adult choir. Other than Choralons, I also participate in vocal jazz where I have been given a few solo opportunities, and I play piano and sing for two different Chapel worship teams. I also currently work for the music department at Bethany Christian Assembly in Everett as a department assistant, and occasionally get the chance to lead worship there. So many of the tools I use for organization and direction in music I learned from my experience at Bethany. I also get calls to lead worship at different churches or camps occasionally. King Mountain Church in Bellingham has asked me to lead once a month, and I am happy to do so. Something I've learned about myself is I love to lead worship for camps--there's something about teaching students songs about Jesus and the opportunity to effect their lives through music. I worked all of last summer at Island Lake Camp in Poulsbo, which is connected with Crista Ministries, as the music director. I led worship every night for a full two months, and learned so much during that time. Crista has actually invited me to come back and lead worship for a few weekend camps throughout the school year, which is a lot of fun. I share all of these awesome experiences with you to hopefully convey to you how much I feel I can bring to this job, if you give me the opportunity. Every single musical thing I've done has shaped me in different ways, and I know that I am well-versed and knowledgeable enough for this job.

WHAT ACCOMPLISHMENT HAS GIVEN YOU THE GREATEST SATISFACTION?
As I mentioned before, I was the music director all last summer at Island Lake Camp. I think this in an accomplishment that has given me the greatest satisfaction. It was at this camp where I really had a chance to grow in my ability to lead worship, to experience what it is like to lead a group of energetic teenagers in fun songs and worship songs. I grew at least ten times more confident in my character and comfortable in how I interacted with everyone from the stage. I expanded my ability to effectively direct a team of musicians as to how each song needed to play out. This was the experience of a lifetime for me.

WHAT LED YOU TO CHOOSE YOUR COLLEGE MAJOR?
I was originally planning to major in Communications, as I thought I was supposed to be in radio or television. At a youth conference October of 2009, however, I received God's calling upon my life to study music ministry. I started out as a Music Ministry major, but changed to General Music because I wanted to be able to get into secular places as possibly a teacher or undercover missionary, or whatever God called me to do. The only difference between the ministry and general music majors is the 14 credits of extra Bible classes you have to take as a ministry major, and a couple specific music classes relating to church music ministry. I took the classes related to music ministry, such as a year-long internship at Bethany and a Worship Team Methods and Sound & Lighting class. I also decided on a minor in Communications in order to learn some about the trade so I had some basic knowledge if I ever needed to get a part-time job on the side, and also so those classes could influence my future career as a music director of a church.

My Resume

It is my pleasure to submit to you my resume, which you may find online by clicking here.
(to access a PDF for print, click here)

Additionally, if you would like to view my LinkedIn professional profile, you may do so by clicking here.

Summary of Personal Strengths Transferrable Skills

My Top Personal Strengths:

• Administer
• Artistic
• Communicate
• Coordinate
• Create
• Design
• Details
• Energetic
• Entertain
• Execute
• Facilitate
• Follow  Through
• Human Relations
• Improvise
• Listen
• Motivate
• Plan
• Practical
• Perform

Good Experience #3

I am the kind of person who immensely enjoys driving.  I will opt to drive in almost every situation, not always because I don't trust someone else to drive but purely because I prefer to be in control of the vehicle, and I love the sense of freedom driving a car gives me.  Road trips are right up my alley.

One particularly memorable road trip/vacation for me happened last May of 2011.  I decided I would take a few days to drive down to Long Beach, WA, to meet up with my grandparents who own a beach house there.  This was my first time driving that long of a distance alone, and I felt up for the adventure.  The plan was for me to drive down Thursday, stay the first night alone in the house, and the rest of the family would come Friday afternoon.

Words can't even begin to describe the array of emotions I experienced that day.  I was thrilled to drive the distance to Long Beach, I felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility when staying alone in the house and having to figure out my own dinner, and I felt an incredible sense of peace.  It was a nice time for me to reflect on life, on God, and on my past couple years of school.  I was able to remove myself from society for that short period of time, and subsequently I took a walk along the beach, ordered pizza, and ate it while watching a movie.  It might sound like something small to many people, but it was something very good for me to experience.

Good Experience #2

For me, there is no greater joy than being able to worship my Creator through song.  I love to use this talent He has given me as a way to give right back to Him.  It is a passion of mine to lead others in truly powerful worship services, and to see them find freedom of expression through musical worship.  It is the calling God has placed on my life, and I am excited for what He is going to do through me.

When I came to Northwest University, I was pretty insecure and quickly became aware that I was not the most amazing musician on campus.  In all humility, I was the most musical of my small church that I came from, and saw no need to get any better--after all, I was at the top.  But when I came to Northwest, I quickly realized I had a lot of work to do in order to grow in my talent.

That being said, I was pretty sure I wouldn't be good enough to get on the Chapel worship teams.  I looked around and saw so many people who could play or sing so much better than me and I felt very insignificant, almost invisible, and a little dejected.  That being said, you can imagine my surprise when I opened an email to discover I had successfully auditioned onto a team!  I felt overwhelmed with happiness and excitement, so much that I couldn't stop telling everyone the good news.  This only confirmed God's calling for my life, and over the past 3 years I have continued to play on Chapel worship teams, growing more every day in so many ways.

Nonverbal Communication

Gated communities are becoming something that is desired in many countries around the world, including China, Australia, Brazil and Great Britain.  The primary attraction of such a living environment is the protection of personal property and security against crimes of violence.  But how safe really are gated communities?  A point the author brings up in "Focus on Controversy: Gated Communities" is that gated communities typically look more attractive to a burglar, almost as if there were a flashing neon sign hanging overhead saying: "Great Stuff; Come Steal."

Gated communities also tend to create this feeling of segregation--both to the people living on the inside and the people on the outside.  For the people on the inside, they see people not living in their community as less fortunate, lower-class citizens.  They also have minimal contact with other ethnic groups and therefore don't have much experience with cooperation between people groups.  People on the outside usually feel one of two ways: they either stereotype gated community residents to be stuck-up, rich people who don't care about anyone else but themselves, or they long to live in a place just like it.  Equality kind of goes out the window when you have separate communities.

Good Experience #1

It was nearing the end of the semester, last spring of 2011.  I was starting to get a little anxious as I began looking for summer employment.  Then one night I was on Facebook and noticed a friend had posted a status about a summer camp he works at each summer.  So I half-jokingly posted, "Are they hiring worship leaders?"  He quickly replied, "Let's talk!"

As you can probably guess, I applied and was hired shortly there-after.  I went to work last June of 2011 for Island Lake Camp, a branch of Crista Ministries, the company that also owns the radio station Spirit 105.3 out of Seattle.  It was really an answer to prayer--I was praying I would find a job that would give me the experience and skills that would propel me into my upcoming line of work, and I was blessed with a job leading worship every night for a group of over 100 campers and staff.  I couldn't have imagined something so perfect.

I remember being up on stage each night my first week, still almost in shock that I was actually leading worship in such a setting.  Then I finally got used to my surroundings, and as time went on I grew more confident in my ability to lead, and my ear and mind for music.  I also became more firmly rooted in the Word, partially out of knowing if I wasn't engrossed in the Scriptures, I would be an easy target for the devil.  I wanted to be a leader of my fellow staff members, and I was quickly asked to step up into the leadership team.  That was truly an honor that my bosses saw me as a responsible, trustworthy leader of people.

I walked away from camp this summer a changed man in so many ways.  The way I lead changed dramatically.  I am now more confident as a whole, from my personality to how I act on stage.  I also had so many opportunities to be tested, from dealing with people and their problems to learning how to deal with problems as they came up during a worship service.  I learned how to adapt to those problems and make them seem like they did not exist in the eye of the audience member.  I also learned how to direct a team of musicians more effectively and efficiently.  Overall, it was an incredible experience which I wouldn't trade for the world.

Myers Briggs & Communication Strategies

My communication style:

ESFJ

It is interesting to observe how my communication style (my four letter code) influences all these different aspects of my life.  It helps me to understand exactly how I act around people, how I take in information, how I think, and how I react.  The following are just a few examples of how my communication style plays into the different areas of my life.

Choosing a major

My major is music, and I think this makes sense in the context of my communication style.  I plan to use my major to lead worship in a church, which my extroversion characteristic fits in well with.  The "J" aspect also plays  well into this because you need to be pretty well organized to work in a church music department--especially for a larger church.

Learning style

My communication style fits in really well with my learning style.  I am definitely a sensory learner--the more hands-on and visual the lesson being taught, the more likely I am to retain the information.  It also helps that I am an extremely organized, get-it-done person.

Playing

It was interesting to me that the test scored a high percentage of "J" for me--89%.  I know that I'm an organized person, but usually I go with the flow.  I like to hang out with friends, and usually I'll do that before I do homework.  I do plan out how much time I'll need for homework in my head so I know, but that doesn't take away from my social time.  Also, my extroversion comes into play well here.

Possible causes of stress

I find myself getting frustrated with people who make a decision purely based on intellect, and it seems heartless.  I am always worried about people's feelings or perceptions, and will often make a decision based on values or feelings.  I am confident I make good decisions that are well-thought-out, but I don't make a decision purely based on fact or intellect.

Dealing with conflict

I am a person who prefers to deal with conflict immediately after it occurs.  I don't like when people wait or think they need to walk away from the situation without solving the problem. My feelings are summed up with, "Don't let the sun go down on your anger."  If you don't deal with conflict right away, it's going to fester and the problem will only get worse and worse.

Communication strategies: Jordan Tucker, roommate

Based on my observations of my roommate, Jordan Tucker, I would guess his four letter code would be something similar to INTP.  He seems to be removed from social happenings most times, he likes to think big picture, he is definitely a logical analyzer, and he if not really an organizer but more of a processor.

You'll notice that we are complete opposites, which is very interesting for a roommate combination.  I think it kind of works well though as roommates, we are so different from each other but we appreciate the differences between us.  It's also nice because we are going in two totally different directions in life and it doesn't feel like I'm competing with my roommate (as I've felt in the past with other roommates, who quite possibly could've had similar codes to me).  When Jordan and I communicate, we have to factor into the conversation that he is an intellectual thinker and I am motivated by feeling or values.  Usually we come to an agreement about something, but we approach it from two totally different angles.  So I would say we have kind of already put this communication style difference to rest in adapting to each other.  We will definitely continue to work at being better communicators with each other, but I believe we've had a good start.

Goals & Mission Statement

By the end of the year I want to be able to look back and say that I read all my textbook assignments and completed each assignment to the very best of my ability.  I will make sure to accomplish this by making time each day to read, and creating incentives to work towards, a reward of sorts for accomplishing each task.

By the end of the semester I will have worked up to visiting the fitness center 3 times a week.  My purpose in doing so is to strengthen my legs, thereby curing shin splints, and toning my stomach muscles.  I will schedule a time each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday where I will plan to go to the fitness center.  If I miss one, I must reschedule.

By the end of the year I plan to have $500 in savings.  I will accomplish this by transferring $50 per month.  I will set up an automatic transfer so that I hold to this goal.

MY MISSION STATEMENT:

To be caring and compassionate toward others, use my talents for God's glory, love people as Jesus would love them, and continually seek His will for my life.

Typology and Temperament Tests

This is the result from the Humanmetrics Typology Test:

Your Type is ESFJ

Extraverted	Sensing	Feeling	Judging
Strength of the preferences %
78	25	12	89

Qualitative analysis of your type formula  You are: very expressed extravert moderately expressed sensing personality slightly expressed feeling personality very expressed judging personality

This is the result from the Custom Keirsey Temperament Report:

Your Keirsey Temperament Sorter Results indicates that your personality type is that of the GUARDIAN

Guardians are the cornerstone of society, for they are the temperament given to serving and preserving our most important social institutions. Guardians have natural talent in managing goods and services--from supervision to maintenance and supply -- and they use all their skills to keep things running smoothly in their families, communities, schools, churches, hospitals, and businesses.

Guardians can have a lot of fun with their friends, but they are quite serious about their duties and responsibilities. Guardians take pride in being dependable and trustworthy; if there's a job to be done, they can be counted on to put their shoulder to the wheel. Guardians also believe in law and order, and sometimes worry that respect for authority, even a fundamental sense of right and wrong, is being lost. Perhaps this is why Guardians honor customs and traditions so strongly -- they are familiar patterns that help bring stability to our modern, fast-paced world.

Practical and down-to-earth, Guardians believe in following the rules and cooperating with others. They are not very comfortable winging it or blazing new trails; working steadily within the system is the Guardian way, for in the long run loyalty, discipline, and teamwork get the job done right. Guardians are meticulous about schedules and have a sharp eye for proper procedures. They are cautious about change, even though they know that change can be healthy for an institution. Better to go slowly, they say, and look before you leap.

Guardians make up as much as 40 to 45 percent of the population, and a good thing, because they usually end up doing all the indispensable but thankless jobs everyone else takes for granted.

Guardians at Work
As a Guardian, you enjoy working as a valued member of a team, whether you are leading it or following a credible leader. You like to work with people who carry their weight. You appreciate having clear-cut responsibilities and being recognized for your dedication and achievements. Your natural traits are those that employers have traditionally valued - and that successful companies still respect. You are responsible and loyal to an organization once you've signed on.

In any environment, including your work place, you are usually focused on making people happy and facilitating harmonious relationships. You often lend "aid and comfort" by drawing on a combination of tradition, past experience, and the direction of established authority. In your ideal job, people would give of themselves and work toward the good of the group.

Interestingly enough, the Keirsey test also considers me as ESFJ, which they classify as the Provider.  I was very satisfied with the Keirsey test, while the Humanmetrics test left much to be desired, namely detail.

Past, Passions, and Purpose

My name is Douglas William Harkness, Douglas is the name of my grandfather on my mom's side and it means "dark waters", and William is my uncle's middle name.  I am the oldest of 2 sons, my little brother's name is Shane, and we are sons of Drake and Shannon Harkness.  I spent all of my life before Northwest growing up in a little town called Deming, WA, about 30 minutes southeast of Bellingham.  I was born and raised in a Christian family by loving parents who taught me right from wrong and how to maintain good moral character.  We went to the same church throughout my adolescent life, a little Assemblies of God church of less than 100 people.  I always enjoyed that place and learned many of life's hard lessons from my time growing up in that congregation.  I decided to come to NU after visiting during a NW Friday and seeing the place for myself.  I also received a calling to music ministry during my senior year of high school at a youth conference put on by the Network in Yakima, WA.  My original plan was to major in Communications, but when I received this calling, I immediately changed to a Music Ministry major.  During my first year at NU I changed to a general Music major, because I very quickly learned I couldn't handle the Bible classes--history and philosophy are two of my poor subjects.

The most exciting thing about NU for me is the real community that is well-established here.  I strive to continue in the legacy of those who have gone before me in my current position as an Apartment Representative.  I did this last year also as a Community Builder in the dorms, I see it as a way of ministry when I can live with people who are or aren't on my same level.  I like to point out strengths and abilities in others and most of all I love to be around people.  Another thing that excited me and give me great joy is music, or more specifically worship arts.  I love creating music directed to my Savior and my God, and I love to sing and play others' music of the same origin.  It's the most expressive way I can find to give back of myself and my talents to the Lord, and I find great peace in doing so.

This summer was a very satisfying summer for me--I worked in a summer camp in Poulsbo, WA for 9 weeks as a music director.  I led worship every night and controlled sound equipment for games and meals.  It was an incredible learning experience for me, and was also very honoring as well as humbling for me to receive such a position.  It not only confirmed God's calling over my life, but also stretched and grew me as I came across different situations and put what I had learned the past couple years into play.  It was very helpful experience to have before going into full-time ministry in the near future.