ESCANABA — Delta Force students met for Community Leadership Day on Thursday, May 26 to learn from professional trainers in the Delta County community on how to hone their communication and leadership skills.

Community Leadership Day, the fourth session of this year’s Delta Force Class, was held at Bay College’s Joseph Heirman University Center. The day started with breakfast and a presentation by BDD Training Associates Inc.

Leadership skill-building with BDD Training Associates

Owned by Steve Buckbee, Dan Doyle and Michael Dupont, BDD Training Associates coaches people on how to deal with the process of change, including how chaos can lead to transformation.

One quote the trainers shared with the students was from Virginia Satir: “Life is not what it’s supposed to be. It’s what it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference.”

They also stressed the old adage that many of our choices, when selected carefully, can lead to personal transformation, but you must practice new skills in order to master them. “Learning has to be integrated; in order to become proficient in something, practice is required.”

“You are responsible for the outcomes of your life,” Buckbee added.

The students asked questions and offered ideas, and solved a puzzle requiring them to challenge their typical way of thinking about a problem.

In the end of the BDD presentation, Buckbee closed with: “In the long run, the thing that matters most is our ability to love, and how we take care of each other. You have to start with yourself.”

Students then enjoyed lunch at Bay College made by Wiles Food Services, networked and shared stories with one another.

DiSC Behavioral Style Assessments with Coaching For Results

Prior to Thursday’s session, the Delta Force students had each taken the DiSC Assessment, which gave them a letter corresponding to their behavioral type: D=Dominant, i=Influence, S=Steadiness, and C=Conscientiousness.

Sue Roll, owner/facilitator with Coaching For Results, was the next presenter. She had already gathered the students’ responses and provided each student with personalized DiSC Workplace Profile reports describing the strengths and weaknesses of their specific behavioral style, and tools in dealing with each different style.

“When we are in a leadership role, it is extremely beneficial to study how we can best motivate our team to be better employees,” Sue explained. “By understanding how people with different behavior styles are motivated and what challenges them, we can really thrive, especially when working in a team environment.”

Students found the DiSC behavioral assessment – along with the subsequent discussions – extremely valuable.

“I love the DiSC Assessment tool,” Delta Force student Rachael Strand said. “It really helps me in both my personal life and my professional life. Each characteristic is important. When you’re in a leadership role, it is essential to find out the best individual qualities of your staff and place them in the best roles for their specific personality traits so that they can thrive.”

Sue then answered students’ questions and gave examples of scenarios in which each behavioral style can thrive and use their traits to their advantage. Students discussed some of the challenges and issues they have at work — corresponding to their different behavioral styles–and learned how they can use their newfound knowledge to their advantage in both a leadership role and in working as a team member.

“I learned a lot today about myself and how to deal with different types of people,” Delta Force student Kelly Brown said. “The hardest part is that I’m going to have to really work on myself now.”

Sue agrees that it can sometimes be a challenge to be an effective leader.

“Leadership is a constant learning process,” she said. “But if you learn to effectively align people’s behavioral styles and preferences with the needs of the team, and communicate well with appropriate feedback, you can ultimately inspire your team to work better together.”

Next month, the Delta Force students will learn about the history of the Delta County area on History and Culture Day.

The objective of Delta Force is to identify participants with potential for community leadership; acquaint these leaders with community issues, resources and opportunities; increase the leadership skills of program participants; provide participants with opportunities to network and exchange ideas with each other and with community leaders; assist participants in finding volunteer roles in the community; and encourage graduates to continue their involvement by participating in community service programs.

Created and facilitated by the Delta County Chamber of Commerce, Delta Force encompasses a series of ten full-day sessions covering such areas as media and communications, education, leadership, health and community services, law and order, government, and other key segments of our community.

Sessions are typically scheduled for the last Thursday of each month and are designed to be highly interactive and thought-provoking. A typical day involves a combination of group discussions, field trips, and presentations by respected local leaders. Visit “http://www.deltami.org/delta-force-leadership-program” www.deltami.org/delta-force-leadership-program for more information about Delta Force.

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Victoria LaFave is communications director for the Delta County Chamber of Commerce