Posted by Lieutenant Commander Vanessa Lofton (Counselor) in Counselor’s office - Cadet Blakely’s evaluation

Posted by Cadet William A. Blakely (Scientist) in Counselor’s office - Cadet Blakely’s evaluation

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Vanessa Lofton (Counselor) in Counselor’s office - Cadet Blakely’s evaluation
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

<snip>

“I love cricket, I’ve been playing it since my early school days. I was on my high school team, and I learned that no team can ever succeed without working together. Good communication, mutual respect, and supporting each other are what makes a team work. Sadly, as you can imagine, young boys are not always good at that. I wasn’t,” Blakely chuckled, “not initially, at least. I had to learn it the hard way when my pursuit of individual glory resulted in a nasty shoulder injury. I tried too hard, pushed too hard, when it wasn’t really needed. I tried to appear better than my mates and impress our teachers, rather than focus on what the team needed. Not being able to play, I watched professionals play for weeks. I noticed how different they were. They were a good machine, everyone knew their role and did their best, united by their common goal. That was a good lesson.”

Vanessa chuckled softly and her eyes lost focus. “I know how boys are - I have four brothers. Thank God they never put together a focused strategy or they’d have made my and my sister’s lives absolute hell.”

Blakely stared blankly at the plants for a moment, thinking about his answer to the second question.

“I think, I like to think, that I would make a good leader. I could never be been a cricket captain, my ankles are too weak for that, I’m not reliable enough, but I’ve found that I truly love inspiring others and help them work together for our common goal. I helped our captain motivate new players and spent a lot of time helping those who had talent, but couldn’t develop their skills. Not everyone who slacks is lazy or untalented. Some need motivation, some need direction, and some just need to believe in themselves. Helping them shine is what I truly enjoy. Perhaps… perhaps more than the game itself.”

-Cadet William Blakely - Science

OOC: Sorry, forgot to paste my signature!

Vanessa smiled encouragingly. “Those are difficult things to realize in others,” she noted, “and even harder to actualize. Most people find it hard to put aside the self, as you said earlier, to really help create a better team. Those are fantastic abilities in Starfleet leaders - not everyone can, nor should want to, do everything, but knowing how to cater to people’s strengths is a huge advantage.”

“So cricket,” she segued, sitting back and draping an arm on the back of the couch. “I’ve never played, but I’m sure you could put together a simulation in the holodeck. Might be a good team building exercise with your fellow cadets, too. Even when we have a few hundred people on board, long journeys through space can get… lonely sometimes, so those kinds of social activities can be important. Do you have anything else you like to do in your spare time? Group or otherwise,” she amended.

OOC: It’s something we have all done at some point. We use those signatures to really help separate one post from another on really long threads, where it can get difficult. What really worked for me when I started was writing the signature first, before I wrote the rest of the post.

Lt. Cmdr. Lofton - CNS

“I would be more than happy to teach others how to play, if there’s enough interest. It’s not a very popular sport among Starfleet personnel, as far as I know, but quite similar to baseball which many played in the Academy. I’m happy to join others in a game of baseball too, but I’m not very good.”

Vanessa threw back her head and laughed. “I am not athletically inclined to almost any sports,” she replied, wiping her eye, “but I’m willing to try almost anything. I’m just never any good.”

“About hobbies,” Blakely chuckled, “I often feel I have too many of them. Books, I guess, would be the main one. Especially novels about the sail ships of old, braving storms and pirates. Or anything about Terran history. Tending to plants, researching them, occasionally inspecting them under a microscope. A game of chess, hiking, running. Then there’s collecting biological samples from different planets and seeing what I can do to affect their growth, how they fare in different environments. I love learning new things in general, alone or with other people, so I often join others in long discussions or spend a late evening learning something new about one topic or another. A late night, sometimes,” Blakely chuckled, “not anymore, though, with so many duties.”

OOC: Adding the signature first sounds like a great idea. Thanks!

-Cadet William Blakely - Science

She nodded along, smiling at points as he recited his list, then raised her eyebrows. “That is quite the list. Better to have too many than not enough, though.” She shifted again, folding her legs beneath her. “And a starship is a perfect way to learn new things - especially as a science officer,” she pointed out, gesturing with one hand. “I can also see, then, why you picked the Science division.” She smiled brightly. “No better place than the heart of Starfleet’s exploration center.”

She shifted again, pursing her lips. “There’s a great chess setup in Nine Forward that I’m sure you’ll be able to find players for, too.” She focused back on him. “So, Cadet Blakely, I like to end my sessions with one particular question.” She leaned forward, resting her her forearms on her knees, eyes appraising. “You’re going to be aboard ship for several months. One way to judge how you’ve done is how much you’ve improved, whether that’s professionally, emotionally, or academically.” Her blue eyes studied him for a moment. “What area do you hope to improve in during your stay here?”

Lt. Cmdr. Lofton - CNS

“I couldn’t agree more. By being here I hope to grow as a Starfleet officer. I want to discover myself. You never know how you’re going to behave in certain situations, danger and stress in particular, until you survive them. Time in the Academy is very valuable, but highly theoretical. I want to become a better field scientist, if possible, visiting planets I only learned about or saw in the simulations. If not, then I would love to test myself in real lab conditions, with time pressure, the thrill of urgency, making the best of the limited resources. I want to learn how to work with my colleagues and achieve our goals together.”

-Cadet William Blakely - Science