My Philosophy of Supervision

In my role as a graduate intern, and throughout my experiences in higher education, I have had the opportunity to reflect upon supervisory relationships and what philosophy and values I hold. I have been very fortunate to have very empowering and effective supervisors who have shaped my own philosophy. I also have had bad supervisors that have helped to define what I do not want to be as a supervisor.

Currently in my internship, both of my supervisors have created an environment of support and encouragement, selflessness, humility, and communication. What has also been notable is that the support and encouragement is not just provided to me as an employee but also as an individual. As a graduate student it was important that my supervisor supported me in my roles as an intern, but also as a student. My supervisor places great care ensuring that I have all the tools to succeed in the position and beyond because they took the opportunity to get to know what I hope to achieve.

Ideally, as a supervisor I wish to embody these traits since the values are something that I seek while in a work environment. I feel that being a supportive and encouraging supervisor is integral to having a team that is invested in the goal and mission of the office. A good supervisor is able to make themselves approachable and show the staff that they are there to support them in achieving the goals of the position along with developing as an individual. I value being self-less as a supervisor, a good supervisor puts the needs of the staff first, celebrating their accomplishments, and accepting the responsibilities of failures. Humility is important, a good supervisor is honest and comfortable enough to know their weakness, and an even better supervisor surrounds themselves with staff that can help bridge that gap. Finally, being able to build and maintain open communication is an important trait. Open communication is so important for many aspects of creating a good work environment. As a supervisor I will be clear to communicate my expectations and listen to the expectations of staff. This lays out a structure so that if a staff member is not happy there is a foundation to examine what can be changed. Being open is also important because my values of supervision may not align with others, by being open I can help to serve those around me to meet their needs.

As an individual and as a professional, these values will likely change over time as I gain more experiences and evolve towards self-authorship. Self-authorship is about trust and being confident in relying on our internal voice over the external (McNair, 2011). Self-authorship is something I struggle with, I am still not completely comfortable trusting my inner voice which will hinder me as supervisor. However, by defining my values and beliefs I will be in a better place for myself to grow which will allow me to help those who are also in their pursuit of self-authorship