Quick, bite-sized insights to build your skills and boost your career.
Missed a past edition? Visit the Learning Bites Archives 2025 and 2026 to explore previous topics, revisit professional development insights, and continue building your skills throughout the year.
Spotlight Skill:
Shining a light on the skills that help you learn, develop and grow!
May/June: Adaptability
At UA, Performance Feedback and Development play an important role in strengthening performance, supporting growth, and helping employees reach their full potential. With performance review season underway, this is an ideal time for both supervisors and employees to reflect on accomplishments, discuss progress, and identify opportunities for continued development. Effective performance conversations are a shared responsibility. Supervisors provide guidance, recognition, and constructive feedback, while employees actively reflect on their contributions, seek feedback, and identify areas for growth. When these conversations are approached with openness and respect, they strengthen trust, communication, and professional development across our campus community
Core Behaviors to Practice:
- Embrace change quickly. When priorities shift this week, how will you refocus your work without waiting for direction?
- Learn something new regularly. What new tool, process, or skill can you explore this month to be more effective in your role?
- Adjust plans and priorities as needed. How will you reorganize your daily work when timelines or requirements change?
- Stay calm and focused during uncertainty. When information is limited, what helps you stay productive and positive?
- Test new approaches and apply what works. What small change can you try in how you work—and how will you decide if it’s successful?
Quick Tips to Adaptability
- Assume change is normal. Start each week expecting priorities may shift, so you’re mentally prepared to pivot.
- Clarify what matters most. When things change, quickly identify the top one or two priorities that deserve your focus.
- Build learning into your routine. Set aside small, regular time blocks to learn new tools or update skills—before change forces it.
- Focus on what you can control. During uncertainty, put energy into your tasks, mindset, and communication rather than the unknowns.
- Reflect and refine. After trying a new approach, pause to ask what worked, what didn’t, and how you’ll adjust next time.
Call to Action:
Choose one behavior or tip from this spotlight and put it into action this week. Reflect on what works, refine your approach, and keep building your ability to adapt—one step at a time
Check out these LinkedIn Learning courses for a deeper dive into adaptability:
Your monthly playlist where professional development hits the right notes.
May/June Edition: Emotional Intelligence: Empathy and Social Awareness
Inspired by Ben E. King’s Stand By MeAs we continue our Emotional Intelligence series, May focuses on Empathy and Social Awareness. While self-awareness and reflection help us understand ourselves, empathy helps us understand others.
Empathy is the ability to recognize and consider the feelings, perspectives, and experiences of those around us. Social awareness helps us notice emotional cues and respond in ways that strengthen relationships.
Ben E. King’s Stand by Me reminds us that people feel stronger and more confident when they know others are there to support them.
Think About These Lyrics
“When the night has come and the land is dark…”
→ Everyone experiences moments of uncertainty or stress. Empathy helps us recognize when others may need understanding.
“No I won’t be afraid, just as long as you stand by me.”
→ Support and encouragement from others can build confidence and resilience.
“Darling, stand by me.”
→ Trust grows when we show that we are there for one another.
Why Empathy Matters
Empathy helps us:
- Understand the perspectives and experiences of others
- Build stronger professional relationships
- Strengthen teamwork and collaboration
- Foster a positive and supportive workplace culture
Questions to Ask Yourself This Month
- How well do I listen to understand rather than simply respond?
- Do I consider how situations may affect others differently than they affect me?
- What actions can I take to support my colleagues?
Call to Action
This month, commit to strengthening empathy by:
- Practicing active listening in conversations.
- Being mindful of emotional cues from colleagues.
- Offering encouragement or support during challenging moments.
- Showing appreciation for the contributions of others.
When we show empathy and support for one another, we create stronger teams and healthier workplaces.
Where fundamentals meet real‑world impact. Show up and skill up!
May/June Edition: Style under Stress
Are there patterns in how I communicate when feeling stressed?
To explore this question, take two minutes to reflect at the end of each work day:
- What was my most stressful moment today?
Just one sentence. Don’t overthink it. - How did I communicate during or right after that moment?
Think about your tone, pace, word choice, or body language—not what you meant, but what probably landed. - If I could rewind that interaction, what’s one small thing I’d change?
Keep it specific and manageable.
After a week, read back through your notes and look for patterns. This isn’t about judging yourself—it’s about noticing. If it helps, talk it through with someone you trust and brainstorm ways to respond more effectively next time.
Real-Time Check:
When you feel stress creeping up in a conversation, pause and ask yourself: “Am I trying to control this moment right now?”
If the answer is yes, take one breath—and ask a question instead of making a statement.
This works because it builds awareness without attempting to overhaul your personality. The goal isn’t to change who you are—it’s to stay intentional instead of reactive, even when things get tense.
This week, don’t aim to fix anything. Just notice. Awareness is the first lever—and often the most powerful one.