May 18, 2013

The College Speaker Audio Series

Each of these posts features a short FREE AUDIO DOWNLOAD by one of our Expert Blogumnists or other guest College Speaker expanding on the blog topic to give you even more in-depth insight. Hit play to listen right now or download it to listen later. Happy listening and here's to your success... in college and in the future.

3 things to do if your club officers are fighting

By
3 things to do if your club officers are fighting

My wife has six cats. Yes, they all belong to her - not me. That does not mean, however, that I do not fulfill my role as a “kitty daddy” and sometimes mediate disputes between them. Cat fights usually happen when one cat looks at another and the second cat does not want to be looked at. This leads to loud shrieking and paw-batting at one another. How do I deal with this? Two loud claps of my hands and then I shout “HEY!” The combatants then run off in different directions. That probably won't work if it's two of your club officers. If it did it'd be great. Two of our officers get into an argument before, during, or after a meeting … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: , ,

3 Ways to pep up your campus club meetings

By
Dave Kelly - Seminole State College Leadership Program 01

Two things most of us will avoid like the plague... The droning of a monotone voice from the front of the room and the meeting leader that sits in the middle of the floor and asks, "So what do you guys want to talk about tonight?" As part of running better campus clubs and organizations let's make sure our meetings are fun and interesting or just put us all out of our misery and stop having them! Here are a couple of my time-tested ideas to give things a kick in the pants. 1) Start on time. End on time. People's time is important. Drop the, "I'm going to wait a few minutes until more people arrive." Start NOW! Don't punish the people … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: , , ,

Failure is not an option, until it’s your only option

By
Chris Collins - movement

I was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, IL and never heard of gumbo until I moved to Texas. One year my mom decides to have a gumbo cook-off for Christmas and I think to myself, “Self, it’s just a bunch of meat in some gravy, how hard can it be?” After10 tries at making my own roux (and failing) and ruining 4 bottles of store bought roux, I conceded....making gumbo was more than just putting meat in gravy. I had to call in the pros for reinforcement, so I called one of my college friends. Her people were from the birthplace of gumbo, Louisiana, and her Aunt walked me through the process step by step. I had failed … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: ,

You are a role model. Make the best of it as a student leader.

By
Tom Baker - Get Involed - Community Service - Civic Leadership 002

  Everyone in your campus club, team, or organization is a role model. All members of your group play a special part in ensuring that your members and constituencies are served efficiently and effectively. As a student leader, it is vital for you to remain mindful of the fact that your fellow students look up to and are watching your behaviors and interactions all of the time. They are not solely observing your behaviors when you are consulting or running a meeting or managing a campus service event. They are observing you not only when you are at your top moments of professionalism but also in the moments when you let down your … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community Service Involvement, Student Leadership Tagged With: ,

Drive-by community service projects… and nobody gets hurt!

By
Dave Kelly - Community Service and Campus Activities

Drive-by service opportunities are not quite what they sound like and provide immediate benefit to the local community. They are projects that are ready-made for students to jump right into, take only a few minutes, and provide solid impact. They are accomplished by partnering with local or national community service groups such as Habitat for Humanity, the United Way, Special Olympics, Food for the Poor, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and others. Though I've been student leadership and community service trainer for over two decades, over the past several years in particular I've been working with organizations such as the APCA and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community Service Involvement Tagged With: ,

Use the NO CHAIRS method for campus club recruiting

By
Dave Kelly - Recruiting with no Chairs

At your next campus club and organization recruiting fair... Get rid of your chairs! Give them to one of your competitors and let them sit. Push your table back a little and then get in the flow of traffic by standing in front of your table. This puts you out where the students are and gives you a chance to make eye contact with them and approach them as they go by. I guarantee you recruit more members this way! As a former student leader myself, and as a long-time college student leadership trainer, I have run more than 100 recruitment tables at campus activities fairs and club days and have seen what works and a lot of what doesn't. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: , ,

Get a DEFINING STATEMENT for your campus club or organization and boost your recruiting efforts

By
Dave Kelly - Defining Statement

“No, we are not the Circle K that is the convenience stores.” “We are not a dude ranch with horses.” “We don’t dance in circles, although you can if you want to.” That was part of my normal speech when I was the District Administrator for the Georgia District of Circle K International. I was responsible for 28 chapters, including helping them to effectively recruit members. I went to campus after campus and watched our student leaders struggle with trying to explain what Circle K was—and what it was not! If you belong to a club or organization on campus or are the advisor for a group and had to tell people the name of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: , ,

Marketing your campus club, event or cause by walking around

By
Tom Baker - Get Involed - Community Service - Civic Leadership 003

The phrase "managing by walking around" has tended to be trendy at times within business over the last few decades. The concept suggests that you can influence others and lead more effectively by simply seeing how others are doing and through interacting with them. It actually makes some sense to me and I agree that it is important to be visible and let others know that you care about their work and the issues that they are experiencing. A concept that I want you to consider is the idea of marketing by walking around on your campus. I would like for you to think of yourself as a potential moving billboard for what you care and feel strongly … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community Service Involvement, Student Leadership Tagged With: ,

3 life-changing student leadership practices no one’s doing

By
Dave Kelly - 3 life-changing student leadership practices

In 20+ years of working with student leaders, advisors and organizations I've compiled a number of 'best of the best' lists. I have top 3, 5, 7, or 10 lists on everything from skyrocketing student involvement, to holding great meetings and everything else that involves student leadership. It all comes from seeing first-hand what works and what doesn't. Most schools have what I'll call "Student Leader Basic Training" in place. They teach their student leaders who to fill out forms, conduct meetings, hold an event, hire speakers, etc. This type of basic training should be a requirement but there are a few things you could do more of that … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Student Leadership Tagged With: ,