May 22, 2013

3 Ways to pep up your campus club meetings

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...]

Balance College Stress – Natural Energy Booster #1 – Breathe!

Felicia Harlow - Balance College Stress - Natural Energy Booster #1

You wake up late and it’s 10 minutes before class starts! … The final exam is next week and you still don’t understand some of the material! … Someone tells you that they saw your boyfriend cheating with one of your friends! … You are the resident assistant and someone has broken every rule on the floor and in the dorm and YOU are responsible because you are in charge! Stress-buster, Energy-booster # 1 is BREATHE!!! Yes, breathing is an automatic body function that we don’t even think about. But when most of us are stressed, we hold our breath without realizing it – and our very act of unconsciously holding our breath adds … [Read more...]

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

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...]

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

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...]

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

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...]

Balance College Stress – Natural Energy Booster #2 – Listen to Your Body

Felicia Harlow - Balance College Stress - Natural Energy Booster #2

You've heard it before... “You’re not listening to me!” or “You need to listen better!” Was it a professor who says you're not getting it? A parent schooling you about the money you’ve wasted? Your roommate who's fed up with you ignoring them? Or your boyfriend trying to get you to agree with his perspective? What if  the person you're not listening to is yourself. I’m not talking about being crazy, I’m referring to the art of listening to your “inner voice.” It's the voice that says “don’t go partying tonight because you have to get up early tomorrow for a final exam.” Or it may be your body screaming “I’m … [Read more...]

Thank You, Thank You Very Much: APPRECIATION

Dayna Steele and ZZ Top

APPRECIATION Reward a job well done. Give back to the community. Cultivate random acts of kindness. Write a thank you note. I appreciate you reading this success advice from my book, "Rock to the Top: What I Learned About Success from the World's Greatest Rock Stars." Listen to the chapter on APPRECIATION from the audio version of the book below. TWEET  it to your friends and download the MP3 to listen to later. You can listen to this FREE audio here (11:14)... …or TWEET and DOWNLOAD this audio for your media layer so you can listen any time and share with friends... Thanks for listening, Dayna … [Read more...]

Use the NO CHAIRS method for campus club recruiting

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...]

We Can’t All Be Keith Richards: HEALTH

Dayna Steele Astronaut

HEALTH Eat right. Keep family and friends close. Exercise regularly. Take care of yourself first. Avoid the things you know are bad for you. Play and have fun. Start taking care of your health now with this success advice from my book, "Rock to the Top: What I Learned About Success from the World's Greatest Rock Stars." Listen to the chapter on HEALTH from the audio version of the book below. TWEET  it to your friends and download the MP3 to listen to later. You can listen to this FREE audio here (13:28)... …or TWEET and DOWNLOAD this audio for your media layer so you can listen any time and share with … [Read more...]

The Interview: KNOWLEDGE

Dayna Steele Jam Board

KNOWLEDGE Know a little about everything. Be aware of your body language. Be prepared. Talk directly to your audience. Pay attention and listen. Improve your knowledge with this success advice from my book, "Rock to the Top: What I Learned About Success from the World's Greatest Rock Stars." Listen to the chapter on KNOWLEDGE from the audio version of the book below. TWEET  it to your friends and download the MP3 to listen to later. You can listen to this FREE audio here (13:18)... …or TWEET and DOWNLOAD this audio for your media layer so you can listen any time and share with friends... Thanks for … [Read more...]