Inquiry and Inspiration: How an Unexpected Question Helped Me

March 12th, 2012 | Posted by Krissy Peterson in Careers | Tidbits - (4 Comments)

“I’d like to know: what do you do to show that you’re a leader on campus?”

The student’s inquiry stopped me for a second. After all, I had just asked her that exact question no more than ten minutes ago during an RA recruitment interview. We had come to the portion of the interview where the students could ask questions of me, the professional. And I didn’t quite know what to say. Though it pains me to admit it, my first thought was “I just am a leader on campus, because of my role in the residence halls.”

When you’re a professional on a college campus how do you show that you’re a leader? While our titles can give us the privilege of leading, guiding and advising students, it is up to us as professionals to determine how we’re going to lead those who look to us. I was unsure of how to answer the question because I hadn’t intentionally thought about my leadership role on campus in a long time—on a regular basis I give more energy to the day-to-day routines and to-do lists than the big picture, which I think happens to a lot of us in the field. When I began to ponder this subject, more questions began to surface. Do my actions reflect my values, goals, and abilities? What can I do to better lead my students? How am I proving that I deserve to be seen as a leader in my community?

The truth of the matter is I’m still contemplating the answers to these questions. Intentional reflection is necessary to grow—I expect it from my students, so why wouldn’t I do the same myself? As a professional, I must remember that it is my responsibility to not only connect with my students, but also to know who I am so that I can empower them to authentically grow and make meaning of their collegiate experiences. The student’s question was a good reminder to take time out to reflect and refocus on bigger picture items like leadership—something that everyone in our field should do every now and again.

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A Word about Mediocrity

August 24th, 2011 | Posted by The SA Team in Careers | Tidbits | Work/Life Balance - (1 Comments)

I recently re-read an article from Bloomberg Businessweek, Five Ways to Ensure Mediocrity in Your Organization, by Liz Ryan. This article resonates with me every time I read it because the article focuses on some supervisor’s disregard for their employees. This disregard can create a revolving door of turnover within an organization. Student Affairs is a great career that will prove a worthwhile experience for many; however, it’s important as a new professional to be workplace savvy and trust your instincts.

According to Ryan, the five ways to ensure mediocrity are:

1. “…Make sure your employees know you don’t trust them.” Basically, supervisors hire a competent employee and then micromanage the employee. What’s the point of hiring talented people when you don’t trust them? Once a new professional gets the impression that management does not trust their work, an employee will shut down and give an organization mediocre work.

2. “…don’t tell them when they shine.” Paychecks are great incentive, but some times praise will go a long way to build morale. Lack of praise will also damage morale. Employees want to feel appreciated, valued and empowered. Ryan suggests that lack of praise from supervisors could be because managers fear a request for a raise or promotion. Employees understand that many institutions are feeling the budget crunch, but kindness goes a long way to build loyalty to an organization.

3. “…keep employees in the dark.” How can employees be invested in the organization if they do not have a seat at the table? Ok, ok…if not a seat at the table, employees should at least be regularly informed on new initiatives and programs. I believe employees should be aware of the organization’s mission, goals, and values at all times; this helps provide focus to your work and it becomes more intentional.

4. “If you value docility over ingenuity…” The most precious gift you can give an employee is autonomy and responsibility. Micromanaging could potentially drive a professional with a masters degree slightly insane. Like Ryan, I agree, employees who are treated like children will more than likely seek out an employer who trusts and empowers them and treats a supervisor like a professional with and advanced degree.

5. “If you fear an empowered workforce more than you fear the competition, squash any sign of individualism.” Young whippersnappers beware, don’t rely on your education and experience to challenge the system. Knowledge is power, but not in an organization that prefers mindless minions. In reference to management shaking down it’s employees Ryan states, “They do it by instituting reams of pointless rules, upbraiding people for minuscule infractions and generally replacing trust with fear throughout their organizations.”

I agree with Ryan that poor management will only rappel good employees.  Once managers begin to realize why they are losing solid, competent employees, you may be settling into a new job.

 

Carla Finklea Green is a residence hall director at Old Dominion University.

Dealing with change within Student Affairs

June 14th, 2011 | Posted by Brian Gallagher in Campus Issues | Tidbits | University - (13 Comments)

If you count the years that I was an undergraduate student, this June is the fifth June that I’ve been in a Student Affairs environment that has dealt with change.  This is also the fifth time I’ve been able to observe those around me handle (or not handle) the change.  I almost wish I could do a quick survey of professionals to find out which departments/divisions/institutions are not changing something about what they do between now and the fall.  Although, the assessment person in me would cringe at the thought of not changing — thus, not improving at least something!

Typically, what I’m referring to here might be staffing structures changing, new professionals coming in, professionals moving on from a certain institution, offices moving, offices merging, programs ceasing to exist, programs expanding, new policies. This is the change we’re talking about here.

I’m not as surprised when our students, student leaders, or student staff are concerned by the upheaval — this is part of the developmental stages they are going through as undergraduates (see any number of excellent published developmental theorists).  At my current institution, we have just hired a new director of my department and a new vice chancellor for student life.  In my (expert) opinion, both are great hires.  All of the pro-staff know that the exiting professionals are going (or have gone) to excellent positions – moving themselves ahead in outstanding opportunities.  However, from the perspective of someone who is not on the division listserv (namely an undergraduate student) they might not know or understand that whole process.

Last year, at this time our department was saying goodbye to an assistant director, filling her position with a new hire, and we did a restructure to add a new full time position.  All of the undergraduate staff members were confused and very anxious about who would be their supervisor.  What really blew my mind, however, was how some of the Graduate student staff members (yes, my peers) were dealing with these changes.  Lines like “Oh my gosh! What are we going to do without our current Assistant. Director???!?”  There were lots of little freak out moments.

It just amazes me how some professionals handle this change very well while others are completely baffled and overwhelmed.  I agree and can completely empathize that often change might lead to someone losing their job or a job change for the negative.  Perhaps my perspective on this will change next year when I’m a professional staff member.

For now, however, I see change as a good thing.  Rarely is it what I predicted.  I’m usually the one who asks “why” and wants to really understand what we’re doing.  But, even when I disagree with the change, I’m usually willing to roll with it or at least give it a try.

In interviews we ask candidates “How do you deal with change?”  Is this a good question to ask?

How do you see those around you dealing with change?   How do you handle change?  How might you handle change better or differently?

Brian Gallagher is a graduate assistant in Residence Life at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis.

A Positive Approach to Negative Feedback

January 11th, 2011 | Posted by Kristin Williams in #sachat | Tidbits - (3 Comments)

After reading the recent blogs of @StacyLOliver (see post here) and @NikiRudolph (see post here) I began to reflect on their words.  Observe.  Appreciate.  Think positive.  Remember how crazy things are.  People are not superheroes (but they sure do seem like it when it’s really hectic!).  Do I do these things enough?  Did I do these things today?

Let me digress and add a little back story … For those of you who don’t live in a snowbelt area with lake effect snow (let’s say NE Ohio, for example) you may not be dramatically impacted by snow cancellations.  My institution, however, was in mid/late December.  Classes were canceled at one of the worst possible times – FINALS WEEK!  Panic ensued.  A contingency plan evolved – very complex with an 8-campus system experiencing different closures and weather.  Ultimately it meant that finals went as late as December 22 for some students.  Processing of grades, graduation, etc. was extended until December 28, technically the University was shut down at this time, making for an even more interesting situation.  Long story short, classes resume on Monday, and we’re still playing catch up!

Why the back story?  Well, today, I was speaking with a student about her preparation for the upcoming semester and she shared with me an encounter she’d had with someone in another office who had been somewhat short with her.  Had I not just read the aforementioned blogs, my reaction might have gone something like this… “Gosh, are they always that rude!? “  Whether with those exact words or not, my point is that I would have likely conveyed a message implying that this was par for the course for said office.  Instead, I was reminded that some situations are really trying — I imagine this office, in particular, has been dealing with a flood of student calls and did not enjoy much of our shutdown — we’re all human.  So, instead, my response was, “Gosh, that’s unusual, but you know it’s been incredibly hectic given that we’re still catching up from last semester.  I bet she was inundated with calls and didn’t even realize she was coming across that way.  Who did you speak with, anyway?”  She told me.  I don’t know the person well, but it was a name I recognized.  I do know her supervisor though.

I then did the unthinkable (thanks to my muses Stacy and Niki!)… after the student left my office, I picked up my phone and called the supervisor.  Our conversation was brief, and I made sure to tell her that I wasn’t calling to complain.  I said something to the effect of, “Your staff is handling this craziness amazingly! I can’t imagine how they’re hanging in.”  She responded with a thank you and went on to say that she knew some of the staff were starting to get frazzled, but that the worst wasn’t over yet.  And she’s right next week will bring many new challenges…what could we do?  We want to help her staff, who are amazing and wonderful and are just baring the brunt of this unusual semester end/beginning, feel appreciated. A ha, that’s it! One of our local sandwich shops is always bringing samples around – one days it’s a dean’s office, the next residence life, the library, etc.  So, I said, let’s call up “That Sandwich Shop” and ask them if they’ll make your office tomorrow’s recipient.  Guess what.  They are.

My point.  On a fairly regular basis students, faculty, peers even, complain or criticize the work of others.  The two blog posts I read challenged me to remember the good and appreciate the challenges and monotony that our colleagues face.  They helped me to reframe my response from something that, more than likely, would have been negative, into something that carried out a positive and supportive overtone.  Stacy and Niki’s blogs helped me to remember to be more positive even when faced with negative feedback or messages.  We do, after all, work for the same institution as our colleagues and we should want to carry a united front.  Pay it forward.  I certainly wouldn’t want anyone agreeing with a student about a negative experience they had with me.

I’m not certain that I would have reached out the same way that I did today without the inspiration, but now that I’ve planted the seed, I hope I continue to grow it.  I challenge you to do the same.

Kristin Williams is the Business Experiences Manager, College of Business Administration, Kent State University

Sink or Swim? Thinking About the Whole Picture Before Presenting at a Conference

May 7th, 2009 | Posted by Gavin Weiser in Conferences | Diversity | Leadership Training | SA Humor | Social Networks | Tidbits | Web/Tech - (0 Comments)

                Not
long ago I had the opportunity to present at a local conference with a colleague
of mine. At the university at which I both work and take my graduate classes,
we host an annual regional conference on leadership and diversity. Due to my
position in the multicultural affairs unit, it seemed only practical that I
present and upon talking with my colleague of mine, we came up with what we
thought would be a great idea for a presentation.

                We
decided that since we both have a background in leadership studies, and with my
work in multicultural affairs, we would be able to broach both of these
important topics in tandem. We were very excited. This conference has a large
undergraduate student draw. Many leadership programs in the south-east come to
this conference annually due to the high-quality of presentations and key-note
speakers.

                Due to
the population, we knew that we would have to alter our presentation to not
only get bodies in the room, but keep them engaged in order for them to remain
interested and to learn something useful and practical that they could use upon
leaving at the end of the day. She and I were both very excited when we
realized exactly what to do. We would utilize clips from popular culture as
examples of leadership and its different styles in order to teach our lessons.

                We had
everyone included; from John Dorian of Scrubs,
to Jack Sheppard of LOST. And of
course, one can not forget The Donald. We carefully selected clips from these as
well as a few other tid-bits of pop-culture genius in order to talk about
different points of leadership and leading a diverse team. We were placed in
the slot at the end of the day to present, where they usually put the most
interesting sounding presentations. The day of right the presentation; right before
we were to begin, we filled up the largest room they had booked for presentations,
in fact, it became standing room only.

Unfortunately, the presentation was
Power Point based and the night before we realize that we had built the entire
presentation on a Mac. The day of the conference we realize that we didn’t have
a cable in order to connect the Mac to the projector. Somehow, I managed to
find a CD in order to burn the presentation to disc in order for us to transfer
this huge presentation with media embedded within to the presentation computer,
which of course was probably made in 1992. I say it was made in 1992, for once
we were able to actually transfer the presentation to the other computer, it
was unable to handle the media and froze up several times. In fact, the last
time it froze up was right in the middle of our presentation.

                At the
time we were both crushed. We had people walk out of presentation. Our reviews
were horrible. My colleague refused to even read the evaluations. (Not all of
them were bad!) Fortunately for my own self-preservation; I am in the thought
that every moment of our lives must be taken as a learning moment. So although
we had a great idea for a presentation, and had it immaculately prepared on our
Mac and it looked very nice and worked quite well, once we discovered what the
room looked like the day of, and the inability to connect my computer to the
projector, and the lack of speakers for sound, it was quite evident, we had not
prepared quite enough.  

                The
take away message for everyone is that it is of the most importance for us to
be fully prepared to handle whatever bumps that may be thrown at us. This can
be presenting at a conference, or in class. This could be meeting with
students, or throwing an event. Our profession is often abundant with road
hazards. It is important to be able to roll with these misfortunes and be able
to quickly adapt. It is more important to learn to identify potential problems
before going in so that you can be prepared. I know that I for one now carry an
8 gig flash drive on my keys in hopes that something like this will never
happen.

By the end of the presentation, we
had a core group of students that remained throughout the presentation and in
the end; I feel that these students learned more than they had bargained for. Several
of these students were headed into the field of Student Affairs, and since we
were very candid about what happened, I am sure none of them will make the same
mistakes we made, and I hope that you will not either.

 

P.S. One of my fellow graduate students was kind enough to
sit in the front and record the whole thing for me, so that we would be able to
improve afterward. I have yet to watch the video, I am pretty sure I know what
went wrong at this point!

To do: Send someone a thank you note

April 14th, 2009 | Posted by Bryan Koval in Tidbits - (0 Comments)

Today I received a hand-written, paper and pen thank you note in the mail from a student whom I have mentored as he has gone on to pursue a masters degree in student affairs administration.  He is graduating next month and has charted a course for success in this crazy field we have all chosen.

I cannot exactly put into words how motivating and rewarding it was to receive this note.  So often the work that we do with students evaporates into the atmosphere without any concrete evidence that we have made a real difference.  For me, the note I received today is the exception that proves that rule.

So . . . add this to your to-do list.  Write a genuine bona fide thank you note to someone who has contributed to where you are today.  They will feel great, and so will you!

Isolationism on College Campuses

April 4th, 2009 | Posted by Craig Berger in Tidbits - (0 Comments)

The best paragraph I've read in a few weeks comes from the introduction of Paul Loeb's Soul of a Citizen.

The dream of sanctuary is an illusion. It erodes our souls by eroding our sense of larger connection, whether to our fellow human beings or to that force that many of us call God. The walls we're building around ourselves, around those closest to us, and ultimately around our hearts may provide a temporary feeling of security. But they can't prevent the world from affecting us. Quite the opposite. The more we construct such barriers, the more private life, for most of us, will grow steadily more insecure. (pg. 7)

In applying Loeb's writing to my experience on a college campus, the first thing I think of is walking past those students who simply can't walk on campus without earphones on or a cell phone held to their ear. My sightings of these students have skyrocketed over the past three years, with iPods commonplace and cell phones becoming a staple. Each time I see a student say goodbye to a group of friends and then pull out a cell phone to call someone else, I wonder about the connection between this behavior and self-confidence.

The idea of a "larger connection," as Loeb labels it, seems lost on many of today's college students. Many students would seemingly rather keep listening to their music than say thank you to those holding a door open for them. It seems like they'd do anything possible to avoid having to decide whether or not to make eye contact with a stranger and utter one syllable. So what do they do? Whip out the cell phone to talk to someone that's within their "walls."

We've accomplished quite a bit last year, speaking in terms of civic engagement. College students showed an incredible amount of enthusiasm all over the country for the political process, and service-learning is playing a larger role in education across the nation. But perhaps we're looking too much at the forest instead of zeroing in on the trees.

I've resisted the notion that just because youth today engage in activism online and plan it online, the Millennial brand of activism is of a diminished quality. However, I do think that youth today can improve their efforts to create positive change by challenging themselves to tear down some of those walls so they can be expanded. A face-to-face interaction with a stranger isn't going to lead to a scolding anymore like it might if we Millennials were still trapped in your childhood. Loeb gets it right — the more we erect walls, the more insecure we get; the less walls we have surrounding us, the more confident we are.

Stress? Keeping Your Head Above Water

October 6th, 2008 | Posted by Debra Sanborn in Campus Issues | Freshman | SA Humor | Tidbits | University - (0 Comments)

It’s near the middle of the fall semester for many campuses and there’s a chance you are feeling that pinch of stress. That feeling that we have bitten off more than we can chew and overcommitted ourselves. Again. The feeling of a schedule becoming out of control that may require snorkle gear if we reply to one more email request. Snorklebrian_3

Stress raises our adrenaline, resulting in increased heart rate, respiration, and blood pressure. These increases make bodily organs work harder. A little stress is good and keeps us on our toes. But over the long term, too much stress can lead to illnesses such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and stroke.

The MBTI Blog discusses our stress as an In The Grip experience, or being forced to react contrary to personality preferences. Usually my recognition of being in a Grip experience arises when I am counseling a student with school anxiety and realize I need to take my own advice.

In my first-year seminar, we discuss the symptoms and effects of stress and ways college students can alleviate stress through planning and organization. For a bit of fun, we encourage students to add more stress to their lives with a few of the suggestions below:

♦ No matter where you are going, always leave for the appointment at the time you should be arriving. On the way there, drive, walk or ride your bike no further than two feet from the car or person in front of you.

♦ Don’t pay attention to your body. If you feel yourself becoming over-stressed and tired, ignore it and keep pushing yourself.

♦ Make a special effort to take note of the irritations in your life and blow them out of proportion. Be resentful and hypercritical, especially toward yourself.

♦ Refuse to take action on nagging problems. Procrastinate, worry, and whenever possibly lose sleep over them. Blame other people for all of your problems.

♦ If you’ve been sleeping less than 4 hours a night, consider eliminating this activity altogether.

Stress Management Tips offers great information, games and exercises to introduce to your students. Me? I’m practicing a little deep breathing until finals week.

What causes you stress? Do you have a favorite stress reliever?

Creating A Contemporary Mission Statement

June 17th, 2008 | Posted by Del Suggs in Campus Issues | Club/Org Recruitment | Creativity | Leadership Training | Member Retention | Tidbits - (0 Comments)

Every organization on campus needs a Mission Statement.  As a matter of fact, every department and office on campus should have a Mission Statement.  While it sounds like a pretty simple matter to create a mission, it’s more difficult and requires more thought than you might initially consider.

The modern mission statement is far different than it’s predecessor.  How can that be?  Isn’t a mission statement just the purpose for an organization?  Shouldn’t it be simple to capture your purpose in a few words?

Here’s the difference in the modern Mission Statement:  it explains why. 

Old school mission statements defined what an organization did.  Contemporary mission statements define why an organization does what it does.

See, it’s really the why we do things that matters.

Let me give you an example.  I worked with a history and natural science museum to create a new mission statement.  Their old mission was typical.  It explained what the museum did:  maintained a collection of native plants, animals, and historic buildings and presented programs to the public.

I started out the rewrite by asking everyone why the museum was important.  I talked with staff, volunteers, board members, visitors, any one who had an opinion.  Why was all the stuff the museum did important?

I discovered that the museum had a higher mission than just collecting artifacts.  All of the collections were simple tools serving a bigger goal.   

In the end, this became the new Mission Statement:  "The Museum promotes knowledge and understanding of the area’s cultural history and natural environment, inspiring people to enrich their lives and build a better community."

The real mission of the organization was to inspire people to enrich their lives, and to thereby create a better community.  That was why volunteers gave their time.  That was why staff members worked long hours without complaint.  That was why donors provided funding.  Collecting artifacts and presenting exhibits just assisted in reaching that end goal.

Think about applying that lesson to your organization and office.  Take a look at your mission statement.  Does it define what you do?  Redevelop it so that it explains why you do what you do.  What is your ultimate purpose?

Humor in Student Affairs

April 12th, 2008 | Posted by Tom Krieglstein in Tidbits - (0 Comments)