10 Tips for Mentoring & Supervising a “Know-It-All”

September 5, 2011

A “know-it-all” is someone who thinks they are above your leadership and presumes to know everything about the workings of your organization. These individuals may not necessarily be disrespectful or a problem team member, but can keep the team from reaching its full potential as they may feel they have nothing left to learn when, in fact, they have much more they could accomplish. Below are ten strategies for mentoring and supervising a “know-it-all.”

  1. Remain humble and patient – As the leader, you need to remain humble and patient despite the personalities of the people on your team. It goes without saying that you are in charge so you do not always have to reaffirm this. Doing so repeatedly will undoubtedly create discord and unneeded conflicts. Be a leader; do not simply say you are one. Have patience with those who may think they have learned everything there is to know about your organization so you can help them to accomplish more for the team.
  2. Assign extremely challenging tasks – The simplest way to get a complainer or know-it-all to put their money where their mouth is is by assigning challenging tasks. This is not meant to be done to put them in their place or to make a fool out of them, but to push them to further develop their knowledge and skills. If you take the stand that this individual cannot learn anymore, they will remain stagnant. It is your job as a leader to set high expectations and challenges for them.
  3. Involve them in new areas – Expand their skill set by getting them involved in other areas in which they normally do not participate. This will allow them to have new experiences within your organization and further develop their skills.
  4. Allow them to fail – Learning from failure and making mistakes is an excellent opportunity for new understanding. Obviously you do not want to allow failure for large monetary expenditures or decisions related to life & safety issues, but purposely building room in for failure can prove helpful for staff development and continuous improvement.
  5. Increased levels of responsibility – One reason why individuals may feel that they know  it all is because they have not been challenged enough with new and more challenging responsibilities. Create projects purposely for them to allow them to stretch their wings while also being challenged.
  6. Use them as your own resource to develop their confidence Rely upon them for their expertise in areas that they do in fact excel in order to boost their confidence. While this may seem counter-intuitive, particularly with those individuals who can be problematic, one reason they may be a “know-it-all” is because they actually suffer from low self-esteem. Developing their confidence may prove helpful in easing their persistence in claiming to know everything.
  7. Role model mentoring behaviors & expect them to do so as well – Team members will tend to emulate the behaviors of those that inspire them and obtain positive team-wide results. Being a role model for your team and actually illustrating behaviors of what you expect from everyone will go a long way for those who think they have accomplished everything.
  8. Don’t tell me, show me! Have them demonstrate their skills, especially if they contend that they know how to solve various problems. This is not meant to be a battle of wills, but to push them further to reach their potential. Give them the resources and tools needed to accomplish the job, and allow them to do so.
  9. Establish trust by including them in confidential and sensitive information – Along with involving individuals in new areas and increasing their levels of responsibilities, you can establish trust with them by including them in discussions they may not have been privy to previously. Obviously you want to set explicit expectations regarding confidentiality.
  10. Counsel them out of the position – Lastly, it may be appropriate to counsel an individual out of their position, particularly if there really are no new challenges or responsibilities for them to tackle. Are you able to promote them to a new position within the organization? Are there other positions outside of the organization that you could recommend for them? Part of the mentoring process is to help recommend new opportunities for your team members so that they can grow as leaders even if that means those opportunities are outside of your organization.

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So You Want to Be a Vice President of Student Affairs (Guest Post by Dr. Linda D. Koch, D.Ed.)

August 2, 2011

Almost forty years ago, I decided I wanted to become a student affairs professional. As an undergraduate student, I was like many soon to be student affairs professionals in that I was a student government officer, in charge of the program board, involved in any number of clubs and organizations and little did I realize that would become my career path.  While working at my alma mater [East Stroudsburg], I was asked to fill in for a student affairs professional that needed to be on leave for a year. It was the beginning of what became a lifetime commitment to students.

I learned very early in this career that I needed to be credentialed appropriately. I watched many of my professional colleagues with lots of ability never chosen to be more than an Assistant or Associate Dean. Some by their own choosing but many because they felt it was not necessary to have a terminal degree. I should note that many of them were also female and that could also be another reason for not being selected. I made certain if I was not going to move up the career ladder there would be a good reason for it and it was not because I did not fit the academic requirement of a terminal degree.

My goal was to have all of my education completed by the time I was thirty. I missed it by about six months. It meant sacrifice and living on a budget that now seems quite meager. I commuted from Shippensburg, PA to State College, PA for two years before I realized I needed to spend the better part of a year getting the doctorate finished. There was a point in time that I also considered going to law school and not finishing the doctorate but I am glad I made the choice I did and completed a degree in Higher Education.

Our profession is an odd one in that there is no one degree that is preferred over another for the senior student affairs officer. The only criteria that I think is invaluable are the ability to speak in complete thoughts and also write them in communications to our academic colleagues. I have seen very intelligent professionals fail to achieve their goals because they neglect to write well and without grammatical mistakes and can barely engage others in conversation.

All of us read materials by professionals who are published in journals that are pertinent to what we do. Being a senior level administrator, however, does not necessarily mean you need to be published or even know how to conduct research. In these troubled times in all of education, we need to be able to analyze data, put together a plan that will work and become part of every committee on campus that needs to be reminded that students are our customer.

Working with all of the faculty and staff on a campus is always a part of the expectation for the senior student affairs officer. This is particularly true during troubled times and during an emergency, like a student tragedy. We have too many, most of the time, audiences that need to hear our voices. I believe it is critical that the Vice President for Student Affairs learns to be the spokesperson for the campus not only for student matters but in times of great sadness as well as joy. We are one of only a few administrators who can handle matters effectively when there needs to be one voice.

All of the experiences in higher education matter as you wander down the path that leads to the senior officer position. Most of us come out of housing and/or residence life. This is the only way to learn about how an institution functions. As a professional, I also think it is essential to move up through appropriate levels of experience, i.e. Assistant/Associate Dean, Dean and even Assistant Vice President. Learning takes place at all levels of responsibility but different settings are also important. I have worked at five different universities during my career and each one had a different way of doing things. That provided me with more perspective than I could possibly have hoped for.

Take advantage of professional development opportunities outside of the student affairs profession. Time I spent at Harvard’s Institute for Educational Management has been irreplaceable. Find someone on your campus who can nominate you for this program once you become a Vice President. Also, I have thoroughly enjoyed and learned a great deal by becoming a peer evaluator for Middle States Regional Accrediting Agency.  Visiting a campus that has just completed several years of studying itself and telling you about it, is a great way to gain ideas that may help you on your campus.

As your campus looks for leaders to participate on committees that are a part of various processes, volunteer to help. Volunteer to be a part of the selection processes for important positions on your campus, you will learn a great deal.

Making a campus better for students is all of our jobs and sometimes we do it well and other times we do not. In these financially troubled times, it will take more than the Vice President for Student Affairs to do that. As anyone begins the search process for such a position, ask others to help you. Practice questions for interviews are essential as you prepare for such an experience. Doing homework on the institutions you apply to is also critical in the process.

Finally, all of us work for a boss. Get to know your President and clearly let him or her know that you are a team player who wants to make the campus a better place for everyone. Being politically savvy and able to talk with other professionals is imperative to making sure you are successful.

Linda D. Koch, D.Ed. has been the only Vice President for Student Affairs in the history of Lock Haven University. She holds a BA and an MA in History from East Stroudsburg University; an M. S. in Counseling from Ohio University and a D. Ed. in Higher Education from Penn State University. A native of Pennsylvania, she has worked for East Stroudsburg University as an Assistant Dean; Ohio University as a Resident Director and Teaching Assistant; Shippensburg University as an Assistant Dean; Western Connecticut as Associate Dean and Lock Haven University as a Dean of Student Affairs and Vice President for Student Affairs. She resides in Lock Haven with four male cats!

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Posted by studentlifeguru

How to Avoid Creating Resident Assistant Boot Camp

July 21, 2011

With August right around the corner, many of us in Housing and Residence Life are in the process of developing our fall training for our resident assistant staffers. While this is generally a fun and exciting time, it can also be a very brutally intensive experience for many given that it can occur in a “short aggressive period of time” as my one close colleagues put it perfectly (@Crystal_N_Hoser). Institutional training traditions are passed down from generation to generation of professional staffers, and unfortunately, many of these training practices can actually be counter-productive. I would like to offer some successful practices that have worked for me when training my own staffers.

•TRAINING STARTS WITH THE HIRING PROCESS: You can minimize (*not eliminate*) the need to cover basic topics (e.g., campus resources and campus departments orientation) by hiring student leaders that already have a strong knowledge of the institution and the various services available to students on campus. Simple campus resource quizzes can actually be used as another assessment tool during the selection process in addition to what you already do. Additionally, many human resource policies and expectations can and should be communicated before and directly after an RA is hired. In this regard, they know exactly what is expected up front (typically occuring in late spring) rather than them hearing a familiar, “We will go over that during training in August.” Granted, expectations should be revisited again during training at some point, but they do not necessarily have to be part of a lengthy session.

•BE MINDFUL OF THE LENGTH OF THE WORK DAY AND WEEK: This is where I feel that many Residence Life departments can and do go overboard. It’s generally seen as a badge of courage to go through a “Hell Week” of sorts starting at 8 or 9 AM every day and going through 10 PM or later. Typical schedules I have seen (and have been a part of) go like this: breakfast, training, lunch, training, dinner, activity, staff meeting, bulletin boards, and, finally, bed. Rinse and repeat (for 7+ days straight). This is a tiring regiment that, again, can be more detrimental than productive. Burning our student staffers out prior to the actual move-in can set the stage for further problems throughout the semester.

•ASK YOURSELF – WHY ARE WE DOING THIS: If you do not have a strong answer for every activity and session that you are doing, then you may want to consider eliminating it from the training schedule. “Just because” or “We have to fill the schedule” are NOT good answers as to why you are including something for training. Have a reason for including every training session and activity in your schedule.

•DO NOT ATTEMPT TO COVER EVERY TOPIC: Think of training like a college class. You cannot learn everything about a particular subject in the course of one semester. Typically you will learn major themes about a subject, but not every topic and detail within that subject. You should use this same philosophy when designing RA training. Trying to pack everything in your training schedule related to policies and procedures, student conduct, programming, roommate conflicts, ethics, mental health issues, and everything else related to Residence Life is simply too much. Cover the topics that your staffers will need the most knowledge about for the first six weeks. Cover additional topics during staff meetings and staff development activities. Training should be an on-going, year-long process.

•TREAT YOUR RETURNERS / SENIOR LEVEL RA’s WITH REVERANCE: 2nd year and subsequent year returners going through the same process every year can be torture. Mix it up for them; get them involved in helping or develop advanced topics for them. You could also bring them back a day or two after all the new staffers have already covered the basic topics (this could also save you some money as you wouldn’t have to feed them all).

•ELIMINATE OR REDESIGN ”BEHIND CLOSED DOORS” ACTIVITIES: Role-playing type activities that new staffers go through to practice confronting hall violations (e.g., noise, alcohol, marijuana, domestic dispute) can be easily perceived as a mild form of hazing. It seems to be a badge of courage for a returning RA to role play in over-the-top situations that underhandedly try to stump the new RA’s trying to respond to the issue. However, these type of role playing sessions need to be designed as a teaching tool rather than an abusive right of passage. If you choose to include this type of training activity, create scenarios that are realistic and ends up being a positive learning opportunity for the new staffers. To save time and extensive planning, you can also include written case studies of varying difficulty that everyone can work on. Case study activities can be better supervised in one location rather than allowing the paraprofessional staff to control the activity throughout the halls where problems can arise.

Best wishes with your fall training! As always, I am willing to help you brainstorm ideas and offer advice.

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10 Ways to Burn Bridges in Student Affairs

May 31, 2011

Rarely, if ever, are we as student affairs professionals formally taught how to navigate the politics behind working in the field. As is the case in working with people in any career, learning how NOT to burn bridges is a important skill that we all can benefit from. Below are “10 Ways to Burn Bridges in Student Affairs” and how to adequately navigate yourself away from being called a trouble-maker:

1. Refuse to understand and embrace the culture of your department and institution.

We all become indoctrinated with the culture of the schools we grow up in, particularly our undergraduate institutions. Yet as we move onto different institutions for our graduate degrees and new professional positions, we can face completely different types of environments. Being able to adapt to new environments and people who have already established careers there can be challenging. It is important to take it slow and learn the culture of your new department and the institution as a whole. You can be perceived as threatening and making negative judgments about their program, particularly if you try to implement ideas from your previous institution too quickly. Create allies and collaborators before attempting to create programmatic changes. This is not to say that you cannot do your best and bring positive change to the department you work for, but take the time to understand the lay of the land before trying to make sweeping changes. Pushing too hard too quick will cause problems.

2. Speak negatively of colleagues at regional and / or national conferences and meetings.

The student affairs profession is a “small world,” and you will certainly have lifelong connections with individuals in the profession. This means that there is a good chance that you will have interactions with people you currently work with after you leave the institution and also have interactions with folks you have yet to work with. With that being said, you must remember that you are a student life staffer wherever you go. Keep in mind that there are ears everywhere when you go to national and regional conferences and meetings. Someone that overhears your negative comments can potentially be an important colleague or employer in your future.

3. Speak negatively about your colleagues and / or supervisor.

If you have something to say, say it directly to the individual in question in a private setting. People do not know how to change their behavior(s) unless you tell them. No one really wants to hear your complaints (unless of course your colleague or supervisor is doing something illegal, but there are proper forums for that on campus to file a complaint). Not to mention that there is a good chance that your criticisms will get back to your colleague(s) or supervisor at some point anyway in some shape or form. As was the case with #2 above, it is better to bite your tongue rather than have your tongue bite someone else (particularly your supervisor!) You may not necessarily get the result(s) that you want if you do have a private discussion, but at least your loyalty and professionalism cannot be questioned.

4. Attempt to outshine your colleagues in all that you do.

While this may come to a surprise to those of us who are “achievers” as defined by Strengths Finder, being competitive can actually be seen as a threat in many cases. This is particularly true if it is known that you are trying to make a point that you are more capable than your colleagues. Rather, bring your colleagues on board for some “competitive collaboration,” and raise the bar while including them in the process. This way you are not perceived as being “you-against-the-world” in your endeavors. As was stated in #1 above, create allies and collaborators to help you. In this regard you will most likely be seen as a leader in the department rather then a trouble-maker or know-it-all.

5. Use students to further your own personal agenda.

In many cases, students will emulate the causes and passions of their mentors and supervisors. This can be a positive learning experience for students, particularly when the cause is related to strategically-created student learning outcome efforts. However, this can be a dangerous proposition when the cause is solely for personal gain or vindictive reasons. Students should not be caught up in the personal conflicts and politics between full-time staff members that can often occur. Those outside of the drama looking in will quickly judge you for involving students in affairs they do not belong. This is not good for you, nor the department you work for.

6. Never admit that you are wrong.

We all have something to learn from our mistakes. While it can extremely difficult to admit that we are wrong or that we have made a mistake, acknowledging our shortcomings will go a long way with our colleagues. Remaining steadfast to a notion that everyone else does not agree with will not earn the hearts and minds of others. It takes courage to step back for a second and consider a new perspective that you do not necessarily agree with. Likewise, there is something to be said for someone who can admit that a decision or choice they made did not work.

7. Jump the chain of command.

Not only is this one of the quickest ways to burn a bridge, but it is also one of the quickest way to lose your job. Your superiors are you superiors for a reason, and you must respect that (whether you like them or not). Jumping over your supervisor’s head to speak to their supervisor (or even higher in the chain of command) will seriously call your loyalty into question. (This should go without saying, but you may have to do this in the case of illegal activity). If you are not getting the results that you want related to a decision or project, you must find another way in which to readdress the issue. (See #3 above). If you do not like what is going on, you can either change yourself, change your boss, or change your job!

8. Fail to follow “the lines of loyalty.”

This goes along with #1, #2, #3, and #7 in a global sense on campus because you may not know whom is connected to whom. Many individuals can be connected to one another outside of those divisional and departmental lines as defined by the institution. Just because someone on the other end of campus has nothing to do with your supervisor from a departmental standpoint does not mean that they do not already have a relationship in some shape or form with them (or anyone else in your department for that matter). Understanding the behind-the-scenes “lines of loyalty” is crucial as you can create allies or know whom to avoid (particularly if they are trouble-makers). Associating yourself with a known enemy of the department will invite problems. When in doubt, keep your mouth shut and stick to trusted allies.

9. Fail to practice humility.

A little bit of humility never hurt anyone. People want to be around others that are fun to be around, are good  listeners, demonstrate integrity, and are inclusive with others. Additionally, change the things you have direct control over and leave the rest alone (See Stephen Covey’s “Circle of Influence – Circle of Concern” in the The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People). “The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One that Isn’t” by Bob Sutton is a great book on this subject that I highly recommend, particularly if you find yourself in this scenario at your workplace.

10. Leave an institution / position on a sour note.

Colleagues and co-workers will remember more about your exit from the job than when you first started. While you may not be leaving under the best of circumstances, leaving gracefully is always the best practice. On the other hand, burning every bridge on your way out the door with negative comments and / or actions will really cause you yourself more emotional distress than your intended audience.

What is a “bridge” you’ve seen burned during the course of your student affairs career, and what was the lesson learned?

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Career & Leadership Resource: “Business Fitness” (Book Review)

April 26, 2011

Recently I made the acquaintance of a business blogger on Twitter (@businessfit) who offers remarkable content related to business development, leadership, organizational development, and employee supervision. She shared a book with me that she had published called Business Fitness.

Business Fitness is written by Dawn Lennon, an expert in organizational development and business coaching. Lennon defines being “business fit” by “developing intellectual strength and steady nerves so that you are positioned to handle any circumstances at anytime, anywhere” (p. 7). The book is divided into four parts: Business Fitness, Private Moves, Public Moves, and Lifelong Success. Each chapter comes complete with thought-provoking “do-it-yourself” inventories to complete to help you on the way to better define personal and professional goals related to career moves and entrepreneurship.

Business Fitness is written in a format in the conversational style of a thoughtful coach. It captures the essence of John Maxwell’s leadership and teamwork books. Although the book is is geared toward entrepreneurs, it is also appropriate for goal-minded achievers and leaders of all types. While the book does not illustrate how to incorporate a business or other operational means by which to run a business (i.e., taxes, insurance, etc.), it does coach the reader how to prepare to become a leader within your chosen career. The book is rife with inspirational quotes throughout each chapter and also includes stories of success and shortcomings of individuals to illustrate the ideas taught.

I recommend Business Fitness for all student affairs professionals and student leaders alike. The text would be appropriate to use for staff development activities, supervision meetings, and team conversations.

Lennon, D. G. (2007). Business fitness: The power to succeed – your way. Centennial, CO: Glenbridge.

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Reflecting on the Past

March 29, 2011

A Journey of Self-Reflection

What pops into your mind when I say the University of California at Berkley?  Maybe images of hippies in  the late 1960′s wearing bell bottoms and strumming their guitars on the lawn between classes.  Or maybe you are a reader of the Student Life Guru Blog that has actually been UC Berkley and know that stereotype is long extinct. 

Take a look at this modern version of UC Berkley: http://bit.ly/eHiIlk (access date 3/29/2011.)  

Now gaze at this historical image of UC Berkley from 1907:  http://1.usa.gov/hZInBp  (access date 3/29/2011.)

The physical differences are both stunning and obvious.  Just like UC Berkley, in one hundred years a lot has changed on campuses all over the country.  Has the essence or mission of colleges and universities changed drastically in the last century?  Examine these photos again in terms of your own role at your college or university.

  • In my current position, what would my role to students be in 1911?
  • Do you think your current job would be vastly different in the past then it is now and how?
  • What sorts of interactions would you have with students in the early 1900′s?
  • How do you think students would perceive you one hundred years ago as their leader/mentor?
  • Do you think your mission towards students is different then your current mission? How? Why?

Maybe after some reflection you feel glad that you can happily tweet your staff to invite them to an impromptu cup of coffee for all their hard work or maybe like a colleague of yours in the distant past you put pen-to-paper and draft a glowing letter of thanks for your exceptional staffer. 

Has the mission, developing students and leaders, changed dramatically in one hundred years or is student development the same but the methods different?

___________________________________________________________

The 1907 image of the University of California at Berkley, along with 238 breathtaking panoramic views of colleges in the early 1900′s, are available in the Digital Collections of the Library of Congress (access date 3/29/2011.)  You just might be able to find an image of your school there! (Panoramic Photographs access date 3/29/2011.) You must actually click on college campuses embedded in the paragraph.

Current photos of UC Berkley are available on their website: http://www.berkeley.edu/photos/campus/ (access date 3/29/2011.)

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Volunteering as an Alternative Spring Break Advisor / Chaperone (Guest Post by Jamie Shook)

March 23, 2011

In March, I had the unique opportunity to serve as a graduate student chaperone for an Alternative Spring Break trip to Detroit, Michigan, with students at the University of South Carolina. I heard the trip would require construction work, and I had an image of myself in my worn undergraduate t-shirts with a hammer and nails laughing in the sunshine over spring break with students, and gathering in the evening for significant group reflection that inspired laughter and tears. The day our group left for Detroit, I loaded my oversized suitcase along with nine students and a professional staff member into a 15 passenger van and proceeded to Michigan. 

Here are some highlights from my trip with some advice related to participating as an alternative spring break advisor / chaperone:

Go for it!  The volunteer opportunity came as an email six months ago on a listserv asking for professional and graduate student help. I informally replied to the contact person my interest.  At the time, I was not able to predict how busy my spring would be with my graduate assistantship, academic coaching, and summer internships interviews.  As the trip neared, so did my eager anticipation (and perhaps my anxiety) for the trip. There were certainly moments prior to the trip where I thought, “Shouldn’t I be using that week to relax? Catch up on work? Sleep?” But my advice to you, if I had any for this, is to go for it!

You may think you have control, but you have no idea. Volunteer opportunities are always a tricky thing. You have to be beyond flexible (nearly fluid) to have a successful experience.  urther, as a chaperone you may think in a moment of complete naiveté that you have some form of control beyond what the students have. This may be true as far as holding the pre-paid gas card, but completely alien from the truth in many other ways. The student leader who coordinated and planned the service trip revealed details of the trip coordination as the trip moved forward. My advice: Ensure students are safe and (relatively) happy and watch the group dynamic and student leadership in the making. Support the student leader as needed, but be happy to give up the reigns, and watch the learning process of your students.

Community building is essential. It takes more than a bus ride. As a chaperone, you sometimes only have the trip to help develop community within the group. Our group did not meet regularly prior to the trip but would have benefited greatly from such opportunity. Recognize the value community building brings to your service trip, make it a priority, and schedule time to create group community prior to the trip. This further allows you, as a chaperone, to gain an understanding of the needs of individuals in the group and benefits you during the trip as group dynamic issue comes into play.

There will probably be group dynamic issues. Recognize this and roll with it. Support your student leader in understanding their role in group conflict and the outstanding opportunity for growth that comes from it. As the chaperone, ensure that all rules are being followed, and show impartiality during the conflict. Help students, individually or in the group, process the conflict afterward, and discuss what they have gained from this particular experience.

Not everyone in your group will be thrilled about the service opportunity. You may run into an issue where a student is not happy to be working on homes, interacting with children, or assisting the aging community. As a chaperone, encourage the students that are enjoying the service experience, and work with individuals who are not. Intentional discussions to express mutual expectations prior to the trip are key to avoiding this issue, but in the moment you can help the student recognize the strengths they bring to this particular project and the skills they are gaining. Help the student make connections between their service projects this week and their multiple roles back at their home institution and local community.

Students will form meaningful moments with their peers, sometimes (gasp) without your help. You will be amazed and how your students interact. It was inspiring for me to play cards in the evening and watch as the group of students encouraged and supported each other. As much as I would love to take credit for the deepened relationships among the group, I can’t. Meaningful moments can be created without intentionality. While it is important to create moments for reflection and team building, recognize the value of unplanned moments of meaning. 

Student learning is essential, but take time to think about your own learning, too. I can guarantee you will learn as a chaperone on an Alternative Spring Break trip with 24/7 student contact. Recognize the importance of student learning, but also think of your own growth during the trip. Encourage others to break barriers, but do the same yourself.

Journal during the trip. During formalized reflection, give your own personal thoughts from the trip. This will encourage students to reflect and think about the affect their current work has on their current and future roles as students and professionals.

It’s an adventure, and it’s worth it. Alternative Spring Break trips are true adventures. Treat these trips as such, and recognize that adventures come with responsibilities. Prepare for the adventure accordingly. Alternative Spring Break trips require hard work and preparation, but they are worth it.

Jaime Shook is a graduate student in the Higher Education Student Affairs program at the University of South Carolina (USC).  She serves as a graduate assistant for University 101, the first-year seminar course, and as an academic skills coach for the Academic Centers for Excellence (ACE) at the University. 

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5 Rules for Student Leadership (guest post by Jeff Stafford)

March 14, 2011

(submitted by Jeff Stafford of Orange Slice Training)

A recent article from the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) reviewed key findings from a new book coining the phrase ”Open Leadership.”  While the book is written from the influence of social media on leadership, I think these new Rules are applicable to student leadership as well. I’ve adapted them to fit the current reality of student leadership today:

1.  Respect that others have power. The simple lesson in this is that leadership is more about character than charisma; your leadership is NOT positional.  A traditional mindset of command and control leadership is going to go the way of MySpace in a Twitter-induced world.

2.  Share constantly to build trust. Sometimes leaders might feel they need to put on the “air” of knowing all and being professionally tight-lipped.  Be able to share information, responsibilities, and CREDIT. This will go a long way to build your skills as leaders.  People are talking whether you share the information or not. So be in control by sharing and not dictating.

3.  Nurture curiosity & humility. Only a fool thinks they can do this alone.  That’s the same fool who takes on doing a campus event all by themselves because no one else would do it as well or don’t have the time to do it as well as you.  Right.  And you will be the only one at the program that night.  Being able to be curious is about exploring ideas and not grilling someone for information.

4. Hold yourself as accountable as you do others. If you expect the same from yourself as you do others, you create an openness based in integrity. You do what you say you are going to do. And you make it right if it’s gone awry. You get to apologize when you know it’s not up to your standard.  And you make it right for you and those touched by your leadership.

5. There are no failures. There are only lessons in learning. Even in the example of doing the program by yourself and enjoying the band all by yourself can still be a lesson. When seen this way, versus failure, you provide an opportunity for others to take risks, live big, and share in your vision of leadership. Reread #4 if you keep repeating the lessons over and over, and see how you might hold yourself a bit more accountable so that they are not repeated.

Applying these 5 Rules of Open Leadership will allow you and your organization to build strong relationships with each other and the relationship your group creates in the context of the Student Life Experience.

Jeff Stafford is founder of Orange Slice Training – a company that specializes in creating learning and leadership events that are JUICY!  As a former Student Affairs professional, Jeff holds a M.S. in Counseling & Student Personnel from Minnesota State University, Mankato.  He is also the author of the upcoming book, Create Your Juicy Life.  Grab your FREE action guides HERE.  Connect with Jeff to learn more how Orange Slice Training can be a part of your next leadership event.

1 Comment | Leadership, Student Activities, Teamwork | Permalink
Posted by juicylifeguy

5 Musts in Creating Change on Campus (guest post from Jeff Stafford of Orange Slice Training)

February 20, 2011

You’ve got ideas as a leader. You want to see new things happen. But you can’t get your group to change. Many times leaders have started to run the race of change and then loop in their group. Or you and your group hatch really great ideas that can change your campus forever, but you just can’t get the administration to buy into it.

Use these steps in making the next BIG change or ideas stick – remember ADKAR!  This model was created by Prosci to help with both organizational and personal change:

Awareness. Often times, leaders are so far out in front that they lose sight of those needed to help support the change. You must create awareness for the idea or change proposed. To create AWARENESS for the change, create a list for why this must occur.  Tailor the list to the audience.  What are your key messages that you want to share with the campus community?

Desire. Okay, you’re excited about the idea – but now you need to tap into the motivation for others and help them create the desire for the change.  Create a list of the top 3 motivators that will allow them to shake their head to support your idea. To get at this, you might also ask - What if we don’t do anything? Make sure you address the “what’s in it for me?” question. If you don’t there’s no use going any further.

Knowledge. Create a really clear picture of what life looks like when the idea is in place – or when the change has occurred. Provide people the information needed to support your choice. Remember Knowledge is power.

Ability. What new skills or abilities might you need to implement the change or idea?  What might the Administration need to learn to support you?  Provide access and opportunity for them to learn.

Reinforcement. This is the stage that supports the new change or idea. Plan a celebration, thanking those that helped you get what you wanted. Strengthen the relationship at this point, this will set you up for more support the next time lightning strikes and you have another great idea to implement.

As campus leaders you have great ideas – use these steps to support your work!

Jeff Stafford is founder of Orange Slice Training – a company that specializes in creating learning and leadership events that are JUICY!  As a former Student Affairs professional, Jeff holds a M.S. in Counseling & Student Personnel from Minnesota State University, Mankato.  He is also the author of the upcoming book, Create Your Juicy Life.  Grab your FREE action guides HERE.  Connect with Jeff to learn more how Orange Slice Training can be a part of your next leadership event.

Leave a Comment » | Leadership, Student Activities, Teamwork | Permalink
Posted by juicylifeguy

Guest Post for TheSABloggers.org (10 Secrets to Managing an “Inherited Staff”)

January 26, 2011

This week I created a post for The Student Affairs Collaborative blog entitled “10 Secrets to Managing an Inherited Staff.” As many of us in leadership positions have changed positions a number of times in our career, supervising an “inherited staff” can be either a rewarding or especially challenging experience. However, there are a few secrets that you can use in order to gain the respect and trust of your new staff and have an easier job transition. Please take a look at the article, and feel free to post comments and questions.

Leave a Comment » | Leadership, Supervision, Teamwork | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by studentlifeguru

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