This final group project was an interesting self discovery for me. I think this is because living in a Greek community that doesn't foster a sense of community can be pretty draining on one's enthusiastic outlook on change. When I went into this group project, most people will tell you that I was very pessimistic and negative while trying to brainstorm ideas for our "perfect" Greek community. I have discovered that this outlook arose out of the countless subliminal "paslov" reinforcements. A majority of fraternities and sororities are not looking for group cohesiveness.
This is where the first major gap in fictional Greek community and the real life one we currently are in. One of the major differences is that our project community highlighted collaboration heavily between fraternities and sororities. Each Greek house aimed at improving themselves while also improving others. This selfless commonality not only ensured individual chapters were refined into achieving their greatest potential, but the community at large accomplished this as well. The problem with the current fraternal situation is that it lacks heavily in the area of collaboration. In fact it borders on directly hindering collaboration. "Chapter Bashing" is notorious in our Greek Community. Even chapters that have similar values as ours are hated(i.e. called douches) because they don't "carry out" their ideals in a similar fashion. I know from having roommates and floormates in other chapters that this is a common community practice. Luckily, this change would be pretty simple to convert to our fraternal change model and would seriously help with the "resistance" so many of my brothers have brought up in their blogs.
The other major gap in our two groups is community congruence in individual chapter and Greek life values. In our project, each chapter individually had values special to them which fostered intrinsic motivation for maintaining these ideals, and improving their chapter. In a community setting our similar values combined into a unified front which created a communal sense of cultivating individualistic improvement and benefitting the ohio-state community as a whole. As of now, our community is more focused on "ragers" and selfish, inward looking mindset. Although there is the argument that this style benefits individual chapters, the Greek community's image as a whole is being negatively affected. When one chapter is "bashed" then the community as a whole gets grouped in this negative stigma.
Both of these differences really explain the rest of the differences in our final presentation and Greek life as it is now. This is because the rest of the differences are actually similarities once these two disparities are corrected. Active self improvement of character, community involvement/ betterment, and fostering lifelong social etiquette/ lifelong positive friendships are just a couple of similarities that would show if we fixed our group cohesiveness and congruence.
Any thoughts?
Coz
Monday, March 14, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Agent for Change
This chapter jumped out to me for a few reasons. The first major thing that lept off the page at me was that anyone can be an agent for change. You don't have to be the president or a leader of an astute corporation or group. It could be a five year old who sees something that is lacking in the community. I think people often assume that if you are not in a position of legitimate power than you cannot make a difference. This chapter points out that as long as you see a need for change, you have a mission to accomplish that change, and you follow the seven c's of the social change model that you have the makings to start effective change.
The second thing that I would like to stress is how an individual, no matter how passionate and enthusiastic about change, can only go so far. In order for to achieve the greatest potential for change it must be focused around a group effort. Not only does this help diversify and freshen ideas, but it also allows for a sounding board to gather ideas from and to bounce ideas off of.
I think in a group setting there is also times for leading and times for following. Sometimes one's ideals and efforts can only go so far as a leading force. However difficult it may be letting go of the reigns, it is necessary sometimes to let others take the lead. If one is so steadfast in being a leader it can lead to group conflicts that end up hindering the group. Also, leading takes on different appearances depending on what is necessary. Sometimes coercive power is indeed the kind of power that has to be implemented to get things rolling. In some circumstances referent power works better. It all depends on the situation as does knowing when to lead and when to follow.
The second to last idea I really like in being a change agent is taking small steps at a time. In most situations one's figurative muscles are not developed enough to make a giant leap into the waters of change ( ha cheesy much ). Although it is hard to see changes in the small steps, they are the most beneficial in building the foundation for change. As one of my brothers mentioned in his blog, "it takes time to implement change." Just because you dont see immediate results doesn't mean your plan for change isn't working. Sometimes a bunch of small steps that take a while to produce results end up making the biggest difference. When you add little factors they will add up overtime and create lasting change.
Anyways, those were just some ideas that came to me while reading.
Dueces sideways,
Coz
The second thing that I would like to stress is how an individual, no matter how passionate and enthusiastic about change, can only go so far. In order for to achieve the greatest potential for change it must be focused around a group effort. Not only does this help diversify and freshen ideas, but it also allows for a sounding board to gather ideas from and to bounce ideas off of.
I think in a group setting there is also times for leading and times for following. Sometimes one's ideals and efforts can only go so far as a leading force. However difficult it may be letting go of the reigns, it is necessary sometimes to let others take the lead. If one is so steadfast in being a leader it can lead to group conflicts that end up hindering the group. Also, leading takes on different appearances depending on what is necessary. Sometimes coercive power is indeed the kind of power that has to be implemented to get things rolling. In some circumstances referent power works better. It all depends on the situation as does knowing when to lead and when to follow.
The second to last idea I really like in being a change agent is taking small steps at a time. In most situations one's figurative muscles are not developed enough to make a giant leap into the waters of change ( ha cheesy much ). Although it is hard to see changes in the small steps, they are the most beneficial in building the foundation for change. As one of my brothers mentioned in his blog, "it takes time to implement change." Just because you dont see immediate results doesn't mean your plan for change isn't working. Sometimes a bunch of small steps that take a while to produce results end up making the biggest difference. When you add little factors they will add up overtime and create lasting change.
Anyways, those were just some ideas that came to me while reading.
Dueces sideways,
Coz
SCM
O boy, the social change model. I will go into what this means, hopefully not being to repetitive haha.
The SCM has helped me realize the potential I have in Fiji's community, the Greek community, and the OSU community. It has solidified what I have already known about leadership, debunked some of the myths of leadership, and added to my understanding of leading. It has done this is a few different ways.
First of all, I think the social change model has really helped to put some structure to what I already knew about group collaborations and leadership. I guess before the social change model I never realized just how much focus there should be on the individual. First you need to understand your own values, because without understanding your own beliefs how can you expect to lead others towards a goal or belief. Also I have learned just how important congruency is in your values, not just for your character, but also for gaining trust from others which is extremely important in leadership.
The second thing I have learned Is how to effectively integrate myself in a group and just how important diversity in a group can really be. SCM has really shown me that a group does not have to have similar mindsets to be effective. In fact its better to have different mindsets so that there are multiple perspectives on how a goal can be achieved and you can take the positive aspects of each different perspective. One myth SCM has helped me debunk is that there can only be one leader in a group. I think this is a great thing to know especially when you accompany this idea with a diverse group. Each member brings in a different perspective and also excels in different areas. This means that for given situations any member can be a leader.
Another great idea the social change model brings forth is controversy with civility. This is because with unique and differing perspectives it is easy to get into arguments over which one is better. Controversy without civility causes groups to be dysfunctional. But with civility multiple ideas can come together and form a new all encompassing idea. This ensures that all different ideas are analyzed and the best possible idea/ combination of ideas is/are chosen.
The SCM has really shed light on all of these different areas of leadership and I cant wait to try and integrate what I have learned into my leadership capabilities.
Peace out yall
Coz
The SCM has helped me realize the potential I have in Fiji's community, the Greek community, and the OSU community. It has solidified what I have already known about leadership, debunked some of the myths of leadership, and added to my understanding of leading. It has done this is a few different ways.
First of all, I think the social change model has really helped to put some structure to what I already knew about group collaborations and leadership. I guess before the social change model I never realized just how much focus there should be on the individual. First you need to understand your own values, because without understanding your own beliefs how can you expect to lead others towards a goal or belief. Also I have learned just how important congruency is in your values, not just for your character, but also for gaining trust from others which is extremely important in leadership.
The second thing I have learned Is how to effectively integrate myself in a group and just how important diversity in a group can really be. SCM has really shown me that a group does not have to have similar mindsets to be effective. In fact its better to have different mindsets so that there are multiple perspectives on how a goal can be achieved and you can take the positive aspects of each different perspective. One myth SCM has helped me debunk is that there can only be one leader in a group. I think this is a great thing to know especially when you accompany this idea with a diverse group. Each member brings in a different perspective and also excels in different areas. This means that for given situations any member can be a leader.
Another great idea the social change model brings forth is controversy with civility. This is because with unique and differing perspectives it is easy to get into arguments over which one is better. Controversy without civility causes groups to be dysfunctional. But with civility multiple ideas can come together and form a new all encompassing idea. This ensures that all different ideas are analyzed and the best possible idea/ combination of ideas is/are chosen.
The SCM has really shed light on all of these different areas of leadership and I cant wait to try and integrate what I have learned into my leadership capabilities.
Peace out yall
Coz
Fiji Strengths and Weaknesses
Hello Everyone,
Since I don't like to end on negative notes I suppose I will start off with Fiji weaknesses.
Service is definitely an area in which Fiji lacks and we lack for a couple of reasons. The first is we don't harp on brothers who don't make their service hours. Seven a quarter is not difficult and the only disincentive that is out there is a weak sentence normally comprising of being a sober monitor at one social event. In my mind ( not saying I do this ) it is almost better to skip the 7 hours of service and get the fine. Why waste seven hours when you get a fine you might not even have to be forced to do ( I have heard several brothers with this mindset for the record ). The second big issue is that we don't reward/congratulate brothers who excel in this area. There is no incentive to become excellent in this value ( in essence we are neglecting two values by treating service like we do.) Most Fiji's just try to comply with the minimum of 7 hours and then pass up other service opportunities because the requirement was fulfilled. Now the last problem I see is that Fiji makes service an individual prerogative. Although there are some huge group events, no brothers actually make an effort to plan service projects with other brothers. As one of my brothers already mentioned in his blog, Fiji could really grow in the area of service if we just attempted to make it more group oriented.
The other obvious area Fiji is lacking in is the social aspect. I'm not saying we don't like to go out and have a good time. Of course not, some of the best times I have ever had have been out with my brothers. What I am talking about is our interactions and "lasting impressions" we leave with sororities. We have talked about this issue in class a lot so I'll just summarize a couple points of where we are lacking. The first is the connections we "fail" at making. Not trying to sound harsh or anything, but Fiji has some trouble making lasting connections. This could be a result of awkward social settings, needing alcohol for "confidence", or our lack of previously known sorority ladies. Either way, only a few brothers are able to make connections in the night and, as another brother mentioned, when we wake up nothing significant has changed since the prior night. I do think that more sober events could really strengthen us in this area. Accompany that with treating a T.G. as a pre game instead of "the game" would also help us make actual connections with sororities.
Both of these weaknesses revolve around our community. However both of these could be great strong suits if we change our deficiencies in both categories.
Onto Fiji strengths.
This will be really lengthy if I go into every area in which we are great so I'll narrow it down to what I think is our greatest area.
I believe it is our diversity that sets us apart from any other chapter. Not in terms of ethnicity, but in terms of ideas and perspectives. Everyone in Fiji is so unique. There are social extroverts, brothers involved in every area of campus, video gamers, musicians, and many more. All of these different perspectives combine into the most unique fraternity on campus. I think this diversity leads not to a downfall, but a true advantage in the Greek community. Becoming stagnant is a true fear in Greek life. I think this is very likely if your chapter has similar perspectives and ideas. This is why Fiji is so great. We always have new ideas and perspectives to contribute to the overall greatness that is the Feej. This causes our values to be continually checked and improved never allowing our chapter to grow contempt in our ways but to always be striving for excellence. I believe this comes primarily from recruitment. Every brother looks for potentials who embody our values. However, every brother has different values they cherish more than others. So this leads to bringing potentials around who all excel in different areas of Fiji. Our diversity is also a strength in our community because we have brothers who can relate to every chapter and person on campus. This is great for recruitment and trying to foster a unified Greek community.
I think that cabinet is really starting to address our weaknesses and they are doing a great job in fostering a unified Fiji front. However, other than recruitment, I feel like our committee chairs are lacking mostly from poor organization skills. I do think that cabinet will help them grow and really utilize our resources to make Fiji the best that it can be.
Signing off.
Coz
Since I don't like to end on negative notes I suppose I will start off with Fiji weaknesses.
Service is definitely an area in which Fiji lacks and we lack for a couple of reasons. The first is we don't harp on brothers who don't make their service hours. Seven a quarter is not difficult and the only disincentive that is out there is a weak sentence normally comprising of being a sober monitor at one social event. In my mind ( not saying I do this ) it is almost better to skip the 7 hours of service and get the fine. Why waste seven hours when you get a fine you might not even have to be forced to do ( I have heard several brothers with this mindset for the record ). The second big issue is that we don't reward/congratulate brothers who excel in this area. There is no incentive to become excellent in this value ( in essence we are neglecting two values by treating service like we do.) Most Fiji's just try to comply with the minimum of 7 hours and then pass up other service opportunities because the requirement was fulfilled. Now the last problem I see is that Fiji makes service an individual prerogative. Although there are some huge group events, no brothers actually make an effort to plan service projects with other brothers. As one of my brothers already mentioned in his blog, Fiji could really grow in the area of service if we just attempted to make it more group oriented.
The other obvious area Fiji is lacking in is the social aspect. I'm not saying we don't like to go out and have a good time. Of course not, some of the best times I have ever had have been out with my brothers. What I am talking about is our interactions and "lasting impressions" we leave with sororities. We have talked about this issue in class a lot so I'll just summarize a couple points of where we are lacking. The first is the connections we "fail" at making. Not trying to sound harsh or anything, but Fiji has some trouble making lasting connections. This could be a result of awkward social settings, needing alcohol for "confidence", or our lack of previously known sorority ladies. Either way, only a few brothers are able to make connections in the night and, as another brother mentioned, when we wake up nothing significant has changed since the prior night. I do think that more sober events could really strengthen us in this area. Accompany that with treating a T.G. as a pre game instead of "the game" would also help us make actual connections with sororities.
Both of these weaknesses revolve around our community. However both of these could be great strong suits if we change our deficiencies in both categories.
Onto Fiji strengths.
This will be really lengthy if I go into every area in which we are great so I'll narrow it down to what I think is our greatest area.
I believe it is our diversity that sets us apart from any other chapter. Not in terms of ethnicity, but in terms of ideas and perspectives. Everyone in Fiji is so unique. There are social extroverts, brothers involved in every area of campus, video gamers, musicians, and many more. All of these different perspectives combine into the most unique fraternity on campus. I think this diversity leads not to a downfall, but a true advantage in the Greek community. Becoming stagnant is a true fear in Greek life. I think this is very likely if your chapter has similar perspectives and ideas. This is why Fiji is so great. We always have new ideas and perspectives to contribute to the overall greatness that is the Feej. This causes our values to be continually checked and improved never allowing our chapter to grow contempt in our ways but to always be striving for excellence. I believe this comes primarily from recruitment. Every brother looks for potentials who embody our values. However, every brother has different values they cherish more than others. So this leads to bringing potentials around who all excel in different areas of Fiji. Our diversity is also a strength in our community because we have brothers who can relate to every chapter and person on campus. This is great for recruitment and trying to foster a unified Greek community.
I think that cabinet is really starting to address our weaknesses and they are doing a great job in fostering a unified Fiji front. However, other than recruitment, I feel like our committee chairs are lacking mostly from poor organization skills. I do think that cabinet will help them grow and really utilize our resources to make Fiji the best that it can be.
Signing off.
Coz
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