North Carolina Route 168, which runs through Currituck County. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Carolina_Highway_168

The musical group Blind Melon was right on the money in their song that states the number 3 is the magic number. There are three  sides of a triangle and three wheels on a tricycle. This idea of three is also present in university life, with a great deal of courses being three credit hours that meet three days a week. However, while the number 3 does have a particular magic, 168 is thereal magic number. But why?

The reason 168 is the magic number (at least for this post) is because it just happens to be the number of hours in a week. Every week, we spend our time doing a wide variety of things. These include, but are not limited to, nor listed in any particular order:

• Sleep
• Class
• Personal / Social Time
• Work
• Studying / Homework
• Club Meetings / Campus Events

There are plenty of other things that could be included, but let’s stick with these for now. As we have an idea of what it is that consumes our weekly time, let’s plot out a breakdown of what one might spend their time doing during the course of a given week, with a starting point of 168 available hours in a week.

Sleep: Our hypothetical person gets 7 hours of sleep a night, every night. 7 hours x 7 days = 49 hours of sleep. Total hours left: 119 (168-49)

Class: This person is college student, taking 4 courses at 3 credits per course for a total of 12 credit hours. Each class meets 3 days a week for one hour. That’s a total of 12 hours just in class alone. Total hours left: 107 (119 – 12)

Personal / Social Time: This category includes spending time with friends or just relaxing on one’s own. Additionally, this includes using Facebook and Twitter, playing video games, etc. This student spends, at minimum, 3 hours a day socializing with friends or just taking time for themselves. 3 hours/day x 7 days = 21 personal/social hours. Total hours left: 86 (107-21)

Work: Part-time jobs are incredibly common in college. We’ll say our student has a part-time job where they work 5 days a week for 3 hours for a total of 15 hours on the week. Total hours left: 71 (86-15)

Studying / Homework: A common formula to determine study time for college courses is the number of hours spent in a class times 2 or 3. Let’s say our student studies, at minimum, 6 hours a week just for one class (3 credits x 2 = 6). If applied to the total number of credit hours attempted, in this case 12 credit hours, our student should dedicate no less than 24 total hours to studying/homework. This breaks down to 6 hours of study time per class. Total hours left: 47 (71-24)

Club Meetings / Campus Programs: Our hypothetical student is a member of the Underwater Basket Weaving Club, which meets once a week for 2 hours. Our student also attended a band concert this week (1 hour), open mic night (2 hours), and a softball double-header (4 hours) for a total of 9 hours in this category. Total hours left: 38 (47-9)

“I just don’t have enough time.”

Yes, you do. It’s all about knowing what you’re spending your time doing and how much time those activities take up in a given day, week, or month. In the example, even with a lot of variables not accounted for, our student ends their week with a total of 38 hours left to use however he/she sees fit. This student has time left for additional studying, taking advantage of service opportunities, or whatever else they choose to do.

As the saying goes, time is what you make of it. If you manage your time wisely, you’ll never need to say that there isn’t enough time and 168 will be a magic number for you.

Change kids to college students (or just people) and read. How prepared are you? 9 Essential Skills Kids Should Learn

It has happened to all of us – we forget answer an email or return a call. Here’s a few ideas on how to handle those situations.

How often do you take the time to just think about the little things that get you through the day?

Leadership isn’t a big thing for other people to do. Leadership happens everyday:

And finally, at a loss for words on this one: Scale of the Universe.

A few we’ve collected so far:

Walking on Sunshine, Katrina & The Wave

We Did it, Dora the Explorer

Firework, Katy Perry

If you could have a theme song that played anytime you did something awesome, what would it be?

From last week’s list:

Just a general reminder: Frank Warren, curator of postsecret.com is coming to campus February 7. He posts new secrets every Sunday. See this weeks secrets by clicking on the photo above.

From Becca:

If Betty White makes a video about Heart Health, you know it’s important. She manages to be informative and funny in only 30 seconds.

Did you know heart disease is the number one killer of women? Pass this video on to five women you love and help raise awareness.

We started our second book club of the year this week, The Student Leadership Challenge. We’ll be meeting weekly at the campus Starbucks to discuss the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership over coffees and Frappuccinos. Stay tuned for some upcoming blogs about the book club!

From Preston:

Is one of your new year’s resolutions to cut back on soda (pop, cola, fizzy drink, etc)? Are you just looking for something different? The crew over at Lifehacker has your back. Click on the photo above to see what tasty (and potentially healthier) alternatives are available.

]]> http://uncpleadership.wordpress.com/2012/02/03/links-of-the-week-january-30-february-3/feed/ 0 presramsey frank warren studentleadershipchall Alternativestosoda http://uncpleadership.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/wash-rinse-repeat-or-not/ http://uncpleadership.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/wash-rinse-repeat-or-not/#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:41:06 +0000 Preston Ramsey http://uncpleadership.wordpress.com/?p=747 Continue reading →]]>

Phil Connors (Bill Murray) in Groundhog Day, 1993, Columbia Pictures

“I’m reliving the same day over and over.”
-Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.

I begin with this quote for two primary reasons. First of all, and in case you were not aware, this Thursday is Groundhog Day, the day when we find out whether or not there will be six more weeks of winter.* Secondly, there are times in during the work week, month, semester, etc. when it seems as we are go through the motions and doing the same thing day-in and day-out is a cycle from which we cannot break. As February draws near and the semester drives onward, the push towards spring break and semester’s end can seem as if one is reliving the same day over and over and over again. Fear not, for there is hope – here are three tips that can help break up the monotony.

1. Remember your goal.

When we get wrapped up in our tasks, assignments, etc., we often tend to lose sight the goal of our activity. We let the repetition get the better of us and become overwhelmed with things that should be easily conquered. Rather than get bogged down by the task at hand, focus on the various creative ways you can approach the final result. If there aren’t other options available, then just get focused. However, approaching a task and re-focusing on the end goal in new ways tends to re-light the fire that is needed to toggle off the repeat-button.

2. Do something different every day.

In addition to losing sight of our goals, we sometimes just fall into a pattern. For example, a typical pattern for me in a past life looked like this: wake up – class – eat – class – nap – homework – marching band – eat – class – social – sleep. Knowing that, I could have utilized some of my down time to maybe experience something different, like a new place to eat or checking out the new art exhibit downtown. Routines and structure can be good, however, it helps to just be spontaneous sometimes!

3. Find something positive in every day.

When our activities become overly repetitious, regardless of what they may be, it can sometimes be difficult to see that which reminds us of why it is we do what we do. This can manifest itself in the form of general animosity towards the activity or in simply choosing not to see the positives. Encourage yourself to find at least one positive thing that occurred during the course of a given day. It doesn’t even have to be something extraordinary, just something that brought a smile to your face for even just a brief moment.

Life does not have to be a wash-rinse-repeat cycle of tasks. While this is not the end-all be-all of how to break free from repetitious cycles, remembering your goals, trying to do something new each day, and trying to find something positive in every day will definitely keep you from reliving the same day over and over.

Involvement Fair follow up

Be sure to follow up with the organizations you met at the Involvement Fair via OrgSync.

PostSecret

Frank Warren, curator of postsecret.com is coming to campus February 7. He posts new secrets every Sunday. See this weeks secrets by clicking on the photo above.

Pinterest

Heard of Pinterest yet? Pinterest lets you organize and share all the  things you find on the web. You can browse pinboards created by other people as a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.

Pinterest requires an invite so let us know if you need one and we’ll send it right out.

Are you already on Pinterest? Cool, so are we! We’ll be collecting links to a variety of leadership related topics on Pinterest that won’t always make it to the blog. We also have a board where you can contribute – just ask us to add you.

State of the Union

Lastly, this week was the State of the Union address by President Obama. Regardless of your political views it’s important to be informed about what is going on in your world. After you’ve watched it be sure to watch the Republican response by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels.

Team building is a series of activities that goes beyond just playing  games. Team building teaches and builds groups in a manner that meets the needs of the members and goals of the organization.

If you are tasked with planning a team building experience for your organization here are some things you should consider.

Pre-Planning

You need to do some pre-assessment to understand what the needs and goals of the experience could be – yes, even if you are a member or officer of the organization.

This can be as simple as distributing index cards during a meeting.

• side one: list three things the organization does really well.
• side two: list three things the organization needs to work on.

Feel free to get more in depth as you see fit.

Planning

Organize your information into themes (both the good and the bad) so you have a sense of the 2-3, maybe 4, topics on which you will focus. Keep in mind the following components of the experience you will create:

• Who will be present?
  • Most effective team building occurs when groups are 8-12 members. What limits dose that impose on you? Are there any physical limitations you already know exist within the group? Can you modify activity selections to include everyone? If not, choose something different.
• Where will the session take place?
  • Inside? Outside? What barriers and opportunities are present based on your location?
• What resources are available?
  • Tossables? Carpet squares? Ropes? String? Blind folds? What do you have. Nothing? That’s okay too. You can create an entire team building experiences with absolutely zero props if necessary.
• How much time do you have for your experience?

Activity Selection

Select a variety of activities that build from one experience to the next. As you select activities be sure to look back to your goals and the limits you are facing based on the above questions.

Manage the energy, focus, and needs of your group by having a variety of activities from which to choose. It’s better to have more options than you think you will need than to run out of experiences because the group went faster than you anticipated.

Activity Sequencing

Proper sequencing ebbs and flows from pairs to full group and from low to high activity/risk expanding leadership learning along the way.

A rough outline should look like this:

1. throw aways(music playing perhaps – appropriately selected)
   • Groups never show up all at once.
   • Have a few purposeful ‘throw away’ activities (jenga towers, play doh, junk castles, puzzles, etc) that early arrivals can begin as soon as they walk in the door but that won’t be detrimental to stragglers if they get cut short.
2. welcome and front loading
   • reinforce the goal(s) of the experience and establish your relationship with the group
   • establish ground rules
   • identify physical limitations within the group
3. warm ups
   • This step is far too often skipped when working with pre-existing groups. DON’T SKIP.
   • Start with name games and build to increasing movement and activity.
   • The goal of warm up activities is to get the group physically and mentally engaged so they are in the right mind set BEFORE diving into more intensive activities.
   • Warm ups will also help you assess the vibe of the group and diffuse any nervous and negative energy.
4. initiatives
   • Taking into consideration the information you gather in planning, develop a sequence of activities that builds from lower risk to higher risk.
   • There are many, many websites and books outlining activities. You do not have to do this alone however. Take advantage of the expertise in our office to help you plan your event.
5. closing activity
   • Have an activity to which you will build. This should be a culminating experience that will tie everything together and involve the entire group.

Debriefing

This is where the learning takes place and this is where most beginning facilitators lack skill and devote too little time during a team building session. If you don’t spend some time here you risk losing everything you just worked for.

Be willing to leave an activity on the table rather than neglect debriefing. You do not have to debrief, or process, each activity. As you develop your skill set you’ll get a feel for when you need to stop and spend some time in conversation.

After your culminating experience you’ll want to debrief the entire day. At the most basic level ask the group these questions:

1. What did we do today? (what)
2. What did you learn? (so what)
3. How will you apply what you learned? (now what)

Facilitate the conversation to allow the participants to unwrap their own discoveries guiding them toward the issues that may have developed through the experience.

To take the group on their journey use:

• silence (give it 30 seconds, someone will speak)
• leading comments (tell me more about…, what do you think about….)
• paraphrasing (what I think you said is…..)

Resist the urge to tell people what they learned.

Resources and Training

The most accessible resource is the Student Involvement and Leadership staff. Leadership and team development are our expertise areas.

We will  help you identify warm ups, activities, initiatives, and processing techniques to fit your needs whether you want to consult with us as you plan your own experience, borrow our supplies, or have us facilitate the entire experience for you.

(click for larger image)

And finally, some help for anyone searching for their next apartment. This checklist  is one of many resources available online for you (and those long since graduated) to make your next search for that new apartment much, much easier.   What have you found on the internet this week?

If you vote based on party affiliation it’s easy to fill out your ballot: vote for all of the candidates in your party. But what about primary season when all of the candidates are from the same party? Or when you have several candidates to vote for in your local elections? It helps to know where candidates stand on the issues that are important to you.

This is where ElectNext.Com is helpful. It’s like an eHarmony for politics:

I found ElectNext in a list of 12 Women to Watch and was curious about the site.  It’s a great tool for people who are too busy with their everyday lives (like college students!) to educate themselves about elections. The South Carolina primary and campaigning is happening in this week and will be a deciding factor for many of the candidates in the race.

ElectNext asks you a series of questions based on major political issues and matches you up with candidates who have similar views. Rather watch a video? Check this one out from ElectNext founder Keya Dannenbaum.

Each question asked allows you to answer whether you Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Agree, or Strongly Agree. You can read arguments from other voters on why they are Pro or Con and leave comments of your own if you want to defend your answer.  After you cast your vote ElectNext shows you the results of your vote and how it compares with other people using the site.

After answering a range of questions you will be shown your list of matches and can click through to find out why you were paired with each candidate. The reasons include your similarities on issues and you can see exactly which points you agree or disagree with for each candidate.

Looking for more ways to be politically involved or savvy? Find out if you are registered to vote here. It’s also a great resource to find your polling place, learn about absentee voting, and getting involved with your local elections. If you are a North Carolina resident you can check your registration here. Stay current with who is still in the running at the 2012 Election Central site

Want a local way to get involved with politics? Watch the State of the Union Address on campus at the Watch Party on January 24th at 8:30 PM. RSVP for the Watch party here. Or check out these UNCP Campus organizations: Student Government Association and the UNC Pembroke College Republicans.

Follow @ElectNext to stay current on 2012 Election coverage and @UNCPLeadership for the latest UNCP Leadership and Involvement information.

From Mike:

Unbuttoning My Work -
Blog Post by Mallory Bower
Assistant Director, UNCP Career Center

There has been quite a bit of buzz this week in the student affairs twitter world about appropriate dress. While perhaps directed at student affairs professionals this post has sound advice and real world examples for students. If nothing else it’s a connection with a well-dressed, UNCP career professional who can help you put your best foot forward as you advance in your career. Get to know her – she’s right down the hall from us in the University Center.

From Becca:

A Fresh Start -

You’ve survived your first week of classes and are well on your way to a great semester. What goals are you setting for yourself? Here are some tips to get you started.

From Preston:

Lifehacker.com – This is one of the sites I visit on almost a daily basis, professionally and personally. The writing is pretty honest (sometimes brutally) and the staff covers a wide variety of topics – which includes technology, do-it-yourself projects, and other tips and tricks to help make life a little easier and enjoyable.

Tweed Blog at Chronicle.com – First, and for those not familiar, Chronicle.com is the online version of The Chronicle of Higher Education, serving as one of the best sources of news and information college and university faculty, staff, and administrators. Within the wealth of information housed at Chronicle.com, the Tweed blog offers a lighter side view of the world of higher education.  Students – check this out as well as the rest of the site. If nothing else, you’ll gain some insight into some of the issues your professors and administrators face.

While today may be Friday the 13th, it also happens to be “Rubber Duckie Day”. In honor of this most momentous occasion – and to put a smile on your face – we’ll leave you with Ernie from Sesame Street, singing what is likely the most appropriate song for today.

Happy Friday!