The Gate Keeper

How many times have you had difficulties scheduling a meeting or getting a reply from someone in a position of power? This is an occurrence that happens in all professional fields. Often times people are so concerned with the person or task in question, they forget about the Gate Keeper:

gate·keep·er
[geyt-kee-per] noun
1. A person in charge of a gate, usually to identify, count,supervise, etc., the traffic or flow through it.

In laymen’s terms, the Gate Keeper is the person in charge of managing information. That information can be in the form of a meeting request, room reservation or anything else that requires action from someone else. Often times these individuals are overlooked and underappreciated. Its amazing how much of a difference small talk, a smile or a Thank-You note* can make. If someone helps out you or your organization, make sure to recognize those Gate Keepers that make it possible…they’ll be much more likely to assist you again in the future.

Take a minute to think of all the Gate Keepers you deal with on a regular basis. I challenge everyone reading this to actively show appreciation in some way shape or form to at least one of the Gate Keepers you just brainstormed. I guarantee you will not be disappointed at the results.

*Words of Wisdom – I highly recommend hand written Thank-You notes for just about anything. Everyone loves getting mail and hearing how much people appreciate them.

Hello Again

Wow, it struck me that I haven't written anything in since the end of November. For those of you who are desperately interested in my life, here's a quick recap of what I've been up to:

December
- Drove the 11.5 hours from Fayetteville to Oxford, OH
- Spent a day in the office
- Went back to MI for the holidays
- Spent Christmas in Cleveland and NYE in Ann Arbor



Who doesn't love awkward family photos?


January
- Returned to the office on Jan 3rd
- Worked conferences in St. Louis, MO
- Drove back to Oxford
- The next day I flew to Los Angeles for a week to work at UCLA - got stuck in the snow in Minn for 5 hours on the way there. I was able to meet up with my Big Brother Kellyn Parker and the legendary Jon Buck and learn about "The Colonial".



Myself and a couple of the UCLA (CA-G) guys before we played musical chairs at half time of a WBB game in front of all 34 people that were there. Photo courtesy of Tyler Wong (CA-G)



- Flew back to the office
- The next day I drove the 11.5 hours from Oxford to AR.
- 20+ inches of snow cancelled life down here. School was canceled 7 out of 10 days.
- Flew out to Austin, TX for the General Officers Conference to learn about the roll out of Phi Delt 2020. Got a chance to meet a good number of our volunteers as well as see the LBJ Presidential Library and 6th Street. A Special Thank-You to Province President Joe Kohout for his guidance and leadership in the face of adversity.

February
- The beautiful Christie Low flew in for a weekend and I got a chance to show her the sights.

- Arkansas Alpha was installed. We enjoyed hosting Executive Vice President Bob Biggs (GA-E) as well as President of the General Council Scott Meitchen (UT-A). I also got a chance to talk to John Tyson of Tyson Chicken. Incredible guy - very down to earth. It was also great to have Steve Curtright and his friend Ben Wankum here for the weekend. I couldn't have survived the weekend without them. Photos courtesy of AR-A Sweet Heart Tori Pohlner.

The remaining Fall '09 guys who waited 542 days for this.

The entire group post-Installation

President of the General Council Scott Meitchen presenting the charter to Arkansas Alpha President Tyler McKimmey

Steve Curtright, Ben Wankum and I

March
- Started and completed a full "Colony to Chapter Transition Manual" which is the first resource of its kind in the Greek world.

- During Spring break I drove from: Fayetteville to Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor to Oxford, Oxford to Ann Arbor and finally Ann Arbor to Fayetteville (2,300+ miles). It was great to be in the office for a couple days to catch up on things and recharge the batteries. Sometimes I think people at GHQ forget what I look like. I also got a chance to participate in the Bi-Prov conference at the University of Michigan. Shout out to Sigma North for our future win in the Iron Phi Challenge. Four chapters set a goal to raise over $25K for ALS and the PDT Foundation. It was also great to have General Council Member-At-Large Chris Brussalis (PA-D) and Past President of the General Council Mike Scarletelli (MI-D) in attendance. It was also great to be re-united with "The Team", even though it was only for a short while.


Christie and I watching the Pistons beat up on the Knicks

April
- Started the month off right with the greatest (read: worst) April Fool's Day prank that has ever been played on me. Thank you Steve Curtright.

- Took a trek up to Springfield, MO to visit the men of Missouri State University (MO-E) for a three day visit. It was great to work with them and together I think we came up with some great ideas for improvement. I look forward to seeing their progress in the future. I was also fortunate enough to stay at the humble abode of Mu South Province President Joe Passanise (MO-E) and for that I am grateful.

- This past weekend was ROW Week, which is a large end of the year music festival where each fraternity hosts a musical act in their front yard. We brought in Big Gigantic, which is a mix of techno and saxophone. Everyone seemed to enjoy it and we had zero issues, which made my life easier.

- At the end of the month, I'll be traveling to Southwest Oklahoma State University (OK-G) to assist with their Installation.

These last couple months have flown by. I feel like the next time I blink I'll be back in Oxford. I also want to give a public congratulations to our new group of consultants that will be joining the Dream Team in June: Andrew "Wally" Cole (IN-E), Alex Stefanic (SC-G) and Mike "Rogo" Rogowski (OH-A).

Michigan vs. Arkansas

Lately my Arkansas peers have been trying to compare their football program with that of Michigan's. The number of "Michigan Sucks" I have heard recently has been absurd. Those of you who know me well know that I do not take that lightly. However, I will let the numbers do the talking. For good measure, I've included a head to head comparison of Denard Robinson and Ryan Mallett. Also, I have limited the scope of my comparison to football and will not dive into comparing the two institutions in any other fashion.

*Note - Before anyone makes any claims about Big 10 vs. SEC competition, lets remember that from 1915-1991 Arkansas played in the Southwest Conference against: Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor, SMU, TCU, Houston, Texas Tech and Rice

First Season
M: 1879
Ark: 1894

Head-To-Head Record
M leads Ark 1-0 after Michigan won the 1991 Citrus bowl 45-31

Stadium Capacity
M: 109.901 (largest in the country)
Ark: 76,000

All-Time Record
M: 884–305–36 (.736) (Highest wins and win percentage in NCAA history)
Ark: 661–447–40 (.593)

Bowl Record
M: 19–20 (.487)
Ark: 12–22–3 (.324)

National Titles
M: 11
Ark: 1

Conference Titles
M: 42
Ark: 13

Consensus All-Americans
M: 77
Ark: 23

Heisman Trophy Winners
M: 3 (Tom Harmon, Desmond Howard, Charles Woodson)
Ark: 0

College Football Hall of Fame Inductees
M: 36
Ark: 12

Current NFL Players
M: 31 (Tom Brady, Chad Henne, Jake Long, LeMarr Woodley, Zoltan Mesko, Steve Hutchinson, Dahani Jones, Steve Breaston, Braylon Edwards)
Ark: 16 (Darren McFadden, Felix Jones, Peyton Hillis, Ken Hamlin)

Superbowl MVP's
M: 3 (Tom Brady x2, Desmond Howard)
Ark: 0

Football Player Graduation Rate
M: 77%
Ark: 52%

Number of D-1 Programs in the State
Michigan: 5 (Michigan, Michigan State University, Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan, Western Michigan) (Bonus: D2 4-Time National Champions Grand Valley State University - '02,'03,'05,'06)
Arkansas: 1 (University of Arkansas)

Number of Professional Sports Franchises in the State:
Michigan: 4 (Pistons, Red Wings, Lions, Tigers)
Arkansas: 0

The reason I include the previous two statistics is because it factors into atmosphere and perception. I have gotten dogged lately for some of my comments regarding SEC football. My point is that in Arkansas, there are no other in-state teams to cheer for. The closest teams to Fayetteville outside of the Razorbacks are in Kansas City, Dallas or Memphis, which are all over four hours away. This is much different from the state of Michigan, where there are five D-1 college and four professional teams that are battling for position within a fan's sport space. Additionally, there is the added factor of in-state rivalries, as well as the proximity of rivalries in adjacent states (Notre Dame and Ohio State). If I am feeling inspired later this year, I'll write an extensive blog post on these topics

Ryan Mallett vs. Denard Robinson
Denard: 6', 197 lbs, Sophomore (First Season Starting)
Mallett: 6'6", 238 lbs, Junior

QB Rating
Denard:157.7 (14th)
Mallett: 166.5 (4th)

Completion Percentage
Denard: 63.3% (37th)
Mallett: 67.3% (11th)

Passing Yards
Denard:2229 (42nd)
Mallett: 2967 (7th)

Total TD's
Denard: 30 (16 Passing, 14 Rushing)
Mallett: 28 (24 Passing, 4 Rushing)

Rushing Yards
Denard: 1538 (2nd) (NCAA Single Season QB Rushing Record)
Mallett: -20 (Really?)

Denard: First QB ever to Pass for 1,500 yards and Rush for 1,500 yards in the same season.


Immeasurables
- The Victors - best fight song in college football
- Michigan vs. Ohio State - Greatest rivalry in all of sports. Started in 1897 and has been played 106 times. Michigan leads the all-time series 57–43–6


Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_football
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkansas_football
http://espn.go.com/college-football/statistics/player/_/stat/passing/sort/collegeQuarterbackRating/year/2010/group/80
http://stanford.scout.com/2/952555.html
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1704437/the_best_college_fight_songs_top_5.html?cat=33
http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/20074/robinson-sets-record-puts-u-m-on-board
http://espn.go.com/nfl/players?college=45
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Conference#Members
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Division_II_National_Football_Championship
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superbowl_MVP
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan-Ohio_State_rivalry

General Update

Hello Friends,
I apologize for the lack of updates recently, I've been lacking creative inspiration.

Arkansas has been treating me well. The weather was holding out in the 60's up until Saturday. I get strange looks around campus when everyone else is bundled from head to toe and I'm still in shorts and short sleeves. One of the many benefits to being from Michigan.

Last Saturday was the last Arkansas football game here in Fayetteville. I know I've written about my disappointment in SEC Game Day, and I have to say that feeling persists. I understand that its hard to get excited when the last game is against powerhouse UTEP, but Game Day is Game Day. I'll take my Big 10 football any day. On a happier note, I've been really excited about how many Michigan games have been an ABC/ESPN. I've only had to watch 2 games on my computer. 

Last week we had officer elections for next semester. For a new group participating in elections for the first time, I was impressed with how smoothly it went. There were bumps along the way, but those will be ironed out in the coming weeks when the Bylaws are revisited. I'm very excited to work with our new board, and have been planning a Transition Retreat for the last couple days. In putting this whole event together, I forgot how much I love doing event planning/programming. 

For the last week or so I've been reading Decision Points by George W Bush. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it. As someone who marched down Pennsylvania Ave during Bush's second Inauguration with a sign that read "Worst President Ever", I have to say I'm impressed. Its easy to demonize W and the decisions he made (especially when you are young and impressionable by the Main Stream Media). The book is organized thematically, as opposed to Clinton's book which was chronological. The book has a lot of W's voice, which makes it an easy read. 

Reading Decision Points has also renewed my interest in going into politics in the future. Everything is so fluid and exciting. At every point in the book I imagine myself in the situation and it excites me. I'll hopefully look into opportunities next year. I'm hoping Brett Vasicek can get me a job with new Michigan governor Rick Snyder.

I'm excited to go back to Michigan for Thanksgiving, even if its only for a couple days.

Bucket List

I feel like recently everyone has been making a bucket a list lately. For those of you who have been living under a rock, a bucket list is a list of things someone wants to do before "kicking the bucket".

I've made a couple of these throughout the years, but they've been lost from the various times that I have picked up and moved my life. Sadly, when college-aged students write these, they tend to revolve around alcohol and sex. I'm going to move beyond those. Here is what I've come up with so far:

- Be on the receiving end a giant check
- Be a part of a flash mob
- Be an extra in a Hollywood movie
- Visit every state
- Have a Ben & Jerry's flavor named after me
- Have my picture on the front page of a major newspaper
- Throw out the first pitch at a major league baseball game
- Run a half marathon
- Go to a Newcastle United match in England

....and that's all I could come up with right now. I'll be adding to it as I continue my travels.

What's on your Bucket List? Best answer (as judged by me) wins a prize!

3 Words

Recently I had a friend ask me to read her application for a leadership position. One of the questions on it was to "use 3 words to describe yourself/leadership style". I do really like the question, however, I think there are some really good answers, and some terrible ones.

In the near future when I am elected Emperor of the World this question will appear on all official applications. Any responses that include: responsible, organized, integrity, respectful or similar words will be thrown out. To me it shows a complete lack of creativity, and panders more towards what the candidate assumes I would want to see.

But do not fret, for I have devised some stellar answers to this ultimate question:

Forward Thinking
How many times have you sat in a meeting where the same topic is talked in circles countless times? If you're like me the answer is thousands. Some people would rather debate a problem ad nausium instead of taking the next step to devising a plan to deal with it. By replying "forward thinking" you're telling your future boss (me) that you are not a circle talker, but instead focused on solutions.

Goal Oriented
Let me preface by saying I strongly dislike being forced to sit down and write goals. However, being a goal oriented person implies that you're not some schmoe just looking to fill the status quo.

Infectious
This is a personal favorite of mine because the person reading the application will be caught completely off guard thinking that you contracted a rainforest disease on Spring Break. However, the word infectious stands for a concept that I believe strongly in: "Positivity is Contagious". This positivity can be exemplified in many ways such as body language, laughter, jokes, camaraderie or even something as simple as smiling.

Adaptable
How many situations have you been in where everything goes 100% according to plan? If you answered anything other than 0, you're lying. The ability to go with the flow is paramount when dealing with high pressure situations.

Values-Based/Mission-Driven
These words play an especially large role when looking at working with large non-profit organizations like.... an international fraternity or the YMCA (both employers of mine). This allows you to encompass all those traits that I said not to use into one catch-all. In addition, it shows servant leadership - be it serving a community, organization or cause. This answer also screams good character.

A couple last pieces of advice on how to answer the question.
1. Don't make up words. Always double check to make sure your advective+suffix actually exists. Nothing worse than trying to apply to a leadership position and you make up a word like "respectableness".
2. Stay away from words that imply control. By these I mean "Compulsive", "Obsessive", and "Anal Retentive". While you're point may be that you have a strong attention to detail, these words invoke images of some of the worst people to have in a group situation

Nutrition

This week I'm lucky enough to have Steven Fleming, another Phi Delta Theta Consultant here with my in Fayetteville for recruitment. Steven is not only a great friend an consultant, but also very knowledgeable about fitness and nutrition; he's taken on the role of psuedo-staff nutritionist.

As many of you can imagine, trying to stay in shape and eat correctly can be difficult while on the road. Many of us don't have access to kitchens to prepare our own food. This leads to lots of eating out, which obviously isn't the healthiest choice. There's only so much Subway someone can eat. Steven turned a couple of us on to the Paleo diet, which centers around trying only eat things that were around 10,000 years ago. More or less, the diet tries to cut out simple carbs: breads, pastas, potatoes and rice.

Do you have any idea how much of these things we consume everyday? I a typical meal is was possible for me to eat all four of these things. Think about all the things this includes: sandwichs, pasta, french fries, mashed potatoes, sushi, stir fry...the list goes on and on. If you don't believe my try it for a day.... even try it for a single meal.

I've been eating lots of meat, fruit, vegetables and nuts. Salads have become one of my biggest friends. I never in my life thought that would be the case (you have to watch out for the dressing though). I won't bore you with all the scientific reasons with why it works, because to be honest I don't 100% understand it myself. Those of you who know me know that I'm not much of a science person.

This new diet has me feeling great. It, coupled with going to the gym three days a week and running 4 days a week, has allowed me to drop close to 20 pounds since I've been here.

My goal is to run a half marathon and become an Iron Phi at some point this year. I need to figure out where and when I'm going to be certain places to make sure I can actually do it. Also, Props to my chapter brothers John Hacker and Karl Cran for already joining the Brotherhood of Athletes this summer

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