[6848] in APO-L
Service Hour Challenge
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jeffrey David Brown)
Sun Oct 3 06:43:36 1993
Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1993 06:42:04 -0400
Reply-To: Jeffrey David Brown <jb8x+@andrew.cmu.edu>
From: Jeffrey David Brown <jb8x+@andrew.cmu.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list APO-L <APO-L%PURCCVM.BITNET@mitvma.mit.edu>
This is my modification of an idea posted earlier on the internet.
Tell me what you think!
Here's how it works:
We put a sign-up sheet on the office wall, renewed each month (so this
is a monthly challenge). Each brother would write down their name and
the number of service hours they wanted to do that month, and some
little penalty that they would be willing to do if they didn't finish
their hours. Penalties would mostly be small (someone might promise a
candy bar or a lunch, depending on their mood that day). Each brother
would get a friend to sponsor or "challenge" them with some prize that
the brother would get if the service hours were completed. At the end
of each month, brothers and friend would get together, agree on who
won, and act accordingly. Results would be announced in meetings each
month.
The announcement is important. It makes the whole chapter aware of how
everyone is doing. The important thing is that if we hear all these
announcements, we have a feeling for the average number of hours
performed by a brother (i.e. is everyone really doing fifty hours a
month?) and for the number of hours performed by individuals (i.e. is
this person really "slacking off" or just being quiet?).
Example:
I want to finish forty service hours in the month to come. I would
sign up in the office: "Jeff Brown", "40 hours", "Wendy's Frosty".
That means I'm willing to give some friend a frosty if I don't finish
40 hours. James Langer likes Frostys (or at least, he does in this
example) :-) so he signs up next to my name. Jim likes to make things
for people, and he really wants me to do 40 hours, so he writes down
"Jim Langer", "Home Cooked Meal". Jim's a great guy. :-) (thanks,
Jim). At the end of the month, Jim and I get together and figure out
how many hours I did. If I did less than 40, he gets a Frosty; if I
did more, I get a meal! If there is some disagreement, Jim and I are
sensible adults and we can work out a solution (heck, let's go to
Wendys together and treat eachother to Frostys).
The main positive points for this system are:
1. Nobody REQUIRED me to do this - it's not forced on me
2. Jim is pretty likely to sign up to do his own hours, and someone
will sponsor or "challenge" him - now Jim will do more hours, we hope.
3. Jim and I monitor my progress over the whole month, since Jim
really wants me to finish my hours and I really don't want to buy a
Frosty. Thus, if I'm having problems somewhere, Jim will find out and
can suggest a solution.
4. Since the agreement is negotiable, Jim and I can change the prizes
if there is a problem (like if some professor gives me a 100-page
paper to write that month).
5. The results are announced in a chapter meeting, so my success (or
my near-success) is shared with everyone. I like attention, so I'd do
it just to have my name said in a meeting! (heh heh)
6. People can team up to sponsor eachother.
7. Makes a good program for pledges and for brothers.
8. Can be adapted to fit any goals (i.e. if I wanted to try to focus
on my grades, I could pledge to do LESS than 40 hours in a month -
sounds more appropriate for me considering my QPA!)
9. Can be used to replace the service hour requirement for brothers
and for pledges. A pledge would not have to do a certain number of
hours during the pledge period - they would simply have to write down
what they DID do, and we would thus have a record of how much time
they put in. When a pledge or brother sits down with their challenger
to add up hours, they will naturally discuss WHY the person did or
didn't make their goals. This way we find out more about pledges than
we do currently.
10. Since everything is between friends, no bad will comes of it.
11. If a brother signs up and nobody sponsors them, they can simply
change their "penalty" to be something that would apply to the whole
chapter (like Ray Strobel's famous "fallen pledge" report - a song for
the whole chapter meeting). The chapter could in turn give a big
Hurrah or a mention in Lobster Tales to any unsponsored contestents
who finished their goals.
BIG IMPORTANT STRONG POINTS:
1. Doing this each month would help brothers learn to manage their
time. The best way to learn is to have someone to talk to and to have
a goal. Forget systems, calendars, etc. - just find a way that works,
and do it, and you'll win little silly prizes that everyone loves.
2. We could replace the service hours requirement, thus ending that
little bit of controversey and satisfying all involved.
3. Nobody gets hurt.
Okay, now the fun part -
Everyone has to write back to me and tell me what's wrong with this
plan. It looks flawless to me, so of course there has to be something
wrong with it (or Murphy's Law wouldn't apply!).
Yours in Leadership, Friendship, and Service,
Jeff "Reds" Brown
Kappa Chapter, really old Random Brother
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh
jb8x+@andrew.cmu.edu Phone: (412) 681-1363
reds+@cmu.edu CMU Box 102, 4825 Frew St., Pgh., 15213
l101jb8x@vb.cc.cmu.edu Work: 268-5612 4am-10am Mon, Fri; 268-2333 Fri Nights
Disclaimer: I'm the only one <stupid,crazy,tired> enough to write this.
