[11515] in APO News
[Fwd: Re: CPPC - PC cheat sheet]
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Matthew Goldstein)
Sat Jan 17 04:24:11 2009
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2009 04:22:23 -0500
From: Matthew Goldstein <austein@MIT.EDU>
To: apo-news@mit.edu
Agree with what Cat said? Have something else to add? Something you
disagree with?
Join Servcomm and discuss the Chapter's Service Program! E-mail the SVP
to get added.
--Matt
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: CPPC - PC cheat sheet
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2009 02:09:25 -0500
From: Cat Thu Nguyen Huu <catthu@MIT.EDU>
To: L. Brown Westrick <lwest@mit.edu>
CC: Elizabeth Power! <epower@mit.edu>, Matthew Goldstein
<austein@mit.edu>, apo-discuss@mit.edu, apo-servcomm@mit.edu,
apo-bvp@mit.edu
References: <49670EB8.4060801@mit.edu> <4967A4A3.3020100@mit.edu>
<49711F5C.3000802@mit.edu>
Now that it's weekend and I have some time to write things down, I'll
be more helpful than I have been so far about this PC issue:
I agree that the key challenge about PCing/Leadership of the Chapter
is the lack of interest. Most of the information we now have on the PC
cheat sheet draft below appears to me just common sense - if someone
is interested in doing something, they will soon figure these out by
themselves. Actually, if someone is really interested in something,
they'll figure out _anything_ by themselves, really. The real question
is what can we do to motivate initiatives, and once people are at it,
what can we do to best facilitate them? For me personally, while I may
prefer one type of service to another, I'd likely to be psyched and
take initiatives on _any_ project that returns visible results or
progress. This is also the reason why, as I said in a personal
discussion with Brown, what I feel lacking in the service program of
the Chapter is the sense of commitment; and while one-day weekend
projects are nice and good chances for us to get together, I'd really
like to see something that we're committed to and see it progresses.
Of course I understand that commitment can be too much as term and
more workload roll in; therefore this is in no way an obligation but
rather how important this is to each individual (remember that
question in the exit interviews, rank leadership, friendship, and
service in the order of importance?) And besides, if the whole Chapter
of 30ish people are committed to something, each person's commitment
is actually not _that_ much.
On the other hand, some people may be more interested in just PCing
smaller, one-day projects like those that we have had - in which case
it's their job to find a project that really interests them, and the
SVP's job to help them on this. One thing that I immediately think
about (and not sure if we already had one) is an archive database of
projects that we have done in the past (with details like when, where,
who to contact, etc etc) so that anyone who wants to do something but
don't really know what's available out there (I think many people fall
into this category) can just take a look and find something (and also
find, you know, information and comments written by other brothers,
contact details to start with...). Alternatively, if people are too
lazy to record things, we can have an open, non-chronological database
of what service organizations that we have contacted with, the contact
people's information, etc. I don't see why those things shouldn't be
publicly available.
Another thing that Brown told me about is that the SVP got many emails
sent to them by (new-to-us) service organizations that offer volunteer
opportunities in the area. This was a response to my question of how
Sid got the list of projects (all set, dated and timed) that he sent
out to ask for PCs. I don't think that this is a good way to do it. If
the SVP does get that many mails, what they should do is to filter and
systematize them in a periodical 'newsletter' to, say, apo-news
(something like the monthly or weekly or whatever-ly email that
gathers stuff sent to reuse-ask), and people can just browse through
it and see if something appeals to them.
As far as I remember, the reason why we came up with the PC cheat
sheet is the lack of information of what to do in some projects last
term (UMOC being one). However, the lacking information was rather
something specific to that project rather then general guidelines; or
in other more explicit words, I doubt that this general cheat sheet
will change much of the present situation. In the end, a question to
consider is: what's the role of the SVP, and to what extent should
they intervene with a PC's job? The SVP is to meet up with ServComm
and discuss ways to improve the service program. The SVP is also to
get the ball roll in projects like UMOC or Big Screw (and, you know,
maybe to compose a specific cheat sheet to each of those events?).
Other than that, the SVP is someone that you come and talk to when
you're full of energy but at a loss of what to do, then she will try
asking you questions like what kind of projects you're interested in,
what target groups you wanna work with, etc, and eventually throw you
a list of service organizations you should consider getting in touch
with. The SVP is also to promote leadership in the chapter - how to do
this? The simplest way is not to do too many things and let the PCs do
them instead. I believe that we have enough people confident in their
leadership ability, the problem is to how to get these people not to
do too much and encourage other people to take charge. It's like
another Chapter Skill that we're all in training for, leading things
is Leadership, encouraging people to lead things is also part of
Leadership. So, let's say the SVP gets a PC for the Final Coffee
House, and send them a cheat sheet. If the cheat sheet says something
like "Fundraising: contact group A for coffee, group B for food, group
C for money," that's really informative, but doesn't really help much
in the leadership and creativity aspects. How about something like
"Fundraising: you'll need coffee, food, and money" ? After all,
leadership is not about being able to read a sheet of paper and
carrying out what it says. I believe there is such a thing as too much
information. PCs should be free to do what they want to do in their
own ways, and while they're doing that, the SVP should keep their
decisions unaffected by how other people have always done it before.
If they are stuck, they can always ask. Asking the right questions to
the right people is also a skill a leader should have.
Just some thoughts.
On Jan 16, 2009, at 6:59 PM, L. Brown Westrick wrote:
> Hmm... ok so not to take credit where it isn't due... other than a
> lot of the stuff under Service Projects, I wasn't the author, and
> don't know who was :-)
>
> Ok, I'm about a week behind on email, but my 2c on getting PCs to
> include more info:
>
> Part of this challenge is that sometimes the PC is not very invested
> in the project, and doesn't know very much info about it as a
> result. (Maybe people are excited about "doing service" in general
> without being excited about doing a specific thing.) I think an
> important related question is: if asked, could the PC defend the
> particular project's honor (confidently support the use of APO
> manpower towards this project, hopefully with information)?
>
> YiLFS,
> Brown
>
>
>
>
> Elizabeth Power! wrote:
>>> Leadership Aspects:
>>> *How can we get PCs to include more info about projects/events when
>>> sending mail?
>> I think that ^ is solved by including it in the cheat sheet...
>>> *What should go on a PC cheat sheet for each type of PCship?
>> ...so, brown wrote up some stuff for me to put in the pledge
>> manual...how about we start with this as a jumping off point and
>> make something we can use better.
>> FOOD FELLOWSHIP ACTIVITIES:
>> *Planning* -- As PC, you get to (and have to) decide everything!
>> A. Find out what your budget is from the BVP — you should generally
>> aim for around $25 for study breaks. If you have something cool in
>> mind that will cost a little more, just ask. B. Depending on
>> the event, choosing a theme can be a lot of fun. Creating
>> decorations, choosing playlists, or coming up with fun activities
>> for your theme is a good way to make your Fellowship event stand out.
>> C. Many times your event may be "traditionally" held in one
>> location, but you can always change it up a little if you or your
>> theme want to change it
>> D. Then, there’s always the food! You can get snacks, pizza,
>> Chinese, Indian, home-made dishes, whatever you decide. 1.
>> Remember to take into account dietary restrictions; we don’t want
>> to leave anyone out 2. Keep the budget in mind!
>> PUBLICITY:
>> *E-Mailing* -- This is one of the most important things to remember
>> for _all_ activities — if you don’t tell anyone, how will they
>> remember/know to come?? A. Timing
>> 1. It’s a good idea to send out e-mails several days before,
>> the day before, and a few hours before any given event or as the
>> event is beginning
>> 2. Remember that people do forget dates and time -- especially
>> when they are hosed or if they don’t keep a calendar. B. What
>> to Include
>> 1. A basic (possibly entertaining) descriptions of the event
>> 2. Date, Time (both meeting & starting if applicable),
>> Location (possibly directions)
>> C. It’s also useful to ask brothers and pledges whether they’re
>> going whenever you happen to see them, or have someone start a
>> polling on apo-discuss
>> SERVICE PROJECTS:
>> *The steps to follow...*
>> * First: Think about what projects/activities you enjoy...What
>> issues do you care about? * Second: Find an organization or come
>> up with an independent project that you feel like you could get
>> excited about. (If the PC is not psyched about the project, who
>> will be?) The SVP can help you find charitable organizations. *
>> Third: Plan out the logistics of the project. -- Remember to
>> coordinate the possible dates/times with the SVP
>> -- This can be as simple as calling up an organization to set up
>> a date & time at which we'll bring some volunteers (really, it is
>> often truly just as simple as calling the right person, but don't
>> let your PCship slide because of waiting for an organization to
>> respond -- oftentimes they don't get back to you)
>> -- if you are designing your own project, there may be many more
>> logistics to work out — don't be afraid to try something that might
>> fail! (this is a good way to learn something), but do seek advice
>> from experienced brothers and advisers when you are unsure.
>> -- know your expectant group size: Early in the term, weekend
>> projects can generally bring out 10 or more people; middle of the
>> term, 3-7; end of term, 2-4 (as of Fall 2008). * Forth:
>> Advertise your project to the chapter early and often! -- Let
>> us know why this issue is important, what we will be doing, and how
>> our efforts will help. -- If people seem uninterested, find out
>> why — it may be a simple as that the time you chose conflicts with
>> people’s schedules.
>> * Finally: On the day of the project, lead brothers to carry it
>> out! -- You are the point person, be able to answer questions
>> (or know where to find the answers)
>> -- The start of any project can be hectic, take a deep breath
>> and don't freak out...everything will be great! (oh, and ask for
>> help too!)
>> Remember that you are always encouraged to draft help whenever you
>> need it. For many activities, sub-PCs are explicitly declared by
>> the relevant VP, but you can make them too! If you feel like
>> there’s a lot of work, divide it up and pass it out. If you don’t
>> know how to decorate, designate someone to organize the
>> directions. Always ask brothers for help or advice if you think
>> you might need it!
>> AFTER A PROJECT/EVENT:
>> Don’t forget that once the event is over, you’re not done! You need
>> to write a "project (or event) report" for and send it to the
>> APOcrypha editor! The article should includes a list of the
>> brothers that came, a description of the project, and something
>> that you learned through organizing it, or something you would do
>> differently next time.
>> It’s also nice to send a thank you note to people who helped you
>> get the project done -- Did you have drivers? Did people donate
>> things? -- Sent them Thank You Notes! (it's never too late!)
