July 2nd, 2013
As we begin the month of July, you may find yourself – at your summer job or internship – thinking about the upcoming school year and all that your student organization could be capable of doing. It might seem early, but it is important to begin mapping out future plans that you hope to accomplish. The foundation behind all work must be the goals or ambitions you set for exuding effort in the first place. The seed for many of these ideas must be planted far in advance to ensure they develop into tangible opportunities.
Through my own work in student organizations as an undergraduate, I found the summer to be an invaluable time to begin planning ideas for potential speakers, events, promotional materials, and most importantly, establishing relationships with others. Each week in July, I will offer advice on how to better prepare for the school year regarding each of the aforementioned aspects.
Establishing Relationships
I believe that establishing relationships with other student leaders, members of local community organizations, and campus faculty is perhaps the most important task to ensuring your organization can meet its goals. This task should also take precedence in your summer planning, as the more time you allow for cohesive efforts, the higher the bar you can set for your future efforts.
Other organizations, and their leaders, can provide useful support, including resources, advice, and perhaps even other contacts that could be helpful to you. Reach out to a wide variety of groups, because you never know where you might find the right help.
Also, be sure to offer support to their future efforts, as you might find similar plans and could work together to make it more successful than either group had originally envisioned.
It is vital to take the reigns now and try to build a web of contacts that might provide value to you throughout the upcoming school year. Their support will help not only your efforts, but also will make your organization more recognizable on campus, potentially allowing for greater future opportunities.
The Leadership Institute offers a free webinar that discusses the power of persuasion, a necessary skill in building a coalition around your efforts.
You can view the video at this URL:
http://www.leadershipinstitute.org/activismondemand/watch.cfm?ID=1163