Ground Floor Community – Elevators Shouldn’t be Silent
Close your eyes and go back to the last time you took an elevator. How many of the strangers around you spoke? None, right? Did you all look at your phones and avoid eye contact and touching at all? Probably. That’s usually the case, and it works just fine. This morning, I walked into my […]
A Statue of Success for Your Campus Organization
While at a professional baseball game with friends this past spring, I came across statues of historic baseball players. They were beautiful statues that depicted the legendary players’ most notable stances while they had played. While staring at these iconic figures, I asked one of my friends, “If there was to be a statue made of yourself, […]
How to Make the Least Engaged Student a Hero
Crossing your lovely campus, you run into a student so introverted that your extrovert mind says “Why does he even come to our club meetings when he seems so…uninterested…” But you push this [biased] thought aside, put on your best smile and say “Hey, Dan! What’s up?” After a brief mumbled response from him, you mention […]
Using Micro-Actions to Create a Strong Campus Culture
I didn’t know anyone at the school, so I patiently waited in the lobby for the student life advisor to show up. When at first, I thought I was alone, the janitor turned the corner and saw me. He smiled and said, “Hi.” I smiled back. Then a group of two students walked past me […]
Designing a Unique Culture within Your Organization on Campus
I can guarantee you that I would literally scream if I had to work in a really quiet office environment. I would go insane. I wouldn’t fit in and I would be unhappy. Why? Because I thrive in loud and active environments. Too much quiet and I feel stifled. Culture is everything. In thinking about […]
Have You Maximized Your Name Tag “Real Estate”?
Which of these name tags would cause you to be more likely to strike up a conversation with me? It’s turtles, isn’t it? Tom told me about a time that he went to the Avis car rental office and the employee he worked with not only had his name on his name tag, but also […]
Put a Little Love in Your…Student Centers
You walk into your student center on your way to the cafeteria, and you see a student running across the lobby and jumping into the arms of another student, amidst exclamations of joy. The biggest smiles you have ever seen seem permanently stuck to their faces as they squeeze their eyes tight, and their arms […]
“We Care” – The Tell Me About Your Day Bracelets
At MIT, the community on campus has grieved four students lost to suicide in the past year. In the days after these tragedies, freshman Isabel “Izzy” Lloyd saw a rise in social media posts from her peers telling their networks that anyone can come talk to them if they feel depressed or need help. She […]
Dance Floor Theory™ in Movies: “Pitch Perfect”
After seeing Swift Kick’s Dance Floor Theory leadership training on building a strong culture of engagement, I started seeing examples of DFT tips everywhere, especially in movies. One film that has some great examples of getting others involved is “Pitch Perfect.” In this movie, Beca, a college freshman, is totally uninterested in finding any sort […]
Building Confidence Through Conflict – A Student Leader Spotlight
We are always meeting student leaders who are going the extra mile to make others feel welcome and build community culture on their campuses. We realized that one great way to learn from each other is to spotlight different students who have made an impact on the lives of their fellow students. Meet Katherine Lesnak, a student at Randolph […]