How to survive and thrive working in college housing with a geeky twist.

Posts in category Development

The Dark Knight Returns (Part 1)

Oct26th
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Tyler

So I know I promised you a recruitment post earlier this week.  But something profound (at least I think it is) has been rolling around inside of my head, that I figured I would share it.

Last week, I watched “The Dark Knight Returns Part 1.”  If you haven’t watched Warner Brothers’ adaptation of Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns Part 1, you are really missing out.  These are probably some of the finest animated Batman movies ever made.  Ever.  Seriously.  They do an amazing job at adapting Frank Miller’s classic graphic novel, and it comes perfectly on the heels of the Dark Knight Rises, Christopher Nolan’s fine wrap up of his trilogy.   Dark Knight Returns is rated PG-13, so it is not for children.  For those of you who may not know the story, it basically is what happens after Batman retires because he is too old.  It’s been ten years since Batman last appeared (Christopher Nolan anyone?) but the legend of Batman continues.  Things have gotten so bad, Batman struggles on whether to come out of retirement or not.   It is worth reading the graphic novel – and it certainly is worth watching the movie.

Recently, as an Assistant Director, I have had to struggle on whether to “come out” of retirement on different things.  There are things I miss about being an RD at times.  The closeness of relationship with residents and RAs, the “being in charge” of a program and seeing it run successfully.  You know – the parts of your job as an RD you LOVE doing.  The stuff you would volunteer for (as opposed to the stuff you realize why you are getting paid).

I have been removed as a live-in professional for over five years now.  As Assistant Director, my focus is on the development of the Resident Directors and Assistant Resident Directors (and the professional staff).  Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE developing up and coming staff.  I wouldn’t go back for the world.  But sometimes –  sometimes – I miss the programs, the day to day stuff.

There are times I “want” to come out of retirement.  I see someone struggling with a program and I know if I just jumped in, I could make it happen, and make it happen well.  You see, I am a fairly decent event/program planner.  I love involving others in planning my programs.  As an RA, I ALWAYS had residents help me plan programs out.  I think this is where I developed my desire to work collaboratively instead of by myself.  But that’s another blog for another time.  But now, I need to step aside and let OTHERS shine in their programming efforts.  But I debate myself constantly as to when is the time to jump in, and when is the time to let the “new” Batmen make some mistakes that could help them learn.

You see, I am no longer “Batman: Year one.”  I made many mistakes as a young Res Life Professional – the time I forced an RA to choose the job over her family early on in my career (ugh), the times I “blurred” the line between professional and para-professional (double ugh).  The times I forgot to confirm with the presenter of the program and they didn’t show up.  The times I forgot to reserve the room I advertised my program in, only to get there and realize someone else was using it.  I have made my share of mistakes.  But I have learned dearly from them.

And now it’s time for me to let the next generation of Batmen have their turn.  For me to step aside.  I struggle constantly to not micro-manage.  I will often error on the side of too hands off than risk getting my hands on and micro managing something.  But there was something in “The Dark Knight Returns” that sparked within me a new tactic.  Maybe it isn’t an all or nothing proposition?  One of the main points of the Dark Knight Returns is the return of Robin.  Maybe instead of debating on whether I step in or let the Batmen run things, I might choose a few projects to lead, and allow someone to “shadow me” like Batman did with Robin.  I hadn’t considered THAT tactic before.  I don’t know if it has fully sunk in yet, but I think I may look for opportunities to bring along a Robin…

Thoughts?

Advice   

The Doctor Is In

Oct15th
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Tyler

Live…from Afghanistan, it’s a post from the Patron Saint of reslifegeek.com, Ryan McRae.  Take it away Ryan:

While living in Afghanistan, I have some strange amounts of downtime. What I mean by strange is that, I might be sitting in a terminal from 3:00 AM – 6:00 AM, waiting for a flight. I can’t sleep and I’m so tired that I can’t write or read (at least coherently.)

So I watch videos.

Now, I’ve been blazing through Doctor Who. He’s a time-traveler who brings a companion with him, to various places in time and space. One day he’s in World War 2 and the next day he’s in the year 1 billion watching our sun explode. And everywhere he lands, hijinx ensues.

It’s not the deepest show you’ll watch. It’s no Breaking Bad where after that show you need to look at cat videos for an hour or fall into an abyss of despair. It does explore humanity and issues of diversity (there are some where I think, I have to show these to my RAs and then I think I don’t have any RAs. I’m in Afghanistan.)

I’ve learned some valuable lessons from The Doctor and his companion and how they relate to the world I used to live in, but I’m million miles from: residential life.

Embrace Uncertainty. The Doctor never knows exactly when and where he’ll land. He will aim for tomorrow and land 15 years later. He might meet a friend, and know her well, but she hasn’t met him yet (due to time travel.) It gets complicated. But when The Doctor opens his TARDIS, he flings the door open and leaps through. He does not fear what’s on the other side. There is no plan. He wings it.

Sometimes in Residential Life, we have to wing it. We have to leap through the chaos. Sometimes it’s a flooded building or a fire, a riot or a scandal. Sometimes it’s a 5150 call and sometimes it’s a whole bunch of Resident Advisors being fired. But sometimes, the chaos is awesome. Once our power went out and we assembled the Resident Advisors to do a barbecue, slip and slide and when the students’ power died in their cell phones and they unplugged, we all had a great time.

Have a Companion. This companion (always female) is the conscience of The Doctor. She keeps him grounded in the quest for humanity, not the quest for judgement. She reminds him of who he is and where the “line” is.

I have been fortunate to make friends across many campuses through networking at conferences and committees. I have a select few I would check in with. I would give them a scenario whether a political minefield or a conduct meeting that just went south. I would call my “companion” and debrief on what went on. I would always have this be someone at another campus and use as much anonymity as possible. I needed to be reminded of many truths that get washed away from my heart from the waves and waves of disappointment or frustration.

I’d recommend making connections with your local organizations and find a mentor or a peer who can help see you through some rough times.

I was telling my friend about a conflict I was having with my supervisor. I explained the situation and all the parts I thought I’d gotten wrong and she looked at me and said:

“You know what the real problem is, Ryan?”

“No……what?”

“Your boss is a complete nutjob.”

I laughed hysterically and all the tension and burden lifted off my shoulders.

Enjoy the Ride. No matter what, The Doctor has fun.  There is something to smile about, something to find joy in. I think one of the reasons I burned out of my job is that I faced it like a list of problems to fix everyday, a list of tasks to complete. I didn’t get to see the joyful part of the job at times and that was entirely my fault. I just seemed to deal with the dredge and not the fruit of my labors. Make sure you are finding joy in your job, celebrating accomplishments and feeding your soul.

And if the Doctor ever shows up and offers to take you to a far away land—do it—send me a postcard.

Ryan McRae is the creator of Geek Week, a week on college campuses that celebrates the geek culture. He writes a blog called geekinafghanistan.com and has left the comfort of the United States to reboot his life in Afghanistan. He has written a book: A Quick and Easy Parent’s Guide to College and it premieres November 5th! Sign up today!

Advice, Connecting   

The Matrix of Leadership

Jun22nd
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Tyler

Greetings readers!  I have been spending some time lately watching Transformers on Netflix.  I just finished Transformers Prime season 1, and just starting the original Transformers, Season 3.  I have seen seasons 1 and 2, and the original Transformers movie often (because I owned them on DVD) but never really got into Seasons 3 and 4.  The reason I share this with you because of the concept of “The Matrix of Leadership.”  You see, Optimus Prime was given the Matrix of Leadership – it was bestowed upon him.  Much like the Rings in the Green Lantern Mythos, Optimus Prime was bestowed and chosen to be the leader of the Autobots.  Not necessarily the because he was the strongest, but because of his character.  I love the concept of the Matrix of Leadership.

As a math major, the concept of a matrix has a completely different connotation for me.  As I was doing research for a training session I found a matrix that was pretty thought provoking.  It is called the “Johari Window.”  A link to Wikipedia here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johari_window

Now this was also an episode of Fringe that many of you watch, but that’s not what I’m talking about here.  From a relational approach to how we do life, I love it.  Originally it was used primarily to help people better understand their mental instability, but today, I think the matrix is helpful in the context of leadership.  Here is the matrix:

So let me quickly explain it to you.  There are things about you, that you know.  The more self aware you are, the more quadrants 1 and 3 grow and the less quadrants 2 and 4 become.  The other dimension is what others know about you.

For example, most people who know me, know I am passionate.  I know this about me too.  This would fall in quadrant 1.  I am pretty open about being passionate.  Next, there are things people know about me that I don’t know about myself.  These are things I am blind to.  I should know them because it is apparent to others who meet me, but I cannot see them.  There are ALSO things I know about myself, but I keep hidden from others.  Finally, there are things both unknown to me AND unknown to others.

The idea is that the sizes of the quadrants above change over the course of time.  In a new relationship, Quadrant 1 is small.  A communication and interaction increases, quadrant 1 becomes bigger and Quadrant 3 begins to shrink.  To a point.  Often times, there are limits to how big we are willing to allow Quadrant 1 to become.  Many folks think keeping things hidden is a bad thing.  However, there is always a balance and appropriateness.

Consider your staff.  How often do you think their quadrant 1 is a little TOO big and maybe they should increase quadrant 3?  And how many staff do you feel have too big of a quadrant 3 and just wish they’d open up?  In looking at power differentials, RAs SHOULD have some things hidden from their residents.  RDs SHOULD have some things hidden from their staff.  This is healthy and normal.  There are things my wife knows about me that others do not.

On the flip side, there are many folks who dwell in quadrant 3 – we put up fronts.  We wear “masks” and pretend to be people were not.  All in the hopes that people WON’T find out how scared we really are.  How much we lack confidence.  How much we’ve been hurt in the past and we won’t allow it to happen again.

Ok – that was the easy side.  Quadrant 2?  It takes a lot longer to shrink.  It requires putting oneself in position to receive open and honest feedback.  It requires people who care enough about you to reveal to you the things they see that you might not.  People, in general, and mostly not open to feedback about their blind spots.  Give me feedback in my open and hidden areas?  Fine.  I can handle it.  I know those things.  But tell me something I DON’T know?  I’m likely going to get defensive and use a variety of behaviors to close off feedback.  (Torbert, 1987)

Quadrant 4 tends to change most slowly of all.  It is often a very large quadrant than greatly influences what we do.  Yet many people totally close off the possibility of learning about quadrant 4.  The reason for this, is because we tend to not put ourselves in risky situations – we tend to take the safe route – where MAYBE someone will figure out what we already know.  But to put ourselves in a situation where we’re not sure how we’ll respond?  That’s risky.  Open ourselves up to a situation where someone might tell us something we’re not aware of?  Pssh.

Take Ryan.  You know, the guy who was writing this blog.  Until he took off.  To Afghanistan.  You want to learn about quadrant 2 and Quadrant 4?  Read Ryan’s new blog http://geekinafghanistan.com   He is basically writing about his journey of discovery to decrease his quadrant 2 and 4.

To me, this is the true Matrix of leadership – to go into a realm where we allow people to know us.  Where we hide things appropriately (cause again, do my RAs REALLY need to hear about ALL the things I did when I was 18?  Maybe one or two stories, but they don’t need to hear EVERYTHING).  But where we also allow for risks.  And we respond to our blind spots in a way that helps us discover more about our own self, and we become more open and more self-aware.

People make great efforts and use a great deal of energy to hide, deny or stay blind to their own values, motives, and behaviors.  Especially when they are inconsistent.  The worst thing to have someone call you?  A hypocrite.  Why?  Because it cuts to the core that we may not be as self aware as we’d like.

As a result of our efforts to hide these things, our quadrant 1 begins to shrink and others begin to enlarge.  But when we focus more on increasing quadrant 1 (to a degree) the others tend to shrink.  We can then spend more energy, skills, and resources towards building healthy relationships.  For me, when I got married, my quadrant one began to grow at an exponential rate.  My wife knows me, sometimes better than I know myself.  There isn’t much in my 3rd quadrant with my wife.  Most of it is in quadrants 1, 2, and 4.  And because of this, more of my energy can be spent developing real and authentic relationships (instead of trying to remember what I’ve got hidden to who).  For me (and others) this also happens when you become connected to something spiritual – the concept of being known to someone greater than yourself teaches you more about yourself when you are put in touch with things you are blind to.  And the larger your quadrant 1 is, the more openness, trust, and learning there is.

So, dear readers, I challenge you – you don’t have to move to Afghanistan.  But start to explore quadrants 2 and 4.  Put yourselves in situations that challenge you.  Diversify the people you hang with and allow into your life – they just MIGHT see something about you that you are unable to see yourself.  And, like Optimus Prime, you’ll find there is more to you than meets the eye.

Advice, Hope, Peace

Summer Movie List

May16th
2012 4 Comments Written by Tyler

Ok – so this may not be as “geeky” as previous posts, but this post involves movies – and that’s pop-culture, which fits a little bit with being a geek.

Movies. All of us in Residential Life/Housing know the movies we love to use. For training, for fun, etc. Back in the 90s, I joked with some staff that really the best question to ask in an RA interview was whether you liked the movie “Grease” or not. If you liked “Grease” you were RA material. If you didn’t: “Seeya!” We were joking. Sort of. Don’t get me started on “Grease 2″ though. Michelle Pfeiffer is no Olivia Newton John.

Anyway. I have two summer movie lists. Before I share them, please know – I will never recommend a movie I have never seen. There are LOTS of great movies out there (AND I would love you to comment and leave some of your own recommendations) but I don’t think it is fair for me to recommend a movie I haven’t seen. It is just wrong (in my opinion). So without further ado – I give you my first list of quintessential summer movies:

These are movies that are “impactful.”  You will be a better person for watching them (if you haven’t seen them yet).  They deal with themes as a Residential Life Staff member that you will come across (making a difference in someone’s life, overcoming adversity, a life redeemed, etc)

  • Lean on Me (Morgan Freeman)
    • Best Movie.  Ever.  Based on a real life story,  I even got to meet the real Principal “Crazy Joe Clark” at a leadership conference.  It is all about one man making a difference in the lives he is educating.  I STILL Cry every time when I watch this movie.
  • The Power of One (Morgan Freeman)
    • Another powerful movie.  Dealing with Africa and apartheid, revealing the power of education to make a difference in       someone’s life.  Best quote of the movie:  “A waterfall begins with a       single drop of water.”  If you haven’t seen this movie.  SEE IT.
  • Stand and Deliver (Edward James Olmos)
    • Another true story – about a teacher who challenges urban kids to take the AP calculus test.  A movie about math. Yes!
  • Shawshank Redemption (Morgan Freeman)
    • Yes, I am a big Morgan Freeman fan.
  • American Me (Edward James Olmos)
    • And Edward James Olmos
  • Remember the Titans (Denzel Washington)
    • I use this movie every year in Leadership class. People sometimes give me ribbing for it, and I challenge them to find a better movie to demonstrate different styles of leadership, and mix in issues of diversity.  No one has  done it.  Yet.
  • Dangerous Minds (Michele Pfiffer)
    • She makes up for “Grease 2” and “Married to the Mob” and “Batman Returns” – Catwoman? Really?
  • Precious (Mo’nique)
  • Higher Learning (Ice Cube, Lawrence Fishbourne)
  • Dead Poet’s Society (Robin Williams)
  • School Ties (Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon)
  • American History X  (Edward Norton)
  • Crash (Matt Dillon, Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle)
  • Radio (Cuba Gooding, Jr)
  • Rudy (Sean Astin –  nephew of Alexander Astin – the guy who created the Social Change Model)
  • Pay it Forward (Kevin Spacey)

So – here’s my challenge for you.  Pick a movie you haven’t seen from the above list.  Watch it.  Then write about it.  Email it to me (tymiller@csufresno.edu) and I will post it on here for a review.  Even if you HATE it.  Explain why you hate it.  Please?

If you don’t like that challenge?  Add a movie of your own on the comments below.  Maybe I will watch it (if I haven’t seen it) and do a review.

That’s all for now.  We are heading into the trench run of closing.  “Look at the size of that thing” I am thinking as we enter into our last two days.  Fortunately,  I have a wise Obi Wan Kenobi telling me – use the force.  Let go, Luke.  While at the same time I have a Han Solo telling me – “Let’s blow this thing and go home, kid!”  Next week, I’ll present you list number 2 – “Cheesy/Comedic Res Life movies.”  We have a tradition here at Fresno State that I will share next week once we destroy the death star of closing.

Until then…may the force be with you…always.

Advice, movies, Summer   

Summertime. Blockbusters.

May10th
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Tyler

Summertime is coming (it may already be here). Blockbusters abound.  Summer is the time the BEST movies come out.  Check this out:

  • May: Avengers, Dark Shadows, Battleship, Men In Black 3
  • June: Madagascar 3, Prometheus, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Brave, GI JOE Retaliation
  • July: Spiderman, Ice Age: Continental Drift, BATMAN:Dark Knight Rises
  • August: Bourne Legacy, Total Recall reboot, Expendables 2

Now that is a nice list of winners.  Probably some stinkers too.  Summer time in Res Life is an interesting time of year.  It is a time to catch your breath.  But I believe summer time is where you make or break your career.  What will you spend your summer doing?  Here are some things to think about:

  • Process:  Before I do anything else, or allow myself to rest, I take some time reflect and process the year with my RDs.  A “Total Recall” so to speak.  What went well?  What didn’t?  What do we want to fix?  Are there things to tweak with closing?  Programming ?  What are we proud of this year?  What are we not so proud of?  While it is fresh, it’s time to talk about these things before it gets lost and you’ve moved on to next year. What is going to be your team’s LEGACY?  Your team is likely changing next year – what will the current team leave as a LEGACY for the next group.  As I said last week, also making sure you take time to bring closure for your staff.  Maybe send some notes out.
  • Rest:  Getting rest over the summer is crucial! You just experienced the process of the Academic year.  Travel. Explore the area you are living.  Last summer you may have just started your job – you spent all your time last summer learning the campus, the system, prepping for your RAs arrival.  Maybe you didn’t have time to see the town you were living in.  Now is that time.  Maybe it’s time to REBOOT.
  • Dream: Think ahead.  What is it you want to do over the next year?  What do you want to learn professionally? Personally?  What will you do to develop YOURSELF this upcoming year?

If you look at the summer movies and other sequels from the past, it gives us some insight on what your life looks like each year.  If our academic year is a movie, each successive year is kind of like a sequel.  As you reflect on your past year, was this your first year in the field, and was it fresh and exciting?  Or are you on Police Academy 5 where it feels formulaic, and maybe you are tired of going through the motions.  After all there are just soooo many ways a human being can make beeping noises and have it still sound fresh.  Maybe you’re a one act pony whose schtick was tired 4 years ago?  If you keep telling the same jokes, they DO get tired.  There are only so many times Rocky can get knocked down and get back up before we say “yeah yeah – we know – he’s an underdog – and he’s going to WIN!”  There are only so many ways to break up and get back together.

There are many different ways to handle sequels.  Let’s take the Batman Franchise for instance.  Michael Keaton’s First Batman movie felt fresh, new.  I believe it is the crucial moment that geek culture went from camp to cool.  More on that in another post.  But by the time George Clooney took the mantle (with the future Governor of California as Mr. Freeze – ugh) it was tired and sad.  And BAM, Christopher Nolan takes over so many years later with Batman Begins and it’s new again!  And BAM! He follows it up with the Dark Knight, and Heath Ledger brings a greater depth to the movie.  Sometimes it takes a great villain to be the hero you were created to be.  Think about that if you had a potentially rough year this year.  Batman NEEDED a re-boot.  Maybe you do too?  Maybe you don’t need a reboot, you need to take what you learned from last year and just grow from that experience because it is part of something bigger-   think Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.  Either way, the suumer time is when you can “make it happen, cap’n.”

I think being an RD was most difficult when I realized over the summer all that hard work I invested last year was over and I had to start again new next year.  It didn’t really hit me my second year as an RD until about late September/Early October.  Maybe it doesn’t hit you until your third year.   Didn’t I teach my staff how to deal with that ALREADY?  I can’t believe I am STILL dealing with staff who want to be liked by their residents instead of respected.  I got my staff RIGHT where I wanted them LAST year in May, and now, all that work is gone.  UGH!  But it will hit you – when you realize that each sequel to your RD movie is a little bit the same and familiar, and a lot different.  Now, I spend my summers EMBRACING that notion.

And here is where I made the change for me.  It was when I realized the energy I was spending each year was not to make MY LIFE easier.  What frustrated me as a young professional was that I spent this energy during the year and I had to START OVER.  What I was really saying – all this energy should make my life easier next year.  My life.  My life.  My life.  AND – it wasn’t about making me BETTER it was about making my life EASIER.  When I began to embrace that this wasn’t about me, and more importantly, my comfort, I begun to realize that the energy I spend developing residents, RAs, and now RDs, isn’t about making MY LIFE easier.  It is about helping THEM making THEIR LIVES better.  THAT energy is NEVER Wasted.  Well…almost never…I’ve had one or two “Voldemort” residents and/or staff members over the years…but in general I have seen my investments pay off in the lives of those around me.  That is why I do what I do.  When I realized that, I saw each year as a new opportunity.  A new adventure.  And the possibilities were ENDLESS.  It wasn’t the same old formulaic sequel.  Each year was a chance to reboot.  Or at least advance the story from the year previously.  To develop the characters further.  to enrich them.

And surprise!  This not only made the lives of my STAFF better – it impacted MY life for the better as well.  When I stopped worrying about making my life EASIER and instead investing in others, my life was enriched beyond measure.

So, dear reader.  As you get through closing, catch your breath.  Reflect and Process on the movie you just got done making.  As the director of next year’s movie, what do you want it to look like?  Do you need a reboot?  Do you need to enhance what has been done?  Answer some of those questions, and then go and get your rest.  And then DREAM.

Just for fun – if you had to pick a movie that would define your past year – what would it be?  Would it be a summer blockbuster?  A tired sequel?  Pick a movie and share it with the rest of us.  Please?

PS.  Sorry if this is a little disjointed. We are crazy busy with closing as most of you are.  Hopefully my heart got across in what I wrote.

Advice, Closure, Dreaming Big, Harry Potter, Peace, Star Wars, Summer, Uncategorized

Geek Data. The Undiscovered Country

Apr18th
2012 4 Comments Written by Tyler

Ok – so last week I got off on a tangent.  My original goal was to share with you some ACTUAL data on geek students.  This past academic year, we began the process to try and determine what our “geek” population was here in the Residence Hall at Fresno State.  Ryan and I (and others) have discussed that different campuses have varying student populations of “geeks.”  Carnegie Mellon probably has a much higher percentage of geeks than we do here at Fresno State.  But I would say that Fresno State is probably a “typical” public University – and probably would be relatable for other Universities as well.

So – here’s what we did.  When our residents moved into our Residence Halls in August, we did an online survey of all 1100 of them (approximate).  We got a return rate of 458 (41.6%).  Then in November we did ANOTHER survey of our residents and received 369 back (33.5%).  We asked the following two questions related to geek culture, among many other questions:

  • How Strongly do you identify with being a part of the geek culture? (interested in pop-culture, science fiction, fantasy, comic-books, super heroes, gaming, etc)? (Scale of 1-7, 1 being not at all, 7 being “it’s who I am”)
  • What is your perspective of “geek” culture or being a geek (interested in pop-culture, science fiction, fantasy, comic-books, super heroes, gaming, etc)? (scale of 1-7 with 1 being extremely negative to 7 being extremely positive)

Here is what we found:

Mean at move in: 3.55 Mean at EOS:  3.8

In terms of “geek identity” – 31.9% of the students identified as a geek in some way (answering 5,6, or 7) and 46.8% answering they really didn’t (answering 1,2, or 3) when they moved in.    Towards the END of the semester, 37.9% answered 5,6, or 7, and 41.3% answered 1,2 or 3.  Also, the mean score was 3.55 at move in and 3.8 at the end of the semester.  That means residents tended to move in the direction of identifying more with the geek identity as they lived with us.  The number of students who answered “It is who I am” went from 6.9% at move in to 12.9% at the end of the semester.

For other identity markers (we asked the same question of identity as it related to Race, Religion, Gender, Politics, and Sports) they ALSO increased, but geek was the most significant increase.  Also, the mean of identity for geeks rose by the most percentage as well, compared to the increases in all other identities.  Politics was the only identity that decreased in mean.

Mean at move in: 4.64 Mean at EOS: 4.86

In terms of “geek” perspective, at move in, residents scored it at 4.64 on the 7 point scale. (9.2% saying extremely positive and 2.1% extremely negative).  Towards the end of the semester – check this out – the mean rose to 4.86 but 20.4% answered “extremely positive” while only 2.2% rated it “extremely negative.”

 

 

 

 

We also crosstabbed the results to see if there were differences between males and females.

How Much Do You Identify As a Geek?
How Strongly do you identify with being a part of the geek culture? (interested in pop-culture, science fiction, fantasy, comic-books, super heroes, gaming, etc)? (Scale of 1-7, 1 being not at all, 7 being “it’s who I am”)

Move In: Male mean 3.8, Female mean 3.44
End of Semster: Male mean 4.48, female mean 4.73

Identify as a geek (Answered 5,6,or 7):
Move In: 34.2% of males, 31% of females
End of Semester: 44.9% of males, 46.4% of females

 

 

 

 

It’s who I am:
Move In: 6.5% of males, 7.3% of females
End of Semester: 16.1% of males, 11% of females

 

 

 

 

Did Not Identify as a geek at all (Answered 1):
Move In: 13.5% of males, 20.8% of females
End of Semester: 16.1% of males, 23.7% of females

Perspective of geek culture:
What is your perspective of “geek” culture or being a geek (interested in pop-culture, science fiction, fantasy, comic-books, super heroes, gaming, etc)? (scale of 1-7 with 1 being extremely negative to 7 being extremely positive)

Overall Means:
Move In: 4.48 males 4.73 females
End of Semester: Mean: 4.95 male, 4.8 female

 

 

 

 

 

Generally Positive (Answered 5,6, or 7):
Move In: 44.9% of men, 46.4% of women
End of Semester: 57.2% of males, 47.9% of females

 

 

 

 

Extremely Positive: (7):
Move in: 5.8% of men, 11.2% of women
End of Semester: 21.7% of men, 19.6% of women

 

 

 

 

Extremely negative (1):
Move In: 3.8% of males, 1.1% of females
End of Semester: 2.9% of males, 1.8% of females

So what does this mean?  More research needs to be done,  but even at a public University there is a significant geek culture, and that can increase while they are here.  Also, there are definitely differences between male and female “geeks.”  It seems that maybe in high school females are more comfortable with identifying as geeks (7.3% of females answered it’s who I am when they moved in compared to 6.5% of males) but after a semester at college, the environment may open up males to identify with being a geek (10% increase in men answering “it’s who I am” compared to a 4% increase for women).   This is meted out in the perspective on geek culture.  For women, their perspective of geek culture didn’t really change over the semester (4.73 for move in, 4.8 at the end of the semester).  Men’s perspectives seemed to change significantly (4.48 at the beginning of the semester, 4.95 at the end).  We will continue asking these questions to see if trends develop here at Fresno State.  I would love for you to include the same questions above on any general surveys your campus does and report back the results.  With surveymonkey now, these questions are easy to ask.

So – all this to say – maybe we need a term to determine a college’s “geek quotient” and use the “move in” mean and “end of fall semester” mean to measure it.  Maybe use the End of semester mean and the increase(or decrease) from move in. For Fresno State, our quotient for this year was 3.8(+.25).  This would let the reader know how much we (as a Residence Hall) identify with geeks, and what kind of environment exists and whether it is nurturing of “geekness” or not.  Wonder what other campuses would have as their “geek quotient?”

Would love your thoughts – or if you want to know more, please let me know!

Research    , ,

Becoming Proficient: New Kind of Goal Setting.

Jan16th
2012 5 Comments Written by Ryan

I wonder how Batman tackled becoming Batman. I mean, I know he went and trained all over the world, sought out the experts, but did he create some kind of to-do list?

Becoming Batman, a short to-do list.

  • Learn to kick people’s butts.
  • Master the art of being sneaky.
  • Eat less carbs.
  • Create wicked awesome costume.
  • Get that playboy thing down.

So as we start this new year, what skills are you working on to improve yourself. What is your inner Batwoman/Batman telling you to do?

Here’s my short, micro list.

Participate in Learn to Code. 

Read The Seven Basic Plots and create a presentation that ties into Residential Life. (Creating the Best Story for Your Residents.) It’s a mammoth of a book.

Start Learning how to create assignments in residential life (I’m really, really bad at the technical/business end of housing. I need to step that up.) 

So meet with your supervisor and say, “These are the skills I need to pick up. How can we accomplish this? And what other skills do you think I need?” Then start. Read that article, contact that administrator, shadow that ninja who has the skill you do. Build your utility belt, put on the costume, get the cave, build the car, and stalk the night.

Then get to work, Caped Crusader.

Advice

A Geek’s Year in Review

Dec27th
2011 2 Comments Written by Ryan

2011 has been one of the roughest years of my life. The theme I wanted for this year was “Freelance” and what I got was “Change”. From work upheavals to family crises this was a year that left my ears ringing. I also risked more this year than I have in the past five years. I accomplished some goals I never thought I’d finish. I accomplished some big dreams. Here’s the highlights.

Comic Con. Me and some of my friends spoke at Comic-con this year for GeekEd. I’ve written extensively about it, but I look back on that time, and think that really happened. We will be having a repeat performance this year and who knows where it will go from there.

Lesson: Dream big and put yourself out there. If someone says, “Yes” it could change your life. 

World Domination Summit I started reading Sir Chris Guillebeau’s blog and I heard about the WDS. I waited too long to get tickets and had to literally wait  by my computer, waiting for an email letting me know tickets got released. I managed to get in and then I ran around my office. I might have slapped my butt. I met some phenomonal people, great speakers, and I won 2 scavenger hunts. It has really opened my eyes to entreprenuership. Here are the three people I met who have greatly influenced my life (you too Chris.)

Lesson: Surround yourself with dreamers. Oh, and register early for where you want to go.

Central RAP  I was the keynote speaker at the Central RAP for the Western Association of College and Housing Professionals. You can read about it here. I look back on that day and it was just amazing, the students and staff. Getting that opportunity meant the world to me.

Lesson: Give yourself away. Give your best out there. Opportunities will burst down your door and slap you in the face. 

This year has given a lot: I have found a church I care about and a ton of new friends. I’ve saved money to jump from this job if that’s what I ever needed to do. I’ve started writing a book and I’ll be doing a webinar in January. I finished one year of Crossfit and it has changed my life (and I’ve written for a fitness blog! Me! Fitness! What?!)

The theme next year is “Risk and Finish”.

I’m committing finishing these goals.

  • Finish my Geek Programming book. It’s about a 30 page ebook and I’m hoping to sell it to a higher education publishing company to get some residual income off of it. (I hope to make about $100-300 from it) Due date: March 1st, 2010.
  • Finish weighing 210. I have this little ponch that I’m so tired of. I’m king of the stress eaters. I work in housing. Why, hellllllo pizza. Due date: May 1st
  • Finish 10 non-fiction books by the end of the year.

I’m committing to stopping the following behaviors:

  • Not buying one single book for the entire year. (That’s right, nerd. Not anything on my kindle, nothing.) I have hundreds of unread books. I gotta get to work.
  • I’m going to stop whining about not having enough freelance work. I just gotta figure it out.
  • I’m stopping being so hard on myself. I’ve caught myself being a sad Eeyore about not spending time with friends or not working out enough. Man, if I was married, my spouse would hate me.

I’ll keep you posted on the rest of them. Until then geeks, I’ll see you next year.

 

 

Conferences, Connecting, Dreaming Big

Help-Portrait. Delivering Worth and Hope.

Dec15th
2011 4 Comments Written by Ryan

I’ve been participating in Help Portrait for three years now. If you are unfamiliar with this, it’s a movement designed to give portraits away to people who couldn’t get them: the homeless, the addicted, the lost and broken. No matter the age or race, no matter the circumstance or crime, we take their pictures because we believe at the core of this movement that people have value, and that a picture is worth.

I went to Green Oaks Ranch in Vista and met some great guys who have recently transitioned out of prison, men who are dealing with some addiction.

I met David. A strong guy who had recently been released. He asked me, “Could you guys come back in February? My daughter is coming to see me. I haven’t seen her since she was 3.”

“How old is she now?” I asked.

“She’s 25. I’m going to meet my 3 year old grand-daughter.”

(silence)

“Yes, yes we will be there.”

Dave didn’t want his picture taken, but once he saw it, he convinced the other men to have their picture taken. Dave had been in prison for over 10 years. He hadn’t seen a picture go from camera to computer—until that day.

I met another man named Vincent. His story is that his wife became addicted to heroin and he fell into that addiction; his life just unraveled. He was kind and friendly. The men looked up to him. He thanked us for coming and said, “This means more than you know.”

My buddy Vincent.

I think I’m beginning to understand, Vincent.

It was a simple program.

Find a place that needs their picture taken.

Find some photographers.

Figure out how to print the pictures.

I think we get so bogged down in the details that we miss the stories in front of us. We bury ourselves in committees and budgets, details and specifics. Error on the side of attempt, not fear.

I also met some fantastic guys from the Station Church in Carlsbad. During some breaks and lulls we laughed and chortled (had to get chortled in my blog at some point) like old friends. I guess that’s what service does; it bonds us and breaks down the preliminary get to know you awkwardness. They are as funny as me—a rare treat indeed.

So somewhere out there are pictures on mantels and being sent in envelopes. They are being carefully framed. Those pictures are talked about and hopefully treasured. And it’s my deepest hope that they exude freedom and a new story in their lives.

Connecting, Hope   

The Game Of Thrones: Finding Allies in the Midst of Chaos

Oct24th
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Ryan

I watched the series Game of Thrones on HBO. It was a bit (ahem) risque for my taste, but I got enraptured by the story as did millions. I’m burning through the first book, a mirror of the series, but obviously has a rich backstory (like Harry Potter books vs the movies.)

One of the themes of the book is: who can you really count on? Without going to spoiler town, the answer is simply: those who care but do not owe. The second someone owes someone else in the series, the clouds of doom start to swoop in. If you can find two selfless people who help for the sake of love and friendship, then the bond holds. If it’s based on power or prestige, riches or favor, then it all eventually crumbles away, creating tragedy on the way down.

So here’s the obvious question: who are your allies?

Who are the people at other colleges you can depend on, where your relationship is not based on power, but just on altruism?

If the answer is you scratching your head, well, my friend, you have come to the right place. Grab your wine, direwolf and sit by the fire with me.

Gatherings: When the option of a conference comes up, jump at the chance. Now you might be thinking: I don’t want to spend the money. Don’t you get that we are all broke? Yes, I get it. I hear your cries in throughout the castle walls. But the investment is worth it and it will pay you fantastic dividends.

Now you might be shy, but anyone can network; anyone can shake a hand, offer a smile and start up a conversation (I’m making the assumption that all of you are not crippling introverts; it would be hard to survive in our job if that were true.)

I’m a conference addict (addict!) and I usually make connections at the breakout sessions so I can find people I have things in common with. Through the conferences I’ve met colleagues who are fellow geeks like me. With them I’ve spoken at Comic-Con and have always had someone to call and say, “What are your thoughts on this?” or “How would you go about creating this change?” The phone calls are about 5 minutes tops. The validation and advice: priceless.

Committees: I love committee work. And I’ve done them long enough to know what I like and what I don’t. I like upfront speaking roles or creative design, not handling the money or admin roles. But what I enjoy most is meeting different kinds of people and through them, serving together, seeing their altruistic spirit, I’m much more apt to make connections.

Also, ask your peers at your school to “set you up.” Ask them, “Who has some common interests like me? Could you introduce us?” Come on, us college folk are a friendly bunch.

Get to it. Make your allies. Create your connections. And then go to WAR! (ok, don’t go to war.)

By the way, I put up a new page on my blog great resources I’ve used. Throw me an email or comment if I can be of any help.

Conferences, Connecting, Mentoring
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