FYE Event: Stress Management

Since today was probably the most stressful day of my college career (so far...let me just say that it's only WEEK FIVE of my freshman year), I decided that it would probably be prudent to make time to go to a stress management session that the Center for Student Success was hosting.

Carving time out of my schedule to attend was a wise choice. The session only lasted for twenty minutes at the most, and it was packed with enough tips to answer all of my questions.

The thing that stood out to me as most helpful was the portion on food. My more attentive followers will probably realize as soon as they read that sentence that my last post was on food. Admittedly, it's a big part of my life and a big struggle for me. I've read countless articles on it, had a presenter speak to our Women in Leadership seminar about nutrition, and heard the same things again and again. Eat frequently. Eat healthy foods. Watch your portions. Don't indulge in caffeine.

When will I learn? For some reason, I always unconsciously slip back into the same habits. I eat infrequently and then overeat; I grab French fries instead of vegetables; I pay no attention to portions.

The presenter for the stress management session told us that eating healthily would make us more alert, more focused, and -- the thing which grabbed my attention the most -- it can help us to get more out of our studying sessions. Though I never thought of it in that context, it makes sense. Focusing after eating a light meal certainly sounds easier than trying to focus with a grumbling belly. Studying in a food coma sounds even worse. Food really does affect our productivity.

During the session, we were advised against caffeine, overly large portions, nicotine, alcohol, and large amounts of greasy, fatty foods. As a leader -- or maybe a leader in training -- I have decideded that it's time for the food battle to end. I'm going to truly watch what I eat now. I hope that the work I do from now on reflects this. If things go my way, people will know that I'm winning the battle without even asking.

Resources for Leaders

The line that stuck out for me from our Resources for Leaders session last week is "Make time for it." Make time for community service. Make time for eating meals. Make time for exercising.

As leaders, our goal is largely to help and give to others. Sometimes because of this, it is easy for us to forget to take care of ourselves.

To me, this almost sounds like a selfish statement as I'm typing it or saying it out loud. After all, isn't my goal in life to help others? I don't make it a priority to help myself. However, as several of the presenters pointed out, taking care of oneself isn't putting aside the needs of others -- it's taking time to maximize your efficiency later.

As soon as they explained this, I realized that they were right. Images of myself staring blearily down at my anthology without a thing to say about an essay I adored, because of my mind simply not functioning due to lack of sleep, popped into my head. Had I taken a few more hours to rest, rather than going over translations of my repertoire pieces (which truly could have been put off until the next day), I'd have my talking points at the ready, and spark some potentially useful conversation, helping myself and my classmates to better understand the piece. As convoluted as it sounds, there is a great deal of truth in the simple fact that I have to take care of myself to take care of others in the way that I wish to.

By taking the time to choose foods that will keep me alert, rather than cramming foods high in both fat and convenience down my throat, I could make my waking hours that much more productive. By participating in community service, I can make a difference in a variety of places while still dedicating the bulk of my time to the causes I care most about. All in all, the best solution is balance, and taking care of oneself benefits everyone. Who knew?

Social Theater: An Experience with Melissa Gilbert

Since the students in the Women in Leadership seminar will be working with and mentoring young girls, it is only appropriate that we learn how to communicate and connect with them. This seems like a daunting task for an untrained teenage college student, but luckily, Melissa Gilbert, the head of co-curricular activities, stepped in as our first speaker in class to help us.

Ms. Gilbert trained us by using members of the class to act as students, and showing us one method of getting a concept across to a group of young people in an entertaining and visually striking way: social theater.

Ms. Gilbert almost immediately moved the class from the conference room to the more open space in the juvenile section of the library ("Make sure to use movement as a part of your presentation to keep the kids engaged," she advised as she walked us out). Once we were out there, she began her presentation of social theater.

Social theater stuck with me as a good way of teaching kids for two reasons: It's visually interesting and it's the kind of activity that children love.

As a highly visual learner, I think that it is important for children to be confronted with a strong image, as this is more likely to stick with them than merely a lecture or handout. Seeing other classmates symbolically acting as barriers to leadership and solutions breaking down these barriers presents children with something memorable. Their own participation would make the experience all the more valuable.

In high school, I was a HUDDLE Peer Leader. My role was to teach elementary school students about the risks of alcohol, drug use, and other destructive things that they were likely to encounter in life, such as bullying and peer pressure. One of my most powerful tools was scripted role-playing. One of the things that the students often told me they most enjoyed was acting in skits, and their ability to recall skits that we had done several months previously was astounding. I think that this would also be useful in our mentoring projects, since our time with the children will be limited. As a result, presenting a memorable lesson is all the more important.

Ms. Gilbert's presentation of social theater will undoubtably prove to be useful in the coming months as we prepare our lesson plans for our group projects. I am looking forward to using this new method to teach the girls we will be mentoring lessons that will be vital to them throughout life -- how to live as strong, independent female leaders.