Jason Colombini is an agricultural business senior and Associated Students, Inc. president.
Dear Joi,
Congratulations, Miss President-Elect! Your hard work has paid off and you will have the amazing privilege of representing the entire Cal Poly student body next year. I’m sure you are excited, exhausted, nervous or somewhere in that zone.
For the first time, though, you will definitely see what it’s like to have too much on your plate. Balance will be the key to everything. I look back on this past fall quarter and while many great things were accomplished and projects begun, I spent little time with friends or enjoying college in general. My health also suffered greatly, as will yours if you eat pizza for every dinner for four weeks straight. Pay attention to this balance, spending the time to eat healthier, exercise and have some personal time. It will help you work more efficiently and of a higher quality than trying to spend all your time working. I didn’t learn this lesson until winter quarter.
You will never have more time than you will in summer. Take full advantage of the summer months to prepare as much as you can for next year. Don’t overanalyze everything, though. Granted, not everything is perfect, but not everything is a fixer-upper, either.
You are also going to need to grasp what is best for the students and stick to it. This does not mean ending a push for a change if administrators or others don’t like it, nor does it mean being uncivil or difficult to work with. Staff may not always be excited for what you have to say, but they also don’t have frozen hearts to the wants and desires of students, either. Shared governance and leadership are essential; work together and you can make great change happen. For some decisions, no matter what, you will receive some criticism. As long as you truly believe you made the right decision, let it go and move on.
What I still believe to be most pivotal of all is humility and servant leadership. Do not let the position get to your head. I’ve known many others in a variety of roles who have let this happen, whether unintentionally or not, and it blinds them to the needs of their constituents and their own self-improvement. Credit need not be taken solely by you; nothing is better than people being around you to celebrate the victories you will experience next year. For me, some of the most rewarding victories were the small ones when we were able to help someone who came to office hours with a problem. I strongly believe that office hours allow you to be both more visible and accessible.
Appoint a variety of people on your Executive Cabinet, especially people from your campaign team, other teams or those who weren’t on any team. This not only ensures a diversity of opinions, but there won’t just be five to nine people who agree with everything you say. You’ll spend a good amount of time on emails and other general work in your office. Remember the best sign of approachability is an open door.
It has been a pleasure having you on my Executive Cabinet this year, from your dedication to The Mustang Way to your diligent work ethic to the many, many movie references and songs sung in the office (i.e. “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?”).
Even if you don’t remember any of the rest of this, just remember this one quote, “All you can take with you, is that which you’ve given away.”
My very best to you for a successful year,
Jason