Learning To Wield The Gavel

LEARNING TO WIELD THE GAVEL

Redefining fraternity through leading others

By Zachary Kaiser '18, Past Chapter President, Mu Upsilon- Robert Morris

"Me, in a fraternity? Absolutely not, I would never join a fraternity."

"Alright, alright, so I joined a fraternity... now what? You want me to be the President? You want me to be the President of this totally new organization on campus and you expect me to lead these men to become a chartered chapter of the National Fraternity? Okay, sign me up!"

That is merely the prologue to the story which I now label as my experience in Phi Mu Delta.

On August 29, 2016, I answered a phone call during which I was asked whether or not I was interested in becoming a part of something new and exciting coming to campus.

On September 7, 2016, I said yes. On September 24, 2016, I started my journey down a path of unfamiliarity and of unknown potential as the President of the Mu Upsilon Colony, now chapter. I had no clue what I was really getting myself into. I understood that a great deal of responsibility was to be placed upon me. However, I had no clue that my life was going to be forever changed by Phi Mu Delta and my learning to wield the gavel.

I joined Phi Mu Delta despite my lack of desire to be a part of Greek Life because I found empowerment in knowing what Phi Mu Delta stood for. When I learned that our organization was the first to accept all men regardless of their race, color, creed, or position in 1918, I was blown away by the fact that an organization could be so progressive in a time of such high racial tension, prejudice, and hatred.

I met with, at the time, Director of Chapter Services and Growth, Jackie Hackett, multiple times to ask questions about the fraternity and what it truly meant to be a fraternity man. When I was elected President of the Colony, I believe I talked to Jackie on the phone more than I talked to my own mother. I had no idea what I was doing. I didn't know the first thing about Greek Life or what it meant to be in charge of a brand-new fraternity among the six that were already present on our university's campus.

I had to learn so many things in a little period of time: how to run chapter meetings, how to lead an executive board, how to recruit like-minded men, how to operate within the Greek community. And one of the biggest lessons I learned in the very beginning of my tenure as President, was how to delegate rather than do.

I have always been the type of person that believed in the phrase "if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself." Having that mentality made leading a colony extremely difficult, because I had to alter my mindset to "we" instead of "I."

When it came to chapter operations, planning events, and arranging service projects and mixers, the role of the President allowed me to overcome the anxiety related to letting go and trusting that my brothers could take care of whatever I needed them to take care of. Delegating as the President allowed me to invest in my brothers and give them opportunities to explore strengths that they did not know they possessed.

While there were a multitude of lessons that I had learned throughout my tenure, one of the most prominent lessons revealed to me through this role was the importance of a genuine investment in your brothers. I came to realize that fraternity was more than a Monday night meeting and a few events where you hung out and talked about pop culture and ate until you felt like you could explode. Fraternity for me, was about learning about each and every brother so that I could tap the potential they brought to the table in order to grow them as men, while also moving forward and advancing the chapter.

I was seeing myself grow a tremendous amount within the organization. I was becoming more and more confident with my leadership style and its effect on others. Because of my development inside the chapter, I also started noticing the skills I was refining, manifest themselves in areas outside of the chapter. I was a Community Advisor, or RA on my campus. The two roles were very similar in that I had to manage a large group of men and lead those men to make smart decisions. I had to plan events, mediate and manage conflict, and I had to convince people that I did not write the policies, I merely had to enforce them. It was an "ah-ha" moment for me when I realized just how much the role of Chapter President was helping to develop me as a leader in many other areas on campus.

Fortunately, during my time as the President, I got to witness momentous progress within the brotherhood. I got to witness small and large victories and I definitely made sure to celebrate them all. However, where there are victories, there are also losses and we were not immune to the impending storms on the horizon. At one point, our membership dropped a quarter in size, recruitment was a true mystery to us all, and we were not sure what to do or how to turn things around. It seemed as if failure was imminent, and probably because failure is all we allowed ourselves to see.

I distinctly remember walking to chapter defeated one evening when someone said, "giving up is the only sure way to fail." I had just been taught the greatest lesson I had to learn while I was in my role. That day I learned that it is when you cease trying to accomplish a feat that you become defeated. In order to thrive, you must find a will to survive, and this extends farther into our brotherhood than I realized.

A year and a half later, I passed the presidency off to my predecessor and began planning for my approaching graduation. I am still amazed at the fact that the role of Chapter President truly prepared me for my post-graduation endeavors. Currently, I am an Assistant Resident Director at a university while working towards my Masters degree in Higher Education Administration. Because serving as Chapter President taught me valuable lessons in leadership, delegation, and persistence, I could not feel more confident in this new chapter of my life.

The role of President has given me the confidence to tackle things that I did not know I could do. My Presidency serves as an honest testament to change and personal growth in my life and I am forever thankful to have had the opportunity to learn to wield the gavel to the best of my ability.