1. Section I Responsibility to Self Click Once

2. As described earlier, in bettering the man, Alpha Sigma Phi is dedicated to assisting each Brother in achieving “success.” But, this success does not simply mean notoriety, or power, or material wealth. Instead, it is a success that is born of the fulfillment and satisfaction that can only come from service to others. It is the “stuff upon which character and integrity are built. Another fundamental truth is embedded in the following: The quality of a brotherhood is no greater than the quality, integrity, and character of its individual brothers Chapter and fraternity success cannot be achieved without the efforts of all. The old cliché that “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link” is especially true in a successful brotherhood. Thus, each person who takes an oath to Alpha Sigma Phi is obligated to be the best Brother he can be. ______________________________________________________ Click Once

3. To be an effective Brother, however, you must first be an effective person, a person who can be trusted, and a person of character. It has often been said that character is what you are when nobody is watching. And why is that so important? Because without character, there is no trust, and without trust there is no brotherhood. Thus, the fundamental characteristic of an effective person, an effective friend, an effective Brother, is that he can be trusted. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: What you ARE so loudly in my ears I cannot hear what you SAY. Thus, the essence of chapter brotherhood is the trust, commitment, and love that result from the maturity and character of its individual Brothers. While there is no simple formula for developing character, a starting point would likely include these steps: Be personally Responsible for Your Life. Building a better brotherhood begins with building better Brothers and that process begins with you! Have the self-awareness to recognize both your strengths and your weaknesses. You cannot blame others or the situation you are in because it is you who ultimately has the power and freedom to choose your attitude and commitment under any circumstance. Too often, some Brothers are quick to point to others as the reason for their chapters’ failures, yet they have done very little on their own to make things better. For the truly effective Alpha Sig, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. _______ ______________________________ Click Once _____________________________ Click Once

4. Set Tough, Conscience-Driven, Goals for Yourself. What is truly important to you? Stretch your imagination and listen to your conscience to establish meaningful goals for both yourself and your chapter. Use this as the basis for your everyday behavior by continually asking yourself the question: “Is it the right thing to do?” But, what is the “right thing?” Within Alpha Sigma Phi, the answer to that question is simple: the Ritual represents the “right thing,” i.e., it is the collective conscience of our Fraternity. As articulated previously, our Ritual is not just a collection of ceremonies performed on special occasions, but instead, is a set of values to guide our everyday behavior. In that regard, the chapter Marshall is the primary steward of our collective conscience. He should be one of the most trusted and respected Brothers in the chapter and should be selected very carefully by the Brotherhood. Have the Self Discipline to Carry Out Your Goals. Once you’ve determined what’s important and established meaningful goals for yourself, you must have the self-discipline and will power to devote more time to those things. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change the past; we cannot change how people will react to certain things; we cannot change the inevitable. BUT, we can “play on the one string” we do have: our attitude. ____________________________________ Click Once _____________________________________ Click Once

5. Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it. We may not be in charge of much, but we are in charge of our… ATTITUDE! Success lies in doing not what others consider to be great, but what you consider to be right. - John Henry Gray Within Alpha Sigma Phi, the Ritual represents the collective conscience of our Fraternity... It is not just a collection of ceremonies preformed on special occasions, but instead, is a set of values to guide our everyday behavior. As a brother begins to achieve the inner satisfaction of personal character development (part of our “hidden cause”), his integrity will also begin to be recognized by others within the chapter and the larger community as a whole. Furthermore, his unselfishness and caring for others will start to become second nature to him. More and more, as a person of honor and character, he will begin to reinforce his reputation as a gentleman by actually putting the Golden Rule (“do to others as you would want them to do to you”) into practice. He seeks to understand others as he, too, would like to be understood. He avoids making everything so competitive that it undermines trust and cooperation. Trying to do well and trying to beat others is not the same thing. A gentleman can find solutions that benefit all. Stephen Covey calls this concept the application of Win-Win thinking. …it is a belief in a third alternative. It’s not your way or my way; it’s a better way, a higher way. Click Once

6. Putting the Golden Rule into effect does not mean you always have to agree with others, but it does demand that you understand the other’s point of view. This often requires stopping long enough to really “listen” to the other person: Your ears aren’t made to shut, but your mouth is. Only fully valuing and respecting the differences of others can achieve the full potential of a brotherhood. It is the ability to build on strengths and compensate for weaknesses: The person who figures out how to harness the collective genius of the people in his or her organization will blow the competition away. - Walter Wristin The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength nor a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of … will. The wealthy man is the man who IS much, not the one who HAS much. - Vince Lombardi - Anonymous Click Once ___________ ________________________ Click Once

7. The Importance of Goal Setting Alpha sigma Phi is all about harnessing the collective genius of its members in fulfillment of its mission of creating and perpetuating brotherhood. One of the most effective and practical ways of setting this process in motion is for the Brotherhood to periodically gather together to undertake comprehensive goal setting for the chapter. One of the best ways to do this is to hold a Brotherhood retreat at the beginning of each semester. Normally, the process should begin with a thorough review and possible revision or creation of a chapter mission statement. The most important element, however, is that all Brothers, in some manner, should participate in goal setting! It matters less what is specifically agreed upon than the fact that everyone is involved. Even the least active Brother can be given responsibility for some task or objective. It is a very obvious, yet simple fact that the more Brothers who are involved in accomplishing the chapter goals, the better the chapter will be. After reaching some consensus of the chapter’s mission and being consistent with the fraternity Standards of Excellence Program, specific measurable goals, objectives, and tasks should be established for the school semester or year. And, to be truly effective, all goals should be “S.M.A.R.T.” ____________ ______________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

8. Specific. Consistent with your chapter’s mission and the Standards of Excellence Program, what exactly do you want to accomplish? Measurable. How will you be able to determine if you have achieved the goal? Achievable. The goal should be realistic, but, at the same time, a stretch. Goals should not be so easy that little effort is required to achieve them, nor so hard that the goals cannot possibly be reached. Responsibility Fixed. This one is essential! All goals and specific objectives and tasks must have an owner, i.e., the Brother who is responsible to the rest of the chapter for achieving that goal. That doesn’t mean he has to do all the work, but he is responsible for managing the goal, delegating and finding other Brothers to help, and keeping track of and reporting progress to the Brotherhood. Time Limited. Besides being measurable, effective goals need a target for completion and appropriate intermediate dates in order to check progress. …what we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say or do. We all know it. There are people we trust absolutely because we know their character. Whether … they have the human relations techniques or not, we trust them, and we work successfully with them. - Stephen Covey All goals and specific objectives and tasks must have an owner, i.e., the Brother who is responsible to the rest of the chapter for achieving that goal Click Once ______ _________ _______________ _________ Click Once

9. As part of the important goal-setting process described above, specific goals and objectives directly addressing the furtherance of the Brotherhood should also be identified. One should keep in mind, however, that by already developing a common focus on a shared mission and goals, the chapter is, in face, simultaneously and probably unconsciously, also furthering the goal of an improved Brotherhood. By working together toward common goals, there are numerous opportunities to cement those bonds that will result in long-term commitment to each other. However, this requires constant vigilance to what is going on interpersonally between Brothers as the daily activities of the chapter proceed. For example, at all chapter meetings the sergeant-at-arms should be assigned the role of process observer and group facilitator to ensure that unnecessary personal agenda and arguments are avoided. Another typical example…what might appear to be a new member recruiting activity, can, in reality, also be a significant Brotherhood event. In preparation for the recruitment event, the Chairman might ask each of his Brothers to identify five primary reasons they pledged that chapter. By discussing and consolidating their lists, the Brotherhood is able to rededicate themselves to each other and to refocus on their uniqueness, their ideals and values, and, thus, the exact type of man they want to bring into the chapter.

10. It should be remembered, however, that as powerful as a genuine Brotherhood can be, it serves little purpose if it is not focused towards the good of the larger community to which it belongs. The undergraduate chapter must support the mission of the college or university of which it is a part, and alumni Brothers should continue the tradition of service to the various communities to which they belong. No matter how strong the love and commitment of the Brotherhood may be, if it is not based on commitment to high ideals, it will not be successful. A street gang, for example, has a strong sense of brotherhood, but it is of little value to its community. As powerful as a genuine brotherhood can be, it serves little purpose if it is not focused towards the good of the larger community to which it belongs. ________ __________________________________________________ ______________________ Click Once