District 9 4-H Photography Contest Online

The District 9 4-H Photography contest is available for entry, and entry is easier than ever.  The entry process is all on-line.  Counties will not need to handle the actual photos in order for a young person to enter the contest.

For the contestant, that means there is two steps to the entry.  First they will upload their photos to Shutterfly, then they will enter using 4-H Connect.

Complete instructions can be found on the District 9 4-H Web Site.

Entry Deadline is April 11, 2010, but get 'em started early; the new process may cause a little confusion.

Till next time,
Kevin

Food Show and Food Challenge Available NOW!!!!!

The District 9 4-H Food Show and District 9 4-H Food Challenge are both available for registration on-line through 4-H connect....hurry and beat the Christmas rush, along with the late fees!

Kevin

What Gives You the Right to Lead?

WHAT GIVES A MAN OR WOMAN THE RIGHT TO LEAD?

It certainly isn't gained by election or appointment. Having position, title, rank, or degrees doesn't qualify anyone to lead other people. And the ability doesn't come automatically from age or experience, either. No, it would be accurate to say that no one can be given the right to lead. The right to lead can only be earned. And that takes time.

The Kind of Leader Others Want to Follow

The key to becoming an effective leader is not to focus on making other people follow, but on making yourself the kind of person they want to follow. You must become someone others can trust to take them where they want to go. As you prepare yourself to become a better leader, use the following guidelines to help you grow:

1. Let go of your ego. The truly great leaders are not in leadership for personal gain. They lead in order to serve other people. Perhaps that is why Lawrence D. Bell remarked, "Show me a man who cannot bother to do little things, and I'll show you a man who cannot be trusted to do big things."
   
2. Become a good follower first. Rare is the effective leader who didn't learn to become a good follower first. That is why a leadership institution such as the United States Military Academy teaches its officers to become effective followers first - and why West Point has produced more leaders than the Harvard Business School.
   
3. Build positive relationships. Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less. That means it is by nature relational. Today's generation of leaders seem particularly aware of this because title and position mean so little to them. They know intuitively that people go along with people they get along with.
   
4. Work with excellence. No one respects and follows mediocrity. Leaders who earn the right to lead give their all to what they do. They bring into play not only their skills and talents, but also great passion and hard work. They perform on the highest level of which they are capable.
   
5. Rely on discipline, not emotion. Leadership is often easy during the good times. It's when everything seems to be against you - when you're out of energy, and you don't want to lead - that you earn your place as a leader. During every season of life, leaders face crucial moments when they must choose between gearing up or giving up. To make it through those times, rely on the rock of discipline, not the shifting sand of emotion.
   
6. Make adding value your goal. When you look at the leaders whose names are revered long after they have finished leading, you find that they were men and women who helped people to live better lives and reach their potential. That is the highest calling of leadership - and its highest value.
   
7. Give your power away.

One of the ironies of leadership is that you become a better leader by sharing whatever power you have, not by saving it all for yourself. You're meant to be a river, not a reservoir. If you use your power to empower others, your leadership will extend far beyond your grasp.

Excerpt form:  The Right to Lead, by John Maxwell

GPS Nuts!!!

For all you GPS/GIS aficionados there is a special day coming up just for you:  GIS Day.  It's a celebration of all things related to GIS and it happens on November 18, 2009.

For the rest of us that would like to figure out how we can use GPS/GIS in our 4-H programing, the site is posting success stories with GIS efforts and activities involving the use of these systems.

If this type of programing is in your near future, you'll want to check this out.

Till I coordinate with you later,
Kevin

Every now and then

Every now and then a resource comes along that makes you stop and say, "Wow, I could really use that".

"Managing 4-H Family and Consumer Science Projects" is just that type of resource.  It goes way beyond FCS.  In the guide you will find essentials for Educational Presentations, Record Book Judging and a lot more...
Of course you will also find information on the Food Challenge and Housing and the Home Environment.

This one is worth blocking a little time for perusal.  You will also find the check lists in it useful for event planning.
http://texas4-h.tamu.edu/library/files/D1464.pdf 

Take the time to read this one and it will improve your program.

Kevin

Roundup at Texas Tech

Texas 4-H State Roundup at Texas Tech in 2012! 

Guns Up!
Need I say more?

WOW

Wow, is all I can say about the 2009 Junior Leadership Lab.  Everyone I talk to raves about how good this one was.

A special thank you and a "Job Well Done" to the committee:  Starla Garlick, Allysa Puckett, Angela Camden, and Tyler Fitzgerald.

Also a "Step Up to The Plate" award should be given to Brandon Gregson for racing back from the NAE4HA meeting in Rochester to satisfy the male chaperone needs of the event.

I'm sure I have left someone out that deserves a pat on the back.  If you know of someone I missed please let us know on the Blog!

Great Job!
Kevin