This is my own personal experience of going through rush and how Mission 365 changed my life.

When I got to college I was unsure about pledging a fraternity and had pretty much made up my mind that I wouldn’t do it. Part of me didn’t think there was a point to go through rush. When there were parties some friends and I would still go to all the different houses and have a lot of fun. Thats all I really saw in a fraternity, was having fun at a party. Members seemed to be really close friends, but I already had really close friends. The deciding factor was that I didn’t think I could keep up my g.p.a. if I was pledging. So when recruitment started that Fall I decided that I wasn’t going to rush a fraternity and would possibly give it a shot in the Spring if my grades were okay.

As the semester went on I hung out at most of the houses on campus and knew a good number of members at each of them. The High School I went to is in the same town as the college I attended so I already had friends in each fraternity. I was attending parties and going to lunch with brothers throughout the semester. I didn’t realize it then, but I was going through recruitment the whole time.

They might not have realized it, but the fraternities were going through recruitment too. How they treated each other was a big deal to me. I was watching their every move, how they interacted with brothers and how they treated their pledges. It stood out when a member praised another member and it stood out more when somebody would bad mouth another member who wasn’t around. Interactions on campus as well as parties played a role in how I perceived each fraternity.

Sigma Chi wasn’t even at the top of my list when the school year started. I knew less guys at Sigma Chi then I did at the other fraternities and nobody from my graduating class pledged Sigma Chi. As the semester went along I began to feel more and more comfortable at the Sigma Chi house. During Christmas break me and a buddy of mine decided we were for sure going to rush in the Spring. We attended parties when the semester started and signed up for rush.

The Fall semester is when most people go through rush and it is much more formal. The Spring semester doesn’t really have many rules so you just kinda hang out whenever you want at the fraternity houses. We had both gotten calls from a couple of houses during rush and hung out at all of em. Hardly anyone really thought me or my friend would pledge Sigma Chi. Mostly because people from our High School rarely did. But I remember towards the end of rush we were talking about it and he distinctly said “I”m starting to think Sigma Chi” and I responded with “Yeah, thats exactly what I was thinking”. I knew it was going to shock some people, but mostly I was excited that we were both gonna pledge Sigma Chi.

If my chapter wouldn’t have recruited me throughout the Fall semester I am pretty sure I never would have become a Sigma Chi. I wouldn’t have had the chance to get to know all the guys and would have ended up rushing the same fraternity as other people I went to High School with. Mission 365 can be very powerful and in my case ended up changing my life.

If you want more information about Mission 365 then please contact Erich Sauer.

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Jacob Cook
http://jacobadamcook.com

The Northeast Arkansas Alumni chapter (of which I am a member) is looking to raise money for one of our scholarships. The scholarship that you will be helping fund is the Scott Hale Scholarship. Just a few months ago they had a very successful banquet and golf tournament that raised money for the Scott Hale scholarship. We are hoping we can continue that success and donate a little bit more. They have created a College Football Pick’em that will allow you to not only donate to a Sigma Chi scholarship, but will also allow you to win some cash.

Here is an overview of the pick’em.

• $12 buy-in
• 70% of the pot goes to the winner(s)
• No tie-breakers, in the event of a tie the money is split between the winners
• 30% goes to the scholarship
• Download the bracket/form, fill out your picks and email the form back to alumni@neasigmachi.org before the first game this Friday.
• Pat yourself on the back for helping a good cause.

All of the details can be found over at neasigmachi.org in this post. Your buy-in is done safely and securely using Paypal and you don’t have to be a Sigma Chi to play.

Thank you to those who have already signed up, good luck and tell a friend.
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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

Well we are very happy to say that you can now sign up for the Sigma Chi Pledge Test BETA. We appreciate everyone being patient with us and waiting for the BETA to start. It’s really easy to get signed up and all you need is a Facebook account.

How to sign up?
First thing is go to http://sigmachipledgetest.com/. Then just simply click on the Facebook Connect button and log into Facebook. After you have logged in you will be redirected back to SigmaChiPledgeTest.com and thats all you have to do. Once you have been redirected back to the site you will see your Facebook profile picture with a message that says “In Hoc, you’ve signed up for the BETA using your Facebook account”. At that point there is nothing left to do except for telling other Sigs about SigmaChiPledgeTest.com and wait for the website to officially launch.

Whats the BETA stuff about?
I’m not ready to completely launch the website just yet, but I still want people to be able to sign up so they’ll know about SigmaChiPledgeTest.com before it’s launch. There are a lot of Sigs who follow me on Twitter, are fans of the Facebook page, read the blog and listen to the podcasts and I wanted to show my appreciation by giving you guys a chance to win some free Sigma Chi stuff. My hope is that you won’t be stingy and will tell other Sigs about the website. The plan right now is to launch about the time the spring semester starts back.

Why signup?
When we launch Sigma Chi Pledge Test will allow you to take pledge tests to see how well you know your Sigma Chi knowledge. It can be used as a study tool for pledges and a refresher for members and alumni. You can create pledge tests and share them with other Sigs. Magisters can utilize this by creating a pledge test each week that contains the same questions as the test their pledges will take. The Magister can create the test, share it with their pledges and let them use it as a study tool. Pledges can even create their own pledge test if they want to.

Any free stuff?
Well of course, we always try to give away free Sigma Chi swag. This time I’ve got some Sigma Chi hats that we will be giving away. The hats were created by a Sigma Chi named Ben Miller who runs Bamm Promo. I’ve also got a few random items that I’m giving away. Here is a look at what you could win.

So make sure and sign up for the BETA and let SigmaChiPledgeTest.com be a learning tool for your chapter.
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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

As you have seen in the past I am a big fan of fantasy sports leagues and really enjoy participating in leagues with Sigs. Derek Wagner or @SigmaChiWagner on Twitter has been gracious enough to create a College Football Pick’em league for Sigma Chis. It’s a yahoo league that allows you to pick a winner for every bowl game and then assign “confidence points” to each game. These types of leagues are a lot of fun the more people you have, so feel free to pass on the league info to other Sigs.

Url to register:  http://bit.ly/6QbFWP
Password: 12345
Group Id: 10685

All you have to is click the url (http://bit.ly/6QbFWP) to register and enter the password. I believe there are about 12 teams currently in the league. Let’s try to get as many as possible to join and see who is the best at picking bowl games.

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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

Sigma Chi podcast by ShareSigmaChi.com – Sigma Chi Podcast with Brad Wellman

In this episode we will be discussing some of new Sigma Chi’s newest endeavors into social media. We will discuss what we like about their social media strategies and how we think Sigma Chi can improve. We are both really impressed with the fraternity’s recent push into social media and excited to see what they do in the future.
IHSV

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Host: Jacob Cook Running Time: 31:57

Show Links:
http://wellmania.wordpress.com
http://www.twitter.com/bradwellman
http://www.facebook.com/bradwellman

Its easy to stay up to date with the podcast and many ways to subscribe.

Subscribe to the Podcast or use iTunes

There is less than 2months left in 2009 and I’ve got a few things that I want to do before 2010 gets here. A few ideas that have been in works for some time now and I’m pretty confident that you’ll see them real soon. You can plan on seeing at least 1 more podcast by the end of this month and possibly another podcast in December. You will definitely have a chance to win some free Sigma Chi gear and as soon as we work out the details we’ll let you know how. The last and probably biggest idea is that I’ll be launching a new Sigma Chi website.

Upcoming Podcast

Back in September we recorded a podcast with Brad Wellman discussing Sigma Chi and Social Media. The majority of the podcast we said that Sigma Chi wasn’t utilizing social media like they should (it’s one of the reasons why I started ShareSigmaChi over 2 years ago). We both agreed that the fraternity should be using these social media outlets to communicate, share, help and connect Sigs.  I guess HQ was listening because within the last month they started to become more active on Facebook and a Twitter account. Brad and I will discuss this sudden increase in social media activities, what we like/dislike about these activities and how we think they could improve. I am excited to see the fraternity taking a step forward and anxious to see how they leverage social media to help Sigs.

Upcoming Giveaway

If you follow ShareSigmaChi on Twitter then you were one of the first to see the hats that we will be giving away. The hats came from Bamm Promo which is a “promotional products” company run by a Sigma Chi. If you get a chance check them out or send Ben an email. I haven’t worked out the details of the giveaway just yet, but we will definitely let you know as soon as we get it ironed out. The one thing I can you is that the giveaway will be a part of the new Sigma Chi website that we are also launching.

Launching SigmaChiPledgeTest.com

Sigma Chi Pledge Test will be a new learning tool for Sigs and we plan on launching the BETA by the end of the year. I know what you’re thinking “Share Sigma Chi already has pledge tests“. I decided that since this new site will be so much different and offer more functionality that it would be best to host it on it’s own site. The old pledge tests will stay in tact and can be accessed by anybody with a ShareSigmaChi account.
I think most of you will be really happy with the new Sigma Chi Pledge Test site. The parts of the site that I am most excited about is that all of the authentication will use Facebook Connect so you won’t have to create a new account and not only can you take pledge tests, but you will be able to create your own pledge tests and share them with other Sigs. It will be really easy for magisters to create a test and share it with all of their pledges so they can prepare for their weekly test.

The BETA will be launching soon and I will need your help to make sure everything goes smoothly. This is also where the hats we’re giving away will come in. Most likely the hats will be randomly given out to Sigs who sign up and participate in the BETA. It’s basically a way for me to say “thank you” to all you Sigs who “Share Sigma Chi”. So be on the look out and feel free to use this short url to share this post with other Sigs http://bit.ly/4cc6KX

In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

It seems that SigmaChi.com has created a Facebook Application that allows you to update your SigmaChi.com profile information from Facebook. There was a hint of this when we did our podcast with Jim D’Amico (former Project Manager of SigmaChi.com) discussing the just launched SigmaChi.com and I am very glad to see the fraternity reaching out into social media.

The best part about this idea is that it makes it so easy to update your SigmaChi.com profile.

• Install the app and sign in using your SigmaChi.com login information.
• After that all you have to do is click on “update your members profile info”.
• Then update your info and it will save it to your SigmaChi.com profile.

Anytime you want to update your SigmaChi.com information, you can just go to the Facebook App and do it from there. I went ahead and did some testing and it works just fine. Here is a short video showing you how to install the app.



I am just guessing here, but I would think that probably 80% of all Sigs are on Facebook and this means that the fraternity just made it that much easier for 80% of the fraternity to update their information (which is always a good thing). Plus Sigma Chi controls this data that is getting updated, not Facebook. This is important for the fraternity, because this helps them stay up to date with us.

If you are reading this and haven’t downloaded the new SigmaChi.com Facebook Application, then go do it right now. I hope HQ continues down this road and starts branching out into other forms of social media. *cough*  Twitter  *cough*

You can hear more about what Sigma Chi could do when it comes to social media by checking a podcast we recorded with Brad Wellman discussing Sigma Chi & Social Media.

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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

There are a number of “projects” that I feel could be very beneficial and interesting for Sigma Chi. One of those is what I refer to as the “Maps Project“. The Maps Project was something I originally created because I wanted to get some experience with the Google Maps API as well as create something that could be useful for Sigs. Lots of undergrads enjoy taking road trips to other Sigma Chi chapters, conferences, events or as a chapter activity. After doing a lot of research around the internet I couldn’t find a site that could map out numerous important/historic Sigma Chi locations, so I decided to try and build one.

Nov 2007 I uploaded a very simple webpage that could map out a handful of locations. Here is the blog post I wrote once the “Maps Project” was uploaded. The plan was to hurry and get a working prototype out and then add features later on. It wasn’t long until I had moved on to other features and quit building onto the Maps Project.

Sometime around 6 months to a year later I stumbled upon this Google Maps collaboration that Eric Jon Bolt (former Online Specialist at HQ) had created in May 2008. I was really impressed by the sure volume of information this map contains.
[update 11.08.2009] After contacting Eric he has been gracious enough to pass along his data. Hopefully we’ll be able to create something even more useful. Thanks Eric.

Then around June of this year a Sigma Chi who was initiated at the same school as me (Adrian Burks) created a site with similar functionality (http://findsigmachi.com/beta_map.php). I don’t think he has done much work since he originally created it, but I think the idea is great.

I really think it would be nice to have a website solely dedicated to mapping out Sigma Chi (chapters, monuments, grave sites, etc…). It would give options and allow a lot of customization. Taking the data from the Google Maps mash up and move it to findsigmachi.com would allow us to get creative with it could be extremely beneficial for all Sigs.
- You want to be able to map out alumni based on their zip code? -
Alright, then lets build it into the website. We wouldn’t be limited to what Google allows us to do and having the url “FindSigmaChi.com” would make it easier to find and remember.

I’ve been in contact with a few people to see if we can get this done and I’ve gotten some really good responses. If you’re interested in helping out with the “Maps Project” or if you have some ideas that you think would be helpful, then please feel free to leave a comment on this post or use the contact info below.

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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

This month is definitely the busiest month of the year for me when it comes to Sigma Chi activities. Homecoming, banquets, golf tournaments and football (maybe my favorite reason) keep me busy throughout the month and I love it. It would be nice if other months had this much Sigma Chi stuff going on.

This year October is even more hectic than usual because me and some fellow Sig alumni scheduled a trip to Kansas to visit a fellow Sig alumnus and watch the Cowboys/Chiefs game in Kansas City. We had a great time and it was really nice getting to see a fraternity brother that I hadn’t seen in over a year. Even though all of us hadn’t hung out together in years, it only took a few minutes to feel like we were in college again. We got all the same old questions out of the way like “how are things going? what’s new?” and then we went back to treating each other like we did in college. Now don’t get me wrong, our conversations are a lot different then they were in college. We mostly talked about our wives and work. Only one guy in the group has a kid (with the rest of us soon to follow), so you can imagine the numerous questions we had for him throughout the weekend. But for the most part it felt like we were back in college hanging out and the only thing that had changed were our conversations. It’s situations like these that remind me how close of a friendship we had in the fraternity house and how lucky I was to become a Sigma Chi.

This weekend my chapter at Arkansas State (Theta Chi) is having the Scott Hale Memorial Golf Tournament and Banquet in memory of one of my chapter’s members. I’m signed up for the golf tournament and my wife and I will be attending the banquet Saturday night. There will be a lot of Sigs at these events that I haven’t seen in awhile. There will probably be a lot of the “how are things going? what’s new?” and then everyone will settle down and it will feel like we never graduated. If you’re interested in donating then please check out their website.
[update] 10.22.2009
The Golf Tournament and Banquet was a huge success and surpassed many expectations. It also accomplished it’s goal of endowing it’s scholarship. Great job to everyone who participated.

Next weekend is Homecoming at Arkansas State and of course our chapter will be tailgating before the big game. Like most chapters Homecoming may be the one chance out of the year to see a lot of old fraternity brothers. It’s always nice to hang out and tailgate before the game with guys you haven’t seen in forever. This year’s tailgate will be slightly different than in previous years, because our undergraduates will have their tailgate right next to the alumni. At Arkansas State they divide up the “student tailgates” & “alumni tailgate” by having them on different sides of the stadium. Well this year our undergrads are moving their tailgate right next to the us on the alumni side of the stadium. This should be a nice change since it will allow everyone to hang out together and allow alumni to meet the guys that are running the chapter now. Should be a fun ending to a very eventful October.
[update] 10.26.2009
Our Undergrad/Alumni Tailgate went pretty well. It was definitely a lot nicer and easier for everyone to have our undergrad and alumni tailgates close to one another. I was never a fan of having to walk from side of the stadium to the other, just so I could say hi to everybody. I hope the undergrads enjoyed tailgating with the alumni and maybe we can keep this going from here on out.

October is definitely my busiest “Sigma Chi” month of the year. I know Homecoming plays  a big role, but I’ve always wondered if this is the same for other chapters. What is your busiest “Sigma Chi” month of the year?

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In Hoc,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com

Before I get this post started I want to thank everybody that has sent me their recruitment information and stories. As you have seen I posted a couple of these to the blog for everyone to read. Those “guest” posts did a great job of letting everyone know what recruitment week was like for them. Also they gave everyone a different look at what they could do during their own rush week. What I really enjoyed was seeing in the comments and on Twitter was that Sigs were sharing their ideas and experiences. That is the one of the main reasons I created ShareSigmaChi.

I choose “Hard At Work” as the title for this post cause lately I’ve been working hard at a couple of things.

• working hard at my real job
• working hard at spending time with my family
• working really hard at watching football
• working really hard on a new Sigma Chi website

That’s right a new Sigma Chi website. This new site will kinda serve as a “sister” site to ShareSigmaChi.com. It’s something I have been wanting to do for over a year now and I decided late this summer that I would get started on it. I don’t want to give out much information right now, but I will say that if you have followed ShareSigmaChi for awhile now then you have probably seen tidbits of this new site. Ever since I started ShareSigmaChi I have noticed some trends from you guys and I think this site will be very beneficial to a lot of Sigs. I’m pretty excited and really wish I could say more.

Hopefully in the very near future the new site will be ready for testing and I’ll need some help with that. So if you’re interested in being a “BETA” tester then please let me know. You can leave a comment on this post, email me, or send a message on facebook or twitter.

Feel free to share this post with your friends. Here is a short url that will make that easier: http://bit.ly/2CkdQ9
Thanks everyone for your support.

IHSV,
Jacob Cook
contact@sharesigmachi.com