Tips for new execs

Every once in a while this column likes to tackle a serious issue (which has nothing to do with the need to establish myself as a serious journalist eligible for serious awards, hint hint). Today's serious issue: Your student government, the IU Student Association.\nOh, come on, stop laughing. IUSA is serious.\nAnd if you don't think the IUSA can be cutthroat, you obviously a) have never had an IUSA stapler thrown at you; b) don't live on my dorm floor, where candidates campaigned loudly at 1 a.m. on the opening day of voting and tore off banners supporting opposing candidates; or c) thought you could figure out, in less than a decade, who won last week's election.\nIn the race to succeed, the Kirkwood party yielded to these campaign slogans: " … want some?" (Action's vague and somewhat open-ended catchphrase); "The Power of U" (Unity's self-empowering support group slogan); and "Books, Beer, and Basketball" (Crimson's minimalist rhetoric which alienated that crucial voting bloc of college kids who don't drink, don't like sports, and can't read).\nRegardless of the slogan though, the new administration was inheriting the negatively viewed IUSA, which for a brief period of time was one of the seven words you couldn't say on the television. So, here are some universal -- and don't forget award-winning in the serious kind of journalism way -- tips for the next set of IUSA executives:\n1. Engage the student body. \nThis is probably the most important thing. Every ticket claimed it would involve us, but how? You not only represent the thousands coming back next year, but the thousands of new students who didn't get to vote. Get the word out. Be at events. Talk to students. The student body didn't vote for you because they all got together one night and decided these people need impressive résumés. And if you spend $60,000 on a car; well, just don't do that, OK?\n2. Style over substance vs. substance over style. \nTalking about governing and actually governing justly happen to be two separate things. Now that you're soon to be in office and the campaign is over, the people who voted for you and the people who didn't will be looking at you either to fulfill or abandon campaign promises. \n3. Don't take your winning too seriously.\nYou win and you lose in the game of politics. Obviously winning this election is substantial, but don't expect absolute victory from here on out. The difference between losing and winning may only be a few votes, so look for a common ground to accomplish your agenda. Now that you're in office, you should remember there were other people out there who wanted other things done this election cycle, and you should work to bridge the gaps between them and you, not toss them out and drive away.\n4. Address attendance before you get absences. \nAnd this makes a lot of sense, because congressional absenteeism leads to appointments, which lead to people not being democratically represented. When I attended a few IUSA meetings last fall to see what the organization was all about, I witnessed an interesting phenomenon: appointments. If appointments are necessary, get the word out for qualified people (not your friends who maybe put in extra hours of campaign work) to apply for the seats, be interviewed, and if selected, tell their constituents they have new representation.\n5. The press is your friend, and enemy. \nIt is covering you, and if you're consistently unavailable, it'll turn against you like a rabid raccoon. You've taken positions in the public eye, and private administrations upset people. Interviews and discussions are better than press releases from "undisclosed locations."\nNow, where's my award?