Clay Sapp: A Day at the Beach

A few weeks ago, I was on the white sandy beaches of Siesta Key in my home state of Florida after visiting some individuals whose lives were shaped by FFA. As I soaked in the salty air and the sound of the waves lapping against the shore line, I noticed a set of footprints that had been left in the powdery sand near me.

Being a native Floridian, this certainly wasn’t the first time that I had stumbled upon footprints on the beach. But this time it was different—the symbolism of those footprints meant something. They reminded me of the individuals I had previously spent time with and their deep impact on both FFA and agriculture as a whole.

For most of us, we desire to make an impact; to leave a “footprint” on the people and places that we encounter. However, sometimes I find myself wondering how to make that happen. I know I have acquired or been given talents and skills, but how do I use those to make a difference?

FFA Costa Rica 2013: Days 1-4

The Costa Rica Proficiency and Stars Travel Seminar empowers FFA leaders by providing them with a global perspective. Through this experience, participants from across the country gain knowledge by visiting farms and agribusinesses. Participants eligible include all American Star Award finalists and one national finalist from each proficiency area. The 2013 experience takes attendees throughout Costa Rica from June 12-20. Each day, different participants report back home with a blog post about their experiences

Day One

After arriving in San José from Miami in the early afternoon, the FFA members checked in to a hotel and then took a guided sightseeing tour of San José—Costa Rica’s capital.

Hello from Costa Rica, day uno!

Of course, today was our first day in this neat little country, and we have seen so much already. We had an early start in Miami, from which we hurried to the airport on buses divided in our organized teams, checked in, made our way through security slowly but surely, and it wasn’t long before we were in the air.

Before we knew it, we were descending into a mountainous, green, and mysterious little country we have all been excited to see since October. Of course, one of the first things I personally noticed is the language. Hopefully we can remember at least some simple phrases from those high school Spanish classes we took years ago. Many of us are having quite an amusing time translating and attempting to speak with the ticos (“Costa Ricans”).

After arriving at our hotel, we were off with our tour guides, Jenny and Gustavo, as they showed us around the general areas of San Jose. We then stopped at what they called a typical middle class marketplace, a whirlwind of interesting sights! There were, of course, food shops full of raw meats, fruits that hardly any of us had seen, and cereal–yay Fruit Loops! One of our group members even experienced bargaining–how interesting!

Make the most of your summer break

In this month’s video update, CEO Dwight Armstrong encourages FFA members to take advantage of learning opportunities during summer break.

Concerts and Connecting: Where does common ground come into play?

A few weeks ago, I headed down south to the land of the pines for the 85th Georgia FFA State Convention. As a music lover, one of my favorite parts is always the convention concert on Friday night. I knew the band was undoubtedly talented, but there was a question I was waiting to be answered: Will they connect with the crowd?

The Farm answered that question quickly with a hand-clappin’, beach ball-bouncin’, beautifully harmonious yes! They played covers. No, not building a fort in the living room with all the sheets in the house, but they played familiar songs. The Farm could have played their entire new album to get exposure for songs few would know; they didn’t. Sure, they threw in a few of their original pieces, but they were amidst popular tunes like “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Ring of Fire.” They hit every style from Alabama to Michael Jackson. The night became less of a performance and more of a campfire sing along where everyone could be a part of the fun. The Farm knew that creating an enjoyable experience for their audience was more important than promoting their name, so they focused on the common ground.

Who will you connect with this summer? Find the common ground. It builds trust to explore and learn from the uncommon ground.

At camp…So what if she’s from the southern part of the state and you’re from the north? Maybe he grew up on a farm and you grew up in town. Focus on the experiences you can share over the next week. Does he play basketball? Start a game of 3-on-3 before supper. Is she already going to that leadership workshop? Tag along!

On the job…You didn’t choose them, but you’re punching the clock with them for at least a few months. Find a way to make it more fun for everyone. Is he competitive? Make a menial task a game. Does she love ice cream? Go celebrate with a scoop or two at the end of each week!

With the sibs…Even if you’re still finding his legos in your backpack or wake up to her rendition of the newest One Direction hit, you’re family. This is a special time we can pour into our brothers and sisters. Read a book together and talk about what you’re learning. Does he like to run? Hit the trail with him. Is she learning to play an instrument? Sit and listen to her latest piece.

As part of the team…The great part of teams is that we all bring something to the table. We all have different ideas of what our FFA chapters should do for the next year, but what do we have in common? Is everyone passionate about the agricultural awareness day you put together for elementary school students? Spend extra time take it to the next level. Looking for ways to increase attendance at FFA meetings? Focus on what FFA members enjoy. Consider adding fun recreation after business – maybe it’s a game of capture the flag or water games. Ask them!

In his book, Everyone Communicates, Few Connect,  John C. Maxwell says, “Connecting is the ability to identify with people and relate to them in a way that increases your influence with them.” The FFA Creed challenges us to “exert an influence in our home and community.” Let’s do it! Connect. Influence.

~Kalie Hall, National FFA

Waiting on a Train

Just a few weeks ago, Kalie and I had the opportunity to travel to the great State of Texas to visit with National FFA partners. After a day full of visits and driving around the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, we found ourselves in a spot that no tired driver/passenger wants to be found in………

That’s right, we got stuck waiting on a train. You know they say that everything is bigger in Texas and the length of this train only confirmed that. As we waited for what seemed like an eternity, car after car in the line in front of us turned around and decided to take another route. To be honest after a few minutes and few more cars leading the way, we considered doing the same. That seemed to be the easier thing to do …..

Does this sound familiar? We often find ourselves in this very dilemma. Maybe we aren’t deciding on whether or not to wait on a train that is blocking our path but rather if we should run for a chapter, regional or state office again after a previous loss. Or maybe we are deciding whether or not a start another Supervised Agriculture Experience after our last project wasn’t as successful as we hoped. As we face these dilemmas during our lives remember there are three P’s that can help us make the decision that is best for us.

Path- No matter what the road block or obstacle is that we face, we have to remember that we chose this path for a reason. Maybe it was to follow a passion. Maybe it was to explore a future career goal. No matter the reason, constantly reminding our self of why we are on this path in our life will go a long way in helping us stay the course or choosing to take a different one.

Persistence-Not too many people on this earth have made significant impact by trying something once and giving up. It often takes us passionately pursuing our dreams and goals constantly for us to eventually achieve them. Through persistence we may even find that the way we can achieve these goals may not be what we first imagined.

Patience- Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither are most of our big goals. All the of the work that we put in in school, FFA and our community will allow us to develop ourselves into the leaders and people that we need to be. For me it is often hard to see the value in losses or mishaps because I don’t receive instant gratification. However, I have found that achieving our desires is often a slow process and one that we may not always understand.In the end, if it is meant to be, through the highs and lows of our experiences we can reach our desired outcomes.

So the next time you are at a roadblock in your life and you have to make a decision, remember the 3 P’s of goal achievement and decide the route that is right for you!

Peace and Blessings,

Clay Sapp

National FFA President

B.R.O. Tips

“Brotip #1544 – Whenever you think about giving up, think about why you’ve kept going this long”

“Brotip #100 – Being a bro has nothing to do with gender, if you’re rad and forever legit, you’ve got what it takes.”

“Brotip #1 – There’s a 99% chance that you’re awesome act like it.”

 

BroTips! In the five Session of the most recent National Convention, 2011-2012 Eastern Region Vice President Kenny Quick opened his session by sharing his favorite brotips with the audience. Brotips, found on brotips.com, are all about advice to young people. It doesn’t matter your gender, age or appearance, if you want solid tips for self-improvements brotips are for you.

I love brotips and often cruise the website to check out the latest tips. I’ve decided that the FFA could also use its own brotips, but ours are ‘remixed’ slightly. Nationwide in the FFA we have over 300 State FFA Officers and over 40,000 chapter officers. Being an officer in the FFA, regardless of the position or level, is a great honor. It’s one of the best vehicles we have to develop leadership, and to personally grow. But being an officer in the FFA is also a big responsibility. We represent a lot of different people, are accountable for success of our organization, and have to be relied on to make tough decisions.

Because of the importance of officers in the FFA, our Brotips are remixed so that ‘Bro’ stands for:

Being a

Reliable

Officer

Officer 2 Officer: FFA chapter banquets and notes on encouragement

Watch the April edition of Officer 2 Officer here.

“Balloons, tunes, & BBQ,” held in Bowling Green, Kentucky is one of my favorite summer festivals. It is incredible to watch as hundreds of hot air balloons take over the runway of Bowling Green’s airport. The bright colors of the balloons, the hot air balloon ride, and the grace of a hot air balloon in mid-flight all add to the excitement of the festival. Amid all the fun of the festival, there is a lot of science going on to make these hot air balloons take flight. Last week, my teammates and I spent some time reading a book called Habitudes: The Art of Connecting with Others by Dr. Tim Elmore. The more that I read about his image of “Hot Air Balloons”, the more I was reminded of this science concept! Dr. Elmore explains that “hot air balloons rise as the burner is released…but eventually they fall and need to be refilled. They must continue to be filled in order to go up. People are like this. They must be consistently encouraged in order to reach their highest potential.”

Encouragement doesn’t just happen by accident; it takes time, energy, and effort to develop. Especially during this season of the year, FFA members have SO MUCH going on. We have officer elections, career development events, tests, applications, jobs, sports, planning for summer, proms, graduations, and chapter banquets—and there are bound to be successes and disasters in each area. This is such an important time to offer encouragement to one another.

Dr. Elmore suggests that an easy way to practice encouraging fellow members, family, advisors, teammates, and friends is by giving compliments. Maybe we think that if we haven’t said anything “wrong,” then we don’t have to say anything positive. Maybe we feel that we already encourage others and don’t need to focus on improving. Whether you are in one of these categories or not, I challenge you to simply encourage someone today. How can we encourage those around us? We can compliment how well a member did in their Prepared Public Speaking event by rocking their questions, thank a teammate for staying extra late to help set up for an event, or help out your advisor by running an errand. Encouragement is unique for each of us, but is equally important and impactful. Check out Tim Elmore’s Habitudes image of “The Hot Air Balloon” for some more tips, tricks, and stories about how to encourage those around us.

More than anything, just be heartfelt and to the point. Choose to build someone up. Choose to inspire. Choose to encourage.

Joenelle Futrell
Eastern Region Vice President

National FFA Secretary Kalie Hall reports from Arkansas

This month the National FFA Officer team traveled to Arkansas to kick off their year of service.

In this video, Kalie Hall reports on some of things they experiences and people they met, and poses a thought-provoking question:

Why knowledge do you have that can be turned into action?

 

Are you a hero?

Ask Secretary Vilsack

Got a question for USDA leader Tom Vilsack about emerging trends in agriculture?

For his final Virtual Office Hours session of 2012, Vilsack will host a live Twitter chat on the important role of rural America to the national and global economy, increasing agricultural opportunities in U.S. communities, and the importance of passing a five-year Farm Bill.

Tweet your questions with the hashtag #AskUSDA and he may answer during a live chat this afternoon!

You may have questions like:

• What are the emerging sectors in agriculture for new farmers and ranchers; where do I find them?
• In both rural and urban communities, what is the significance of the agricultural sector?
• I didn’t grow up on a farm. Are there other opportunities in agriculture besides farming that I should know about?

The chat will take place at 3:30 p.m. EDT today. (December 17, 2012)