“There is something I know about you that you may not even know about yourself. You have within you more resources of energy than have ever been tapped, more talent than has ever been exploited, more strength than has ever been tested, and more to give than you have ever given.”
John Gardner (Lundin, Paul, & Christensen, 2000, p. 51)
Imagine a university where advisers love their jobs and are truly connected to their students and coworkers and where mutual respect and appreciation for diversity and talent abound! Seems a bit Pollyannaish to you? Perhaps so, but, if we can dream it, there is no reason we cannot make it a reality. One way to realize such a dream is to incorporate concepts from the popular series of books based on the FISH! Philosophy (Lundin, Paul, & Christensen, 2000). In this article, we will explore the origins and basic principles of the FISH! Philosophy and discuss specific strategies for utilizing these principles to enhance your effectiveness as an academic adviser. The FISH! principles can serve as a mechanism for transforming the advising workplace into an energetic, fun, and positive atmosphere that will enhance communication and cooperation for both students and advisers.
The FISH! Philosophy was born at the Pike Place Fish Market, located in Seattle, Washington. For years the dreariness of long hours, smelly fish, and cold lockers were reflected in the workers' attitudes. Although the business made money, the workers were miserable. The fishmongers realized that their environment was not likely to change, so they decided to change the way they approached their jobs. They used four principles to guide their actions and to transform their place of work: choosing the right attitude, playing, being there, and making their customers' day. By living out these four principles every day, their workplace became satisfying and meaningful, and the experiences for their internal and external customers became fun and compelling. Through this process, the Pike Place Fish Market has become world famous and has spawned a whole series of motivational books, videos, and merchandise.
How might advisers be able to incorporate these four FISH! principles into their academic advising? Advising has long been recognized as the most effective strategy for improving student retention. In addition, advisers play a critical role in helping students to maximize their educational opportunities and to make critical decisions regarding education, career, and life goals. Richard Light has said, “good advising may be the single most underestimated characteristic of a successful college experience” (Light, 2001, p. 80). I believe that utilizing the FISH! Philosophy can help to ensure that both students and advisers maximize their effectiveness.
It is equally important that we do this in a positive manner, leaving each student feeling valuable and capable. The first principle of FISH!—the most crucial one—involves choosing your attitude. We make a personal choice every day whether we are going to be passionate and energetic or negative and condescending. This FISH! principle invites us to advise our students in a positive manner and leave them feeling valued and capable of accomplishing their goals. This philosophy is so simple that it is profound. Our attitude is a decision we make moment to moment, and we can change it at any time. Attitude can be defined as a state of mind influenced by feelings, thoughts, and action tendencies. What is your attitude when advising students? How do you help to empower each student to achieve his or her highest potential? Our attitude comes across in so many ways, particularly through our nonverbal communication style: eye contact, body language, and tone of voice. Remember, the attitude we give out is usually the attitude we get back!
The second principle of FISH! is be there. Remember how your classmates in high school responded to the teacher who was taking attendance? Each student would reply “here,” but, although lots of bodies filled the room, many of the students were not really engaged in the learning process. Make sure that this same phenomenon is not happening as you advise your students. So often the conversation can become rote as we explain, for what seems like the millionth time, what courses our students need to take or which policies are appropriate for a given situation. To be fully present, we must be in the moment—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Betsy McCalla-Wriggins (2000) states, “Listening is the first and foremost skill required to establish a positive, trusting relationship and to have a productive interaction with the student” (p. 166). It is important to establish good eye contact and to use appropriate facial expressions. Affirmative head nods and intermittent responses convey confidence in a student's ability to reach his or her full potential. Avoid nervous or bored gestures, and fight off external distractions. It is imperative to look, listen, and focus on the person we are advising. Become world famous in your advising abilities! Remember that we can multitask with the work lying on our desks, but we need to be focused and present with our advisees.
The next principle, play, is one that may not seem to fit into the academic scene. Some think play is the opposite of work and therefore consider play to be unproductive, unhelpful, and unprofitable. However, the opposite is true: we actually become more productive when we play. Our creative energy is released, and we become eager to respond to tasks at hand. Play does not have to involve physical action but does require relaxation, spontaneity, and a sense of humor. Create an advising environment that is colorful, creative, and energetic. Display motivational posters to encourage students. Have campus organizational brochures within easy reach promoting play throughout the university. Showcase a student activity scrapbook so students can share their experiences. As students decide on classes for the next semester, have multi-colored highlighters available for them to prioritize schedules. Allow them to create their own personal chart with achievable goals, and give them the opportunity to adjust it as needed. Another idea would be to have a few small toys within reach (e.g., a Rubik's Cube or Silly Putty) so that they have something to do while you grab a file or look up their records on the computer. And be sure to incorporate laughter into advising sessions; it can relieve tension and open up avenues for communication. Remember, work that is fun gets done! The long-term effects of play can be seen as students enjoy returning to your office to meet with you each semester with new and improved insights into their academic, vocational, and personal goals. Play also allows you to feel more positive about yourself and your job. As John Peterson of Pike Place FISH Market says, “You become a better you when you engage in playing at work” (Lundin, Paul, & Christensen, 2000, p. 88).
The last principle, make their day, encompasses both concrete and conceptual attributes. As an adviser, you have given direction for coursework, as well as a plan for achieving a self-fulfilling life, but, more importantly, you have given a special gift—the gift of yourself—and they won't soon forget it! Some simple suggestions on how to make a student's day include offering encouragement, praise, honest appreciation, and setting high standards. As Bloom and Martin (2002) said, “it is important to remember that students will likely respond more positively to us if they know that they will be treated as someone with outstanding potential instead of just another problem child” (para. 3). Ask lots of positive, probing questions to learn everything you can to help each student reach their potential.
There is much for us to learn from the FISH! Philosophy. The four principles seem easy—choosing the right attitude, playing, being there, and making the customer's day—yet they are sometimes difficult to implement. However, proactively incorporating these principles into our repertoire of advising skills will help us to become more creative and effective as we serve our students. FISH! helps us to restore our energy and passion for our jobs. When we center our lives on values like respect, accountability, excellence, joy, mirth, and contribution, we are living with integrity. Work becomes its own reward, instead of just a means to rewards. The transformation can be remarkable and powerful. As academic advisers, we have an awesome opportunity to serve many. Catch this energy and transform your dream into reality!