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1he Strateg|c Act|on |an

Cverv|ew
WlLh Lhe esLabllshmenL of your organlzaLlon, you should agree on Langlble goals for Lhe
upcomlng semesLer/year and develop a sLraLegy for achlevlng Lhese goals. 1he documenL LhaL
summarlzes Lhls lnformaLlon ls your SLraLeglc AcLlon lan. 1hls can be very helpful for newer
groups who especlally wanL Lo deflne Lhelr dlrecLlon, buL every group should form a documenL
LhaL achleves Lhls purpose every year.
1he SA comblnes Lwo lmporLanL aspecLs of plannlng: broad-based goals as well as
speclflc evenLs LhaL work Lo reach Lhose goals. 8elow ls a dlscusslon of Lhese Lwo aspecLs and a
sample plan. AlLhough you should formaL your SA ln a way LhaL makes sense Lo you, Lry and
achleve some level of organlzaLlon llke Lhe one below does so LhaL lL can be clearly undersLood
by fellow group members.

now to Wr|te a |an
!"#$: 1he besL Llme Lo wrlLe an SA ls before Lhe school year beglns. 1hls way you
have a plan ln place and can slmply execuLe Lhe game plan LhroughouL Lhe year. Powever, Lhere
ls never a wrong Llme Lo plan ahead. Lven lf you are ln Lhe mlddle of a semesLer, lL ls sLlll good
Lo slL down and plan ouL Lhe resL of Lhe year. 1hls ls also a good Llme Lo revlslL your lnlLlal goals
and make sure LhaL you are sLaylng on Lhe rlghL paLh.
!"%: 1hls quesLlon largely depends on Lhe make up of your sLudenL group. Are Lhere
mulLlple sLrong leaders who have a vesLed lnLeresL ln Lhe organlzaLlon? lf so, lL ls probably a
good ldea for all of you Lo slL down LogeLher Lo wrlLe Lhe SA. lf Lhere ls only one sLrong leader,
lL ls ofLen beLLer for LhaL person Lo wrlLe Lhe plan and Lhen submlL lL Lo Lhe resL of Lhe group for
feedback and approval.
&%': 1he besL way Lo wrlLe an SA ls Lo block off Llme when you wlll be free from
dlsLracLlons. lf you are wrlLlng lL wlLh oLhers, seL aslde an evenlng, order plzza, and don'L leave
unLll Lhe SA ls wrlLLen. Cnce lL ls done Lhe process of runnlng Lhe group wlll geL much easler.

It Starts W|th the M|ss|on
8efore you sLarL plannlng whaL your organlzaLlon ls golng Lo do, flrsL you have Lo answer
why your organlzaLlon exlsLs. Are you hoplng Lo: educaLe yourselves on Lhe ldeas of llberLy,
spread Lhe ldeas Lo oLhers, geL lnvolved ln local pollLlcal acLlvlsm, flghL one speclflc lssue on
campus, or do you have oLher maln prlorlLles? 1he answers Lo Lhese quesLlons wlll be found ln
your mlsslon sLaLemenL and gulde all your fuLure acLlvlLy. 8y crafLlng a solld mlsslon sLaLemenL,
you also provlde lmporLanL lnformaLlon Lo prospecLlve members abouL your group's purpose
and whaL Lhey can expecL lf Lhey [oln. ?ou can flnd more lnformaLlon on creaLlng a mlsslon
sLaLemenL wlLhln SlL's gulde Lo sLarLlng a sLudenL group.


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lL ls noL [usL lmporLanL Lo have a mlsslon sLaLemenL buL Lo make sure everyone ln Lhe
organlzaLlon knows Lhe mlsslon and why lL ls lmporLanL. Cnce you have a mlsslon sLaLemenL,
make sure LhaL everyone ln Lhe group reads lL and agrees wlLh lL so you are all on Lhe same page
golng forward.

Creat|ng Goa|s
1he speclflc goals and acLlvlLles of Lhe organlzaLlon Lhen derlve from Lhe mlsslon. Cnce
you know whaL you wanL Lo achleve you can Lhen ask yourself how you can besL achleve lL.
WhaL do you wanL Lo see your organlzaLlon accompllsh? Pow are you golng Lo be successful?
Answerlng Lhese quesLlons wlll dlrecL you Lowards expllclLly sLaLlng boLh your long-Lerm and
shorL-Lerm goals.
1he creaLlon of shorL Lerm goals ls more relevanL Lo your yearly SA. WhaL are you
pushlng for Lhls year? 8eLLer recrulLmenL, hlgher quallLy speakers, larger scale evenLs? 1ake
your experlences from pasL years Lo Lhlnk abouL whaL can be done Lhls year. lor newer groups,
goals can be slmply Lo geL sLarLed and provlde a base Lo be bullL on ln fuLure years. Speclflc
examples of goals you can seL for your organlzaLlon lnclude:
lncreaslng Lhe slze of your llsL-serve
lncreaslng Lhe number of meeLlngs held
lncreaslng Lhe average aLLendance of meeLlngs
lncreaslng Lhe number of speaker evenLs
lncreaslng Lhe average aLLendance of speaker evenLs
lncreaslng Lhe number of flyerlng sesslons
lncreaslng Lhe number of group members who parLlclpaLe ln pro-llberLy lnLernshlps
lncreaslng Lhe number of graduaLlng members who go on Lo work for a pro-llberLy
organlzaLlon

Irom Goa|s to Act|on: |ann|ng for the ear
Cnce you have speclflc goals seL you should sLarL plannlng ouL your fuLure acLlvlLles. SlL
down wlLh a calendar of Lhe upcomlng year and ploL ouL your course of acLlon. 8e as speclflc as
posslble wlLh Lhe daLes of your group meeLlngs, speaker evenLs, proLesLs, eLc. ?ou can leave
some flexlblllLy, buL plannlng ahead ls always preferable Lo shooLlng from Lhe hlp.
Whlle plannlng your acLlvlLles make sure Lo research ouLslde evenLs and opporLunlLles
LhaL you should avold or leverage for your own beneflL. 1alk Lo oLher groups on campus and see
lf Lhere are any opporLunlLles for cooperaLlon or co-hosLlng of evenLs. Check lf Lhere are any
confllcLs llke sporLlng evenLs, concerLs, or oLher lssues LhaL you should schedule around. Also
see lf Lhere are any lmporLanL daLes or Lhemes LhaL you can use Lo your advanLage. 1he
SLudenLs lor LlberLy LlberLarlan Campus Calendar llsLs lmporLanL daLes - ConsLlLuLlon uay, 1ax
uay, 4/20 - and oLher such noLable daLes as famous llberLarlans' blrLhdays LhaL you can use as
lnsplraLlon for evenLs. lL ls always beLLer Lo rlde a wave when people are already paylng
aLLenLlon Lo an lssue lnsLead of Lrylng Lo gln up lnLeresL from scraLch.

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info@studentsforliberty.org www.studentsforliberty.org www.politicalconferences.org
llnally, always be wllllng Lo add and subLracL evenLs from Lhls documenL. ?ou may flnd
group members are more lnLeresLed ln one Loplc over anoLher or LhaL you slmply don'L have Lhe
resources Lo hosL a blg name speaker yeL. 8e wllllng Lo make compromlses along Lhe way. 8uL
wlLh LhaL, don'L be lnLlmldaLed Lo dream blg. ConLacL your local campus coordlnaLor, reglonal
dlrecLor, or any of Lhe SlL leadershlp lf you need asslsLance wlLh larger evenLs or run lnLo
obsLacles along Lhe way.

1ak|ng Act|on
Cnce you flnlsh Lhe SA, congraLulaLe yourself and Lake a break. urafLlng Lhe documenL
wlll Lake Llme and energy. lL ls a slgnlflcanL accompllshmenL Lo have a plan of acLlon for Lhe
upcomlng semesLer. Powever, lL ls only Lhe beglnnlng. lf you don'L lmplemenL Lhe SA or work
Lo reach Lhe goals you lay ouL ln Lhe SA, Lhen all your energy spenL drafLlng lL was wasLed.

Pere are some Llps for how Lo successfully lmplemenL Lhe SA:
1. (%)*+,%$,-"#,#$.+/,$%-,-"#,0#1$+2 uon'L geL caughL up on holdlng every evenL Lhe day
you llsL ln Lhe SA or slmllar mlnuLlae.
2. 3#4#51-#, 6#+7%$+89848-8#+. uon'L Lry Lo do everyLhlng yourself. Clve oLher members of
your group responslblllLles and [usL check ln on Lhem Lo make sure Lhey geL done.
uelegaLlon allows for speclallzaLlon, whlch means your overall group wlll also lmprove.
3. &1:#, (*$! romoLlng llberLy should be fun and Lhe people you work wlLh should be
your frlends. Make sure Lo en[oy whaL you're dolng.
4. ;#)%5$8<#, '"#$, =%*, 1))%0748+", 5%14+, 14%$5, -"#, '1=. Lveryone needs Lo know when
Lhe group ls dolng well, and lL helps Lo relnforce even Lhe smallesL successes. 1ake
Lhese opporLunlLles Lo have a group soclal or oLher fun evenL Lo reward hard work.
3. !"#$% &'()% *+,. SlL ls here Lo help however we can, and Lhere are many resources
avallable Lo help your group reach lLs goals:
a. Campus CoordlnaLors - hLLp://sLudenLsforllberLy.org/abouL/leadershlp/cc/
b. ConsulLlng 1eam - hLLp://sLudenLsforllberLy.org/Lhe-sfl-consulLlng-Leam/
c. 8eglonal Conferences - hLLp://pollLlcalconferences.org/
d. lnLernaLlonal SlL Conference -hLLp://pollLlcalconferences.org/




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Samp|e Strateg|c Act|on |an

l. urpose: WlLh one flnal semesLer as presldenL of Lhe unlverslLy SLudenLs lor LlberLy
(uSlL), l am maklng lL my goal Lo esLabllsh Lhls organlzaLlon as one of Lhe mosL acLlve,
well-known and producLlve sLudenL organlzaLlons on Lhls campus. We have a group of
dedlcaLed, LalenLed and lncredlble lndlvlduals already, and lL ls Llme Lo Lap LhaL
poLenLlal. My hope ls LhaL when l sLep down as presldenL aL Lhe end of Lhls semesLer, l
wlll hand off an organlzaLlon LhaL wlll exlsL many years beyond noL only my graduaLlon,
buL Lhe graduaLlon of everyone who ls readlng Lhls. 1hls sLraLeglc acLlon plan ls meanL
Lo be a sLarLlng polnL, noL Lhe end, so please provlde suggesLlons for lmprovemenL.

ll. Goa|s: We need Lo seL several perLlnenL goals for Lhls fall for us Lo make Lhe
organlzaLlon grow. Pere are Lhe goals l envlslon:
a. 8ecrulLmenL: lncrease uSlL membershlp by aL leasL 100. 1hls means 13
lndlvlduals aL each regular meeLlng and 30 lndlvlduals aL each speaker evenL.
b. LvenLs:
l. AL leasL one speaker per monLh as an evenL
ll. AL leasL one LlberLarlan Soclal per monLh
lll. ubllcaLlon of Lhe alLernaLlve sLudenL paper
c. lnsLlLuLlonallzaLlon: 1o make Lhe organlzaLlon more lnsLlLuLlonallzed and long-
lasLlng, we need Lo accompllsh Lhe followlng goals:
l. 8l-monLhly meeLlngs held regularly ln Lhe same room every Llme. l wanL
fllers Lo read someLhlng llke llrsL and Lhlrd 1uesday of every monLh ln
8oom ___"
ll. Lvery exec board member musL be presenL aL every meeLlng. 1here ls llLLle
chance LhaL new members wlll have respecL for an organlzaLlon LhaL Lhe
exec board members don'L show respecL for.
lll. LlecLlons wlll be seL a monLh ln advance and held wlLh a formal process.

lll. re-Semester Act|v|t|es:
a. 8log - 8efore new SLudenL CrlenLaLlon, everyone should make aL leasL one posL on
Lhe blog Lo glve new sLudenLs someLhlng Lo read. Cnce school beglns, everyone wlll
wrlLe Lwo blog posLs per monLh Lo keep lL fresh and keep sLudenLs vlslLlng Lhe page.
osLs can cover a range of lssues lncludlng naLlonal news, clLy pollLlcs, campus news,
Lhe acLlvlLles of oLher organlzaLlons, Lhe way classes are golng, revlews of
bars/resLauranLs, whaLever Lo keep lL acLlve.
l. lnformaLlon on Lhe Lype of collaboraLlve blog Lhls wlll become:
hLLp://en.wlklpedla.org/wlkl/CollaboraLlve_blog
ll. 1o Do: Lveryone l send Lhls Lo should geL an accounL seL up on Lhe blog and
make aL leasL one posL before nSC so sLudenLs have a reason Lo vlslL Lhe
slLe ln Lhe flrsL place. Lma|| me to ver|fy you are |nterested |n do|ng th|s
and I w||| get you set up.
b. AlLernaLlve Campus newspaper - We need arLlcles wrlLLen. Ask any of your frlends
Lo wrlLe any arLlcle Lhey wanL Lo. 1hey don'L have Lo be pollLlcal commenLary. 1hey
can also lnclude Lhlngs llke resLauranL revlews around campus, bar revlews, an essay

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info@studentsforliberty.org www.studentsforliberty.org www.politicalconferences.org
on unlverslLy LradlLlons, llsL of classes/professors sLudenLs should Lake, anyLhlng
LhaL wlll aLLracL freshmen aLLenLlon.
l. 1o Do:
1. SeL up a bank accounL
2. WrlLe up a new granL appllcaLlon Lo Lhe ColleglaLe neLwork
3. Asslgn someone poslLlon as LdlLor/ubllsher
4. llnd a prlnLer on campus Lo prlnL Lhe paper
3. CeL aL leasL 10 arLlcles wrlLLen by AugusL 23
6. Pave layouL ready by AugusL 27
c. SLudenLs 8lghLs nlghL - 1hls wlll be our klckoff evenL for Lhe year. AfLer sLudenLs
have gone Lhrough new SLudenL CrlenLaLlon and learned abouL Lhe rules and
resLrlcLlons lmposed upon Lhem aL school, we wlll Lell Lhem whaL rlghLs Lhey have
and how Lhey can challenge abuses of school power.
l. 1o Do: Anyone who wanLs Lo be lnvolved ln seLLlng Lhls up, please emall me
back Lo help me geL a room, geL food, markeL and flnallze Lhe schedule for
Lhe evenL.
d. 1hlnk ?ou're ConservaLlve/Llberal? 1hlnk Agaln!"
l. 1o Do:
1. l have drafLed sample fllers for people Lo look over. 1hey are
aLLached Lo Lhls emall. lease glve feedback and commenLs on
Lhem as Lhey are merely rough drafLs and need revlslon sLlll.
2. Whoever ls on campus [usL before nSC should help ouL posLerlng
Lhem around campus so freshmen see Lhem flrsL Lhlng! Lmall me
and leL me know lf you'll be around.

lv. Semester Act|v|t|es:
a. 8lmonLhly meeLlngs - 2 meeLlngs per monLh on Lhe same days, Llme, and place (1
sL

and 3
rd
1uesday for example). 1he meeLlngs should lnclude sLaLus reporLs from
commlLLees, dlscusslons of Lhe dlrecLlon of Lhe organlzaLlon, and Lhen a 10 mlnuLe
lecLure on a perLlnenL llberLarlan Loplc followed by dlscusslon of Lhe lssue.
b. LlberLarlan Soclals - erhaps Lhe mosL valuable servlce we can provlde Lhe campus
communlLy ls Lo bulld a soclal neLwork for lndlvlduals wlLh llberLarlan leanlngs Lo be
able Lo meeL oLhers wlLh slmllar senLlmenLs. l Lhlnk we all undersLand Lhe pressures
Lo glve up llberLarlanlsm ln college and how dlfflculL lL can be lf you Lhlnk you are
Lhe only llberLarlan ouL Lhere. Cnce a monLh l would llke us Lo adverLlse and hosL a
soclal evenL where uSlL members geL LogeLher Lo hang ouL and chaL and for
everyone Lo brlng oLher poLenLlal members Lo Lhe evenL. noL only wlll Lhls be a
recrulLmenL efforL, buL lL ls also an opporLunlLy for llberLarlans Lo lnLeracL wlLh one
anoLher more and bulld a name for ourselves. lf we [usL have small evenLs buL do
Lhem well and hold Lhem regularly, we can make a name for ourselves and Lhe
organlzaLlon as a place Lo go.
c. Speaker Serles - AL leasL one speaker per monLh. l wanL people Lo sLarL Lhlnklng
abouL who we can brlng ln and Lake Lhe lnlLlaLlve Lo brlng Lhem Lo campus. !usL leL
me know who you're Lhlnklng of, buL Lhen l wanL you Lo go ouL Lhere and seL lL up.
1o brlng a speaker Lo campus, [usL conLacL Lhem or Lhelr organlzaLlon and say you
wanL Lhem Lo speak, seL up a nlghL LhaL would work well for Lhem, reserve a room
and Lhen go Lhrough our normal adverLlsemenL process.

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d. >,?%6,>#$.#--1 evenL-
l. Movle nlghL on november 3 of >,?%6,>#$.#--1
ll. ?ou1ube cllp- 1hls would be really nerdy buL fun, buL we could fllm
someone ln cosLume explalnlng how Lhe currenL slLuaLlon ls bad and
oppresslve. We can Lhen puL lL on ?ou1ube and llnk Lo our slLe lf we are so
lncllned.
e. LlberLarlans v. SoclallsLs uebaLe - lollowlng lasL year, we wlll hosL anoLher publlc
debaLe agalnsL Lhe campus soclallsLs. l wanL serlous prep for lL Lhls Llme as our
sLraLegy should be Lo use Lhls Lo brlng more people Lo our slde from a
hlsLorlcal/emplrlcal angle raLher Lhan phllosophlcal (Lhe reverse sLraLegy dld noL
seem Lo be Lhe mosL effecLlve lasL Llme from audlence commenLs, so leL's [usL hlL
Lhem hard wlLh Lhe numbers and facLs).