Get off the Quad and get involved in Student Orgs. Show leadership therein and take on leadership positions. You can't complain about the Corps' perception off the Quad if you don't get involved off it. Those orgs are A&M's traditions with many started by the Corps (Aggieland, Battalion, Student Government, SCONA, etc.)
In addition to getting off the Quad, join Corps orgs. Every year the Corps is what is put into it. This is you.
Whip out to every upperclassman you meet and remember their name. It doesn't have to be a screaming event. I still connect with folks I met in my 4 years, even when I haven't seen them for 25 years (happened as recently as last month). Introducing yourself, particularly having the ability to briefly identify who you are, is a skill lost. Those who meet-and-greet in business, advance in the business.
Fish enter and exit through the arches (See whip out).
Introduce yourself to those around children, parents, adults. These are donors, employers, and the future.
Wear the uniform proudly. Remember, in decades to follow, that's what folks will see. Don't put your phone in a front pocket, it detracts. Don't be a jackass on national television because a camera is put in your face.
Remember, even when not in uniform, you represent the Corps.
If you're a whitebelt, carry a pocket watch. Maybe a watch fob for class year.
Don't wear a backpack in uniform. If you have to truck one around, use the handle on top. Wearing a backpack distorts the uniform.
Shine your shoes and boots. They look better. And folks notice. And talk.
Say Howdy to every damn person you pass. Do it with a smile.
Learn the slang for the dining hall. It's a connection. I've actually used it at A&M luncheons and it sifts the non-regs from the CTs.
Learn the history of the Corps. Learn what came before so you can improve where possible and avoid otherwise. Nothing worse that repeating the same mistake. Remember the Corps changes - once all lived on Military Walk, then some lived in the New Area (80 years old this year), then they added the Arches, then they added the text (we had none). Know the who and what of every memorial, including the Bugle Stand.
Have a contingency plan, always. Review coming and potential that Drill Field will be muddy and Kyle Field unavailable due to rain? What about the Track and Field Center?
Honor. None can take it from you, only you can lose it.
Be there for your buddies. Marry and bury. And you will. This is not some social club. It's a life altering family.
Be the example for the fish, every year.
Follow the current guidelines. Yeah, in my day the whole fish class would get dropped immediately as a unit for the failure of one. If that's not the current guidelines, then don't do what we did.
Better to try and fail, than to have not tried.
Push the envelope. Few succeed by playing it safe. Push -don't blow past on the way to jail.
