Anyone who has taught a lecture to a large group of students has probably experienced undesirable student behaviors. The author, who has taught an introductory college biology course at Syracuse University for 45 years, relates that an important part of his teaching philosophy is that everyone should learn from everything that they do, and everything that they do should become a part of who they are. Experiences are the key to lasting, meaningful learning, not mere memorization of information. Therefore, the author was very insistent upon attendance and participation in all course components, and, because the author expected students to attend lectures, his responsibility was to make sure that the lectures were meaningful and worthwhile. He found that appealing to students and explaining the reasoning behind class policies can lead to a reduction in undesirable behaviors.