To the Girl Who Just Pledged My Sorority
I've been getting some requests to talk about Greek Life and some advice so I thought I would share my outlook on it!
Recruitment is over and you've accepted a bid to a sorority. You've met your sisters and made friends with your pledge class. You've decorated your dorm room and bought everything in your sorority's colors. But, there's some things you should know before your sorority experience continues.
First of all, Welcome!
Running home on Bid Day is still one of my favorite memories and I am so happy for each of you to experience everything thousands of girls before you have and more! A sorority is one of the best decisions that you can make in your life and will help you excel in all the ways you want to. I hope you're ready for the best time of your life because it is happening right now!
Soak it in.
This experience is overwhelming for even the most outgoing person. Being brought into a house with almost 100 other girls and finding over 200 more girls inside that house to be friends with is actually pretty insane (ha). But, soak in every single experience and try to say no as little as possible! Some of the best times I had with my sisters were the ones I never expected - like spending 2 hours at the sorority house dining room table talking about TV shows and who preferred Serena Van der Woodsen to Blair Waldorf (Queen B always!)
So, even if it seems awkward or something you wouldn't immediately jump into - give it a try. The worst that will come out of it is you'll learn a sister's name and have something funny to laugh about when you're reading your senior spotlight in four years.
Learn from the older girls and get to know them.
Being a new member can give you the motivation and inspiration to conquer the world - and you can. College, in general, is full of new experiences and opportunities. Who better to talk to about those opportunities and classes than the girls who have been in your place before? Some of the best relationships I made in my sorority were ones with the girls in the pledge classes above me. They became such role models for me and pushed me to become the woman I wanted to be. Coming into a sorority with the attitude of respecting the older girls and wanting to learn from them will take you far. You'll learn so much not only about your sorority, but college and life and general. Those girls will want to help you in any way you can and what's better to have someone to look up to and be your role model?
It may seem corny now, but it is real.
During recruitment I'm sure you got a taste of the sisterhood of your sorority and some of the topics brought up might have seemed awkward. Seeing girls have a strong bond and talk about how much they love each other may have been weird, especially because you only have four days to decide where to join. I know it freaked me out a little when I went through recruitment.
Being a new member is all about learning and finding a piece of that sisterhood for yourself. It takes time. I know countless girls who walked into their sorority house on bid day so upset and then a year and half later were President or held executive position. Don't expect to understand and accept everything right away - some girls might and that's great, but don't give up on it because you may not be there yet! Put yourself out there and your sisters will love you for exactly who you are - remember, they handpicked you to join their sisterhood for a reason!
Joining a sisterhood was honestly the best decision I have ever made. My sisters became my absolute best friends who I could turn to for anything, whether that was at 2 am crying over a boy or just to walk to grab pizza. Your sisterhood is what you make it - so make it count.
Congratulations to all of you who have pledged and joined the best thing that has happened to you!
