Sorority Life: A Question of Balance

Classes versus social life.  Classes versus social life.  Classes versus social life…

Back in high school, we were at cross purposes between schoolwork & social life in more ways than one.  Deep down, we couldn’t help but ask ourselves some pressing questions:  “Should I study during my lunch break?  Should I hang out with my friends? Should I pass notes, tweet, or text?  Or should I just pay attention to whatever it is my teachers have to say?”   True, we wanted to hang out with our friends a lot but we also had other goals in mind:  not just getting good grades or finding an awesome college/university to attend but also having a clear plan on what we wanted to major in (e.g. education, business, nursing, biology just to name a few).  And for who knows how many of us who graduated at/near/among the top of our classes, we couldn’t help but wonder if we were ready for the various demands life would present to us once we began attending college.

For the most part, we were ready.  Then we decided to go Greek & we had to ask some more pressing questions:  “Am I going to be able to balance new membership programming, academics & my social life together?”  “How am I going to meet these new demands which Greek life asks of me?”  “How can I manage to have an awesome time during college & still excel academically?”  (No doubt, we were experiencing the same dilemmas we faced in high school, trying to make the most of this balancing act between classes & social life.)

It turns out that we didn’t have to look very far for the answers to those urgent questions.

We found women in our chapters who understood the need for balance.  These amazing ladies also encouraged us to excel academically & provided us the support that we needed (& still do from time to time).  They believed that making the grade & making new friends didn’t have to be worlds apart.  We could work hard in the classroom or study at the library & still find time to have a blast with our sorority/fraternity sisters!!

As who knows how many of us have realized firsthand, life in our chapters doesn’t have to be a struggle balancing classes & our social lives together.  We can find time to excel academically.  We can find time to make new friends.  We can still show others that making the grade & making new friends don’t have to be worlds apart.

Sorority Life: Where Image Is Everything

The little things mean a lot & in more ways than we’d like to expect.  The same can be said of life in a sorority/women’s fraternity.

When it comes to Greek life in general, our image truly means everything.  Whatever we do (whether it’s good or bad) directly affects not only our chapters or the Panhellenic communities which we represent.  It must be said that our actions also affect our Greek communities as a whole as well as our Sororities/Fraternities per se.

The first impressions we make with both Greeks & non-Greeks, more often than not, are lasting ones.  Think about it:  through how we conduct ourselves, we’re also communicating the image of our chapters & with that, our Sororities/Fraternities, to others.  And the impressions which we make – be they positive or negative – speak volumes about who we are, what we do & what we’re about!!

We all have a job to do when it comes to keeping our positive images up – not just putting on a big show, but actually being honest & genuine with others about our Sororities/Fraternities.  Starting with new membership programming, it’s on us to both promote & display a positive image in the great & little things that we do daily on & off campus. It’s on us to be accountable.  It’s on us to be responsible.  It’s on us to not just talk left & right about all the good that we do but to prove it as well.

Our image is everything. Seriously, it is:  whether our actions are good or bad, they speak volumes about who we are to potential new members, non-Greeks, other Greeks, our colleges/universities & our communities!!