Formal sorority recruitment. Those three words scared me to death a year ago. The most I knew about sorority life was what I saw from watching The House Bunny and Legally Blonde (being from the north did not help much either). And I am going to let you in on a secret, I was so close to backing out of recruitment. A week before move in I was going to drop from rush and choose not to go Greek. Let me tell you that could have been the worst decision I had ever made and I thank the Lord that He did not let me make that mistake.

Let me tell you another secret: nobody’s recruitment is perfect. Literally no one has a perfect rush. I literally tripped over a fence walking out of one house and spilt an entire cup of water on me in another house! I had sweat dripping down my face as I walked into a house (cause we all love that Alabama heat), my hair was not perfectly curled or straightened, my makeup ran and yes I even got an awful grass stain on one of my dresses. But hey, here I am and I survived!

One thing I realized as I began the process of rush was that I continuously compared myself to the other girls around me. I thought she was prettier, her hair looked better, her makeup is flawless, her dress fits her perfect size 2 body. But reality check none of that matters! You cannot keep comparing yourself to the girl next to you because you will ruin your rush experience. I cannot emphasize this enough, but you need to be yourself. You are who you are and no one can copy that. Pretending to act like the girl with the flawless hair could come with a big cost.

I cannot speak for other houses, but my sorority is so genuine. They were real and that is exactly what I needed to be. I needed to show who I was, not who the girl in the same group as me was. You could pretend to be this girl that loves the color pink and frat boys, but will you really end up in a house that you are compatible with? The answer is no. I realized during rush that I would rather be myself and be dropped by six houses than pretend to be someone else and have the wrong houses pick me.

Trust the system. I had no idea what this meant and quite honestly I was so frustrated with hearing it. What do you mean trust the system? What system? You need to follow your heart and maybe your favorite house will drop you but understand that there is a reason for that. That house could have seemed perfect but just remember that you are only seeing what a sorority wants you to. It is scary but true. The system will help match you up with the house that you are meant to run to on bid day. The system, similar to a relationship, is a two way street. Just as you will pick and choose houses that you love, so will the sororities. In order to ensure the system is in your favor you need to show who you are. Find a house that shows their vulnerable side. Find a home that you will run to on bid day and know that you are loved.

Do not hope for a perfect rush. Do not try to be flawless. Literally no one is perfect! I had a girl in my group trip down the stairs while exiting a house and another girl went through recruitment when she was sick and ended up sneezing on the president in one house. Stay hydrated, get rest, and trust the system! Enjoy recruitment because before you know it it’ll be over!