Pledging will begin this evening with bid night kicking off three weeks of pledging. With this comes a lot of uncertainty for pledges of a variety of clubs. Although each club is unique, we believe there are still lessons which are applicable across the diverse situations facing pledges.
Attitude matters. The attitude you take into pledging will define your experience through the next three weeks. Look for the deeper meaning in what you are doing and learn to rely on your fellow pledges. For the most part, every event will have a purpose behind it. We’ll be honest, it is going to be terrible at times, but it will be so much worse if you have the wrong attitude. Buy in, and you will have the time of your life. Humble yourself with the knowledge that everyone pledging you has gone through similar experiences.
At the same time, prioritize why you came to school. Specifically, the “school” aspect of school. Know your limits. It would be way too easy to get behind in classes by choosing to sleep after a late night of pledging. Push through and excel academically.
Some outfits are more garish than others, but every day you will wake up hating that your clothing is dictated to you. Yet, when it’s over, you’ll look fondly at the next year’s pledge class as they criss-cross campus.
If we haven’t convinced you yet, we’ll say it again: pledging is going to be miserable. But because of it, you’ll cross paths with a variety of people you otherwise might not have crossed paths with. The bounty of pledging is the forging of bonds which form the community that undergirds this campus. Generally speaking, people don’t donate to the university, talk about sending their kids back to ACU or return for homecoming for any other reason than their time in club. The pull back to campus that current students and alumni feel is rooted in the pledging process, which has been occurring on this campus for over 100 years.
You certainly will wish you had never pledged, but you will also never be able to imagine not pledging once it is over.
