Commitment

"At the very core of commitment is the individual and his or her innate passion or desire.  This internal passion drives Commitment and requires active engagement."

Commitment is not a character trait that can be pushed onto someone, and in order to achieve the highest results, individuals of the group really need to put forth that passion or desire to succeed.  

This can be directly related to how Chi Phi functions.  As an organization, almost all of us were the guys who sat around a table and said, individually "Yea, I want to start a fraternity.  I want to make a difference at Ohio State, and I believe my niche is the fraternal system, so I am going to do whatever it takes to make this a successful student organization."  Nobody around the table was forced to be there, and nobody joined against their will.  We collectively shared a common interest in Sorority and Fraternity Life, and truly believed that this was the path we should take to optimize our experience in a fraternity, and as a student at Ohio State.  It is now our goal and job to find others on this campus that share this common passion with us.  It is not our job to push others toward passion and commitment, because ultimately they are making the decision based on themselves, "What will I do to better this organization" "How will it better me".  When they are able to answer those questions, the recruits will find a way to join.  Chi Phi is in the unique position that most fraternities and sororities never find themselves in, and that is where we have a very united vision (Due in part to how new we are to campus).  

A lot of men and women get lost in the system, because they join aimlessly, join these organizations for the wrong reasons (i.e. a great house, cool parties etc.), or are too afraid to stand up in the crowd when they believe the organization is heading in the direction that is not congruent with what the organization stands for.  Obviously no one is perfect, but in order to succeed at the highest level, the commitment has to come from within.  You have to join the fraternity or sorority that fits you, and then join with a goal in mind. It is so important to combine vision and commitment, because you need to visualize how you want to leave your organization, and then commit down a path that will take you to that goal.  Along that line, commitment is infectious. As I said earlier, passion cannot be forced upon someone, but it can be ignited.  As a recruiter it is important to find what makes your recruit tick inside, and then show them that your organization can offer that to them: service, family, growth & development, academia, the list goes on and on.  

At the end of the day, the fraternal system has more to offer than any other organization on campus.  The ability to quantify and express those offerings in a manner that helps a non-affiliate, or an affiliate-to-be find what they want to commit to ultimately determines the success of the organization.

Values

     Value, in the simplest terms, comes from investment.  The more that is invested into the ideology of the culture one is raised in, the more higher the values that one embraces.  Values are one of the most important part of our internal being in today's world.  With the strength of outside forces being at an all-time high, it can be much more difficult to stay true to oneself than before.  Back before the media played such a huge role in our lives, it was easy to shut out other people and keep those values from being compromised.  Now-a-days there are organizations and groups of people out there trying to question our societal values each and every day.  That is why it is imperative to make time for reflection on values, and remember why they are there and where they came from.

      Sometimes reflection can be very difficult though! I know that for me it took three leadership conferences in one semester to really dig deep inside and think about what it is that I value.  I took the weekends to reflect on my life for the past nineteen years.  Thinking back to my life "pre-college" I realized how much my mom means to me, and how much I value family. Along that same line, my mother raised me to be genuine, steadfast in my beliefs, and an honest gentleman.  But throughout those conferences I realized that during my time in college so far, my independence has taken me away from those values, because I don't have that safety net to fall back on when I am not sure what to do.  Now my values haven't changed at all in my time as a buckeye, but my actions have.  I have increased my self-awareness and made my actions more congruent with my values.  It makes a huge difference when those thoughts on how to live stay at the forefront of my mind.

    Living out the values that you live by is so important, especially in a Greek organization.  They help increase confidence, and will advance the chapter that you are a part of.  Visiting them often and with depth will increase self-awareness, and it is okay to change what values you hold close to you so long as they stay congruent with what you believe in and how you live.