[1964Alum]

Lucky me! I got my first choice long before RFM was even dreamed of. But once on the other side, I learned that there were any number of fantastic young women we would have LOVED to have pledged had it not been for the constraint of quota limit.

One thing to bear in mind is that the active members other than one or two officers most often don't know who among our pledges was on our first or who was on our second list. We never talked about that. We were thrilled to welcome all our new members with open arms. Nor did the new members ever know who was on the first list and who might have been on the second. Everyone started on the same footing.

I honestly would have been happy with my second choice or even my third choice, whose preference I was invited to but had to decline because we were allowed only two preferential parties. All three groups had much in common but also differences that made them unique. All three were terrific groups.

I think two things are important for any young woman going through recruitment. The first is to have humility and to not assume anything. Remember that those who chose to go through recruitment are a self-selected group, each believing that she has something worthwhile to offer to any GLO. And who also likely has a resume very similar to yours.

The second is to look for the positive in EVERY group whose parties you are invited to. And to accept those invitations graciously and to be an appreciative guest. Sure, there will be those you feel more at home in/impressed with than others, but it is important to remember that recruitment is frankly a pretty artificial way to really know each of the GLOs in truly meaningful ways. All have something wonderful to offer!

Part of my decision making involved seeing the other PNMs at the parties and imagining them to be a pledge sister. My pledge sisters were an amazing group! But so were the pledges of my second and third choices!