They say that people are never nicer to you than in your first two weeks of college. But that is because of selfishness, not altruism. People don’t want to end up friendless, so they are nice to everyone.
My question is this: why does it have to stop there? Why can’t people just be nice all the time?
The basic strategy is to befriend as many people as you can in the first few days of school. Say "hi" to everyone, give them a big smile, and invite them to tag along with your group of 50 people to lunch. But isn’t it kind of sad? Why is this restricted to the first few weeks of freshman year?
So many colleges brag that their campus is one big community of students, faculty, and administration. They say that everyone continues to build and build and build upon the foundation of a community. When in reality, the college system is built to divide. People become part of groups and organizations, most notably Greek houses. How is a college supposed to be a cohesive community when so many students engage in a pitiful hatred of a whole group of people because of some letters they wear?
I don’t mean to thrash out against Greek life, in fact, I am one of the heaviest advocates for fraternities and sororities because of the values you gain by being a part of them. All I mean to say is, that just because someone is part of a different group than you, it doesn’t mean you can’t be nice to them.
You can call yourself a Lambda Chi Alpha, a Sigma Nu, a Kappa Alpha Theta, or whatever else you want to call yourself. But we are all people. The way you build a community is by encouraging people to be nice to other people.
In the movie Liberal Arts which Josh Radnor (Ted Mosby from How I Met Your Mother) wrote and starred in, there is a scene where he is having a meaningful conversation with a character named Nat. He says, “Thanks for being my friend, Nat.” And Nat responds, “Easiest thing in the world, brother.”
So when you go back to school this fall (only 2 more weeks for Butler students!) I encourage you to embrace the attitude that all of the freshmen, and Nat, will have. Look past whatever group or organization you’re a part of, give people a smile, and say "hi." Remember that you are a person.
