Considering to Rush Again

[FSUZeta]

I think they were suggesting you not mention that you had to miss your dear friends funeral because it might come off as confusing. You wrote a wonderful tribute to your friend, and then finished it off by saying that you had to get back to school, which appeared to be 180 degrees out from the things you had said about your friend. But realize that we are reading your responses, not listening to them. Written statements can easily get misconstrued.

I think if you are going to speak about your friend and the influence his life and death had on you, you might want to take the approach that you, he, and your other friends had a sort of unofficial brotherhood, how you were always there for each other and how you are hoping to find similar friendships in a fraternity. But you have to temper what you say because the topic can quickly become uncomfortable for those who did not know your friend. In fact, you might want to just share your feelings about your friends' death with people you are close to. You can let down your guard with close acquaintances and really level with them, something you cannot (or should not) do with people you have just met.

[adpiucf]

The possibility of being asked this question a second time are slim to none, so just practice a 30-second response and move on. The key in recruitment is to appear confident, approachable, and uncontroversial. Those are transferable skills once you start interviewing for jobs and working in a professional setting, so learn now!

The chances of this fraternity seeking you out a second time are probably also very small. You're that strange guy who idolizes Joe Paterno and hung around the party too long. People remember that stuff. Sure, go visit them during recruitment, but you only get one chance to make a first impression. I would argue you've made a negative one at this chapter, whereas you might have had a second shot if you simply hadn't talked to enough brothers or flew under the radar and said and did some memorable things. You put yourself on their radar, front and center. Move on and consider other fraternities on your campus. Good luck and I hope things work out next time. I think you may have some work to do on understanding social skills and basic social cues. I don't say any of this to be hurtful or unkind, but to give you something tangible to work on based on your comments here and to hopefully achieve a better outcome in the future.