1. Can I buy alcohol?
2. Can I use swipes for alcohol?
3. Why am I paying extra for this?
4. How much did the new union cost to build?
5. What can the place do for me?
People were kinda bummed when they found out that swipes weren't for alcoholic beverages (which I'm about 95% sure they aren't). But what got me thinking was how not everyone is looking at the new space as a once-in-a-lifetime event. Students are more concerned about the cost. And I guess I'm not surprised seeing as money/economy is on everyone's minds these days. I tried my best to convince my roommates that this was an awesome thing, but they weren't impressed.
Now, question 5 was the toughest one for me to answer. It should really be, "what can't the new union do for me?" Other than explaining all the offices/centers that will be housed there, I mentioned the new merchandise store (one kid was pretty excited to hear about that) and the restaurants. I talked about all the lounge space and all the different rooms people can use. And I mentioned the gigantic ball room. It's pretty big. But I realized that people aren't interested in anything unless they get something out of it. They're not willing to support this new union since they don't see what's in it for them. To be honest, I'm not sure how to respond to that. Got any advice?
I can relate this back to Greek life as a whole. If students don't see the benefits they get out of joining a fraternal organization, then they won't be as willing to find out more. And as ambassador, I've been thinking hard about how to spark that interest and market all the great benefits we provide. Once students see what we can offer them, maybe then they'll show more interest. But it needs to be a team effort, a community-wide effort. The next big thing I know that's coming up is Greek Week. I think that's a great time to show the OSU community all the benefits of going Greek such as brotherhood/sisterhood, community, and unity.
By the way, I feel kind of important wearing this shirt. Kinda weird, I know.
Thanks for being such a great Ohio Union ambassador yesterday! And I don't really know what advice I'd have to get them excited, other than to keep on doing what your doing, while also understanding that sometimes, people just have to see to believe. So no matter how much we do right now, there are some people who just won't be excited until they actually see it. And I guess we all have to be okay with that (as hard as that is). So for now, just keep on doing what your doing, but then come March 29th, make sure you physically drag all of the nay-sayers to the building :)
ReplyDeleteAnd by the way, I really like your connection to SFL as a whole. You did a great job relating your observation with the Union to our S/F community.