We Know We Need to Adapt. How Do We Make it Happen?
Chapter shifting is seeing the need and having the ability to change direction for the purpose of creating a positive impact or sustaining existence.
The term chapter shifting means knowing how to facilitate change.
This ability will be the single most important leadership quality for every fraternity and sorority member, especially as our members grow from undergrads to professionals. We are in a time when the relevance of fraternity and sorority is in question. It is important that every member must understand this moment and take steps to shift.
Shifting how we present ourselves to others has taken on a different meaning with the COVID-19 pandemic. So now, not only are we working to prove our relevancy, we must also demonstrate how the bonds of siblinghood can be built in a virtual environment.
Only the fittest chapters will survive.
Those who are adapting to change are flourishing while those who remain tied to strict operational models are facing possible extinction. Every institution can attest to the number of chapters, especially fraternities, that are no longer on campus.
Nine Key Truths to Chapter Shift
To chapter shift, you must be willing to acknowledge the situation and adapt to the current reality.
Adaptability in the context of chapter shifting is recognizing the need for change and being willing to embrace the change. It is easier to get buy-in when your members have say in how the organization changes rather than being forced to change. Wise leaders understand they must be nimble, able to discern a situation, and adapt accordingly to move the organization forward.
Soon, we will see the adjustments made by some organizations to adapt to the changes brought on by the pandemic. We will learn about the new strategies developed for recruitment and for the ways we connect with our brothers and sisters. Everything either rises or falls based on leadership. Those chapters with creative leaders who pushed through obstacles, asked for help from others, did not allow fear to shut down process, and changed their current reality will see they have won the fight.
Chapter shifting opens the door for new possibilities and new opportunities.
2. Chapter shifting takes even more courage when fear is present.
Courage isn’t the lack of fear. It’s what you do in the midst of fear. Fear unleashes a variety of insecurities—the need for control, the feeling of paralysis, the divisiveness of mask wearing, and, of course, the worry of failure. Fear needs to be recognized for what is and what it does.
Fear unleashes a variety of insecurities—the need for control, the feeling of paralysis, the divisiveness of mask wearing, and, of course, the worry of failure.
The voice of fear says:
don’t try that; you will fail
it’s safer to stay in the known, the familiar
people won’t support that direction
there are too many obstacles
it won’t work that way
that’s not what people are looking for in a fraternity or sorority
no one will get on a Zoom call for recruitment
texting is less risky than having a virtual conversation with a potential new member
3. To chapter shift, is to continually learn, unlearn and relearn.
To learn, unlearn, and relearn is the natural rhythm of life. But at times, we refuse to acknowledge and embrace this truth. At other times, we even fight it. But chapter shifting requires this process. We must let go and move forward.
We must be willing to let go of what worked yesterday and grab on to what will work today. On an individual level, we must be willing to let go of an outdated tradition and to create a new one. Chapter shifting for an individual is:
adopting a posture of being a lifetime learner
critically thinking
learning from the culture, current situation, and season
As we think about chapter education, how can we create new lessons that teach the concept of respect among new members or the value of big/little friendships? Leaders must re-evaluate the purpose of chapter programs and determine if they are fulfilling their purpose. During these times of assessment, leaders need to be willing to unlearn and relearn new methods of delivering programs and services.
4. Chapter shifting our stories.
Stories tell others about our collective way of being together and belonging to each other as a chapter. The stories we tell each other and the stories others tell about us have power.
How have (past or present) stories identified you as a chapter?
Do you like how these stories define your chapter?
What are the current stories you are telling each other?
In the future, what are the stories you want shared about the chapter, with one another, and by others outside the chapter?
Changing our relationship with the past will involve new conversations we have about who we are in the present and who we are becoming for the future. Sisterhood, brotherhood and siblinghood are built on the stories of success shared and celebrated with each other and those outside of the chapter. Perhaps you need to reclaim your story.
5. Chapter shifting speaks of possibilities.
Transforming a chapter begins when we have conversations about possibilities. A possibility inspires hope, gives freedom to change, creates a new direction, builds new energy, and gives new meaning. They can lift the creative juices of members and give them permission to think outside the box . Possibilities can make us feel alive and bring about a freshness and a sense of being whole. Relating to others takes on a new dimension as more voices shape the direction of possibilities. When this happens, authorship evolves into ownership, responsibility and accountability. However, be mindful that having conversations about possibilities is not the practice of assessing a problem and creating a solution.
A possibility inspires hope, gives freedom to change, creates a new direction, builds new energy, and gives new meaning.
6. Chapter shifting understands that yesterday had value but we must live in the present.
“Yesterday’s home run doesn’t win today’s game.”—Babe Ruth
The Babe held the record for the most home runs, but he also held the record for the most strikeouts. Chapter shifting assesses yesterday, acknowledges its value, and chooses to bring some parts into today’s culture with a new form. A chapter’s “yesterday” should not be causing it to stumble and fall today. Today will look different and that’s not a bad thing. The events of yesterday were fun, but they may not be fun today. Go out and create something new! Some alumni tell us that today can’t be as good as yesterday and that we must go back, but they are wrong. Let them have their own memories as you create better ones.
7. Chapter shifting understands the environment and timing.
If you do not understand the current climate, you may lose some battles. If you do not understand the art of timing, you may lose even more. The timing of decisions reveals those leaders who are exceptional. Exceptional leaders know how to assess the time and make informed decisions. This skill involves the leader discerning the time and seizing the moment. Think of it like a stock trader discerning which stocks have a low value but huge potential and watching her investment grow.
If you do not have a wellness chair who focuses on all aspects of health, you may not fully understand today’s environment. Emotional and mental wellness can be a huge reason why a student may leave the university. Look at it this way: if your officer structure has the same 8 positions it did 20 years ago, you may need to reassess.
8. Chapter shifting happens when the leader’s vision suddenly enlarges, seeing a new reality.
The picture shifts—sometimes 30 degrees and sometimes 180 degrees. The chapter becomes vibrant, relevant, and meaningful when the vision suddenly comes into focus or a bigger, new reality emerges. Being a good leader means always recalibrating your focus. What type of culture allows this to happen, and what type of culture stunts this growth? Your current reality is not the reality of three years ago. Almost everyone is acutely aware that last year’s reality has dramatically changed because of COVID-19. The vision has suddenly changed. For some it has expanded while for others it is condensed.
The chapter becomes vibrant, relevant, and meaningful when the vision suddenly comes into focus or a bigger, new reality emerges.
9. Chapter shifting has its enemies.
Some alumni
Toxic parts of culture prevailing and building unhealthy communities
The subculture rules the chapter
Outdated traditions that kill, destroy and sabotage
Unhealthy stories of the past that need to die
Lack of possibility conversations
Poor, ill-equipped, leaders in chapter positions and advising positions
Chapter shifting requires participation. Every member must be the change and committed to the shift. It takes everyone, because we are in this together.
New wine can’t be poured into an old wineskin because old wineskins have been stretched to the limit and become brittle. Many chapters keep trying to do this instead of making new wineskins for new wine. Recently, a chapter created a “new wine” for a past event, but they were trying to put the new wine into an old wineskin. I told them the new wine was great, but eventually, the old wineskin was going to burst. The following week, they analyzed the event with the whole chapter and created possibilities for the future events. Getting the chapter to buy into new possibilities helped create a culture of change. That culture was their new wineskin.