Confession: I have terrible taste in music.

Sometimes, when I'm about to go for a run, I get this desire to reload my iPod with new music.

Typically, I Google "good songs to run to" and I get lots of playlists full of, you guessed it, good songs to run to. So then I go to the website, and I scroll down the list, and I see nothing I like! Or, I see things I like, and then I visualize myself running to them, and they just don't fit.

Which has led me to this conclusion: I have terrible taste in music.

I guess I'd describe my musical taste as: mostly country mixed with mainstream pop and easy listening, a few hip-hop/rap songs, and then the occasional burst of Billy Joel and/or the Eagles.

In other words: full of guilty pleasures. Only I guess they can't really be called guilty pleasures if they all fall into that category, right?

Essentially, I listen to songs that make me want to either sing or dance along while I'm running. And they've gotta make me smile.

So, for those of you who share my musical leanings and are looking for a playlist you'd actually like to work out to, here's what I ran to today. Enjoy:

Animal/Neon Trees

What Doesn't Kill You/Kelly Clarkson

Live a Little/Kenny Chesney

It Girl/Jason Derulo

Hey Mama/Mat Kearney

Work Out/J. Cole

Storm Warning/Hunter Hayes

She's Like Texas/Josh Abbott Band

Rock & Roll/Eric Hutchinson

Only the Good Die Young/Billy Joel

Call Me Maybe/Carly Rae Jepsen

...and now you know why if you see me out running, I probably look like I'm dancing and/or playing the air drums with my fingers. I'm okay with it.

Today is March 7th and it is a wonderful day

Today I am blessed.

Blessed to be registered to run my first full marathon in DC in October with my dad.

Blessed to have finally figured out exactly where I want to be next year.

Blessed to have figured out what field I want to work in.

Blessed with a job which both fulfills and challenges me on a daily basis.

Blessed to be able to travel to new places on a weekly basis.

..and blessed with incredible friends and family who support me, make me laugh, and push me to be the best version of me each day.

I can't wait to share more details as they come.. I'm too nervous to be more specific because I don't want to jinx it, but I am so eager for when I'll be able to share more.

What I learned this week – 3/6 edition

I’ve decided to start bringing some regular features to the blog. Here’s the first of them.

If you know me, you know how much I love learning. Seriously, I’m a fan of random trivia, taking classes, having my mind blown with new facts, you name it.

Each Tuesday, I’ll recap five things I’ve learned since the last Tuesday. And there will be links so that you can learn about them too!

1. That higher altitude running is more difficult! During my first full day in Pullman, I agreed to a run with the vp: communications, Hannah. She told me we would go slow on our one mile run to the gym, so I felt like a fool when I was dying about five minutes into our run! I was able to finish the mile there and back (as well as 2 miles on the treadmill while at the gym), but breathing was difficult! As it turns out, Pullman is nearly a half a mile above sea-level. Needless to say, I’m a little nervous about running during my two weeks in Colorado.

2. That grown adults laugh an average of 15 times per day, while children laugh an average of 300 times per day! This fun fact was shared by a yoga teacher during the Beta Omega chapter retreat. I definitely think this job has upped my average, thanks in part to all of the amazing collegians I get to work with. Claire at Whitman shared this gem with me during my last day in Walla Walla – I dare you to watch it without having a giggle. And giggling is good – laughing keeps you young!

3. That Jesse Eisenberg (Social Network) is big brother to Hallie Kate Eisenberg (remember the Pepsi girl?). If you ever want to learn new things, IMDB.com is a great place to start. My clicking around from the website’s page on Matilda led me to this little discovery, although literally I learn something new every time I visit the site.

4. That ice cream can affect your brain in the same way drugs do. It all makes so much sense now! Seriously though, maybe this is a new way to fight drug addiction? Give all the drug addicts Haagen Dazs?

5. That Walla Walla, Washington may be the best place to spend a birthday. Okay, this isn’t really an interesting fact, but I had to share how wonderful my 23rd birthday was at Whitman. The women were so fantastic to me, from making me taco bar for dinner to creating a beautiful cake to welcoming me with open arms into their sisterhood. I really had a special week in Walla Walla, and learned a lot from our Alpha Eta chapter. This job has really blessed me with the opportunity to meet so many incredible women all over the country.

“How do you deal with negative stereotypes?”

One of the questions I am most often asked on the road is: “How do you deal with negative stereotypes having to do with Greek Life?”

My answer is always a follow-up question (I may be the most frustrating CDC on the planet – they just want an answer!): “Do you think those stereotypes are true?”

I remember discussing stereotypes in an entry level Journalism class in college. The part the stuck out most to me? Stereotypes are generally founded on some nugget of truth.

Leaders in fraternities and sororities complain that the media gets it wrong; that so much emphasis is placed on partying, hazing, not living out values, and that all of the wonderful things we do are all but ignored. While this may be true (see: TLC’s one episode of Sorority Girls), the fact of the matter is, in order for these things to be covered by the media, they had to have happened.

Of course sororities do more than party. Of course we do. We do thousands and thousands of hours of community service, boast higher GPAs than the campus average, host educational programs for our members, shape women into leaders. And hazing? Every NPC organization is 100% anti-hazing.

But here’s the thing: it takes one person representing one organization having one bad night out or making one mistake to counteract all the good that fraternities and sororities as a whole do. In order for the media to write bad things, those bad things had to have happened.

Of course members are going to make mistakes; college is part of growing up and part of growing up is making mistakes. But once you join a Greek letter organization, you’re held to a higher standard and higher scrutiny because of everything you represent. Because you, and I, represent over  a hundred years of heritage, hundreds of thousands of members, millions of philanthropy hours, and established values and ideals. We communicate everything our organizations stand for in our actions every day.

Delta Zeta put out an awesome, awesome video that members of fraternities and sororities everywhere should watch. It’s here for you now:

So, how do you deal with negative stereotypes of Greek organizations? The answer to that question is best communicated through actions, not words.

On turning 23

Since it's my birthday (tomorrow), you get a baby picture:



Admit it, I was a cutie. Also a red-head; true life.

 When I was in college, it felt like everyone was always looking towards being 21. Then, once you hit 21, everyone just assumed everything was downhill from there.

I don't get that. Why are we so afraid of getting older?

My year as a 22 year old has been a wonderful one; I've had so many new experiences, from graduating college to falling in love to having my first job, and visiting so many new states. I've become mostly financially independent, been responsible about putting aside money, started thinking about my future. I've discovered new talents and reaffirmed old passions. Being 22 has been pretty awesome.

I have no doubt that 23 will be even better.

I have this theory that life only gets better as it goes on. College was a wonderful time in my life, but when I finished, I approached it as starting a new chapter, rather than looking back on what I would be giving up. Growing up means that you begin learning from mistakes, start settling into who you are as a person, and finally start to figure out what you value, and what's important to you.

Twenty-three. It's going to be a fantastic year for me, full of learning, loving, being happy, experiencing new things. I am looking forward to settling somewhere for a little bit, finding my own place, continuing to maintain old friendships and creating new ones. It's going to be a year of staying healthy, finding balance, and changing lives. I have big plans for this year, let me tell you.

Plans like: thinking about graduate school, taking the GRE, visiting even more major league parks, finishing my first full marathon, running another half, starting and finishing P90X, volunteering more, joining a yoga studio, becoming a better cook.. the list goes on and on.

Growing up actually feels pretty good.

We are led to those who help us most to grow

This week has been a week of reflection for me. Something about "Big Sky Country" does that, I think.

Timeout. I'm in Missoula, Montana, and I got here last Tuesday, flying across the country from my previous visit at the University of Maryland. It's been a week full of bonding with new women, being included in a nightly workout group, eating way too many spoonfuls of Nutella, gawking at mountains, and even a trip to the hot springs. It has been an incredibly fun week, but also a week where I have spent a lot of time journaling and with my thoughts.

The title of this blog, "We are led to those who help us most to grow," is one that has defined my Delta Gamma experience for a long time. It is a line from the song "For Good" from Wicked, and it is the song my chapter, Delta Iota, sings for preference. It is a song that evokes incredibly powerful feelings each time I hear it, especially the aforementioned line.

Being a Delta Gamma at the University of Georgia helped me to find myself, and to develop into someone that I am proud to be. It gave me lifelong friendships, taught me how to become a better leader, and even gave me my first job. It gave me a core group of women who were there with me every step of the way throughout college, from bad grades to new jobs to heartbreaks to late night talking sessions. It gave me some of my best friends, women who I am proud to be friends with and who I can call whenever.

This line has continued to resonate throughout my year as a CDC so far, and over the course of the last week, I've been able to really reflect on how much I've grown. I think living out of a suitcase and making new friends each week does that to you. More importantly, I've taken time to think about all of the people that have been put into my path over the last year, who have all helped me grow over the past year:

• Each collegian who has instantly befriended me just because we wear the same badge.
• The adviser who took me on a walk to get coffee after I got an emotionally draining phone call.
• The 10 other CDCs who have continuously responded to late night text messages or called to check in, and have really become women who I can confide in.
• The collegians who have taken the time to write me notes for when I leave their chapter, or have friended me on Facebook to stay in touch.
• The incredible women I have met who are interviewing to be CDCs for next year this very weekend, and who inspired me to become better when I visited their chapters.
• Each former CDC who has welcomed me with open arms into a sisterhood that spans decades, including taking me out to meals when I am anywhere near them.
• Each volunteer -- Council, Cabinet, regional officers, advisers -- and staff member that I have met who gives an incredible amount of time to an organization that has played such a huge part in shaping who they are, absolutely and completely free of charge, expecting nothing in return
• And obviously, family and friends who have been with me every step of the way; late night phone calls and skype sessions, putting up with my crazy time zone changes and sometimes having conversations cut short.

The truth is, I have met hundreds, maybe even thousands, of women throughout my travels this year, and each has played a part in shaping me into who I am now. I am a stronger, more secure, more patient (still working on this one), calmer, and more collected version of who I was when I started. I have begun to develop a deeper understanding of people, and have continued to build upon my sense of empathy. And my passion? My passion is working with people; I know it's what I'm supposed to be doing for the rest of my life.

Here's to three more months of the most challenging and rewarding job I will ever have in my life.

Back to school: my first college class in months

A few days ago, I had the opportunity to attend class with the chapter president at Maryland. The first thing I learned? I miss class – it was nice to be back in a setting where I could take notes, learn things, and interact with other students. Anyways. This wasn’t just any class – it was President’s Class!

The University of Maryland offers a class for presidents of all Greek organizations – NPC, NIC, NPHC, MCG –  that meets three hours per week. The curriculum involves learning about leadership and discussing community issues.

What a brilliant idea.

The class not only ensures that chapter presidents are continuously thinking about values and what it means to be a leader, it also strengthens the Greek community – every council included. It is facilitated by someone from the Fraternity and Sorority Life office, and serves as a way to monitor and maintain the integrity of the Greek system.

During the class I attended, we discussed what it means to be a leader. We also talked about stereotypes of each council, and learned things about councils other than our own. I was impressed by how open, honest, non-judgmental, and participative every member of the class was.

Why doesn’t every University place value on training it’s campus leaders and building a sense of community?

Honestly, how many problems could be solved by bringing all parties to the table and teaching them how to be mature, responsible, values-based leaders? By teaching them what is expected of them and helping them to take personal responsibility not only for the success of their own organizations but also for the success of the community?

I really miss the feeling I used to get following a really great class – the mind-going-a-mile-a-minute-processing-all-the-new-ideas feeling. Maybe I’ll start requesting to be taken to class with collegians?