Recently, I started watching The West Wing series on Netflix, and aside from it being the (second -- Oprah first.) BEST show I've ever seen, it reminded me of a conversation I had with one of my brightest and wisest students a couple of weeks ago. I swear I learn more from conversations with students than with some professionals.
We were walking back to the office after lunch, and began a conversation about my interest in political things and how I make it a goal to keep up with current and past political events. I told her, however, that I would never survive a political career, especially a federal one. I shared that I was terrible at playing "the game" and would have a hard time making everyone feel special just to keep my job. It doesn't make sense to me, and I definitely couldn't do it around-the-clock.
She went on to say that the great thing about working in student affairs and especially orientation is that you don't have to make everyone feel special -- it is our job to make them feel welcomed and connected. What a very simple, yet powerful perception. The groundwork is laid once students come to us. It is our job to make sure they feel a sense of belonging to our institution. It is our job to advocate for them while they are students. It is our job to ensure a smooth and quality transition.
We don't have to go through the rigor of making sure that everything is presented on silver platters or that the red carpet is laid during each encounter. We are tasked with making them feel welcomed and connected. What if more people adopted this mantra? What if this idea were present at every college or university? In the church. In every home and family. What if more people felt welcomed and connected?
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