Using Emotional Intelligence to inspire our Word of the Year (MyJourney)

What is Emotional Intelligence? (frm In My Feelings – thanks Alpha Chi Headquarters!)

Emotionally intelligent people are self-aware. They have a realistic appreciation of their strengths and weaknesses and how they come across to others.

When we have high levels of emotional intelligence, we’re able to build strong working relationships and manage difficult situations more effectively.

Even if you already have many of the elements of emotional intelligence, it’s important to look for opportunities to build these elements further. This will increase your leadership potential and improve the quality of your relationships.

[*We also tied this back to recruitment:  crucial to listen, cultivate empathy, and be resilient.*]

The Facilitators did a “get your wiggles” activity where they read aloud 15 quick yes-or-no questions. Sisters stood in the middle of the room, and if they responded “yes” to the question they shuffled right and “no” they shuffled left.  Then they hurried back to the middle for the next question. It was as way for sisters to consider further exploration of why they felt or acted a certain way and to ponder how they could improve  in that area. (Examples – Do I focus on what I can control? Do I listen for the message and not just the words?)

We wanted this to incorporate “get to to know your sisters better” also, so the chapter was split up into Freshman and Juniors and Sophomores and Seniors. They “paired and shared” with a sister they did not know well, and each part of the pair talked about something that made them anxious in the week. The sister listening was only to listen and ask questions and practice her EI skills.

And we took that knowledge and introspection about ourselves (#inourfeelings) and channeled it into our Word of the Year. Remember, “It’s not a resolution, it’s an inspiration”. Individually we jotted down areas where we want to grow. We brainstormed words illustrating the areas we described. We chose our word of the year and wrote down our “why”. We took our sheets home to hang on our fridges, tape on our bathroom mirrors, or put in our planners to help shape our positive path in 2022.

We loved the ruminations of seniors Sara Dramis and Annick Mitchel who realized what very different words resonated with them now as seniors vs. when they were freshmen! A little light introspection is good for a Monday; it’s what makes us Real. Strong. Women.

What’s Your ACTION Chi Connection

Our ritual tells us we should be active sisters and seek to enhance and be involved in our communities as well (FSU, Tallahassee, hometown, new towns when we graduate as alumnae, etc.).

Our VP of Membership Programming Leah and Chi Connection Chair Kait wanted to showcase sisters and their passions to inspire and encourage more. more! more!!!

We resonated with our sisters’ energy and excitement, and honestly, were super impressed with their confidence to share with us and inform us. Many sisters felt “the nudge” to try something new after the event.

Member Kait Adams serves as a staff member at Winterlight Conference

AXΩ member Kati Adams was selected to serve as staff at the 2022 Winterlight Conference. Winterlight is an Episcopal Keep Empowering Youth “KEY” conference held at Camp Kanuga every winter. This event welcomes 10th-12th graders from across the nation to a safe space where they can ask tough questions about their faith and explore their relationship with God. The theme of this year’s 46th Winterlight conference was reconnecting.

When asked about her time at the conference, Kati shared: As a staff member, I challenged participants in my small group to reflect on how they connect with themselves, others, and their faith through dialogue and hands-on activities. Serving on the worship team, I helped bring the theme alive through writing prayers, planning a healing service, and directing the chapel decorations for our final eucharist. As the youngest staff member on the worship team, I made a point to ensure worship was equally relatable and meaningful for participants. Being a part of the Winterlight staff was a rewarding experience that helped me grow as a leader. I look forward to volunteering again next winter! Check out @keyconferences on Instagram to see the amazing opportunities KEY has to offer!

AXΩ attends FSU Clock and Seal

Clock & Seal is a core tradition and a highlight of the Homecoming weekend festivities. Since its inception in 1995, Clock & Seal has hosted chief names in various spheres of leadership, as well as icons of Seminole lore. Attended by a vibrant mix of current and past campus leaders, FSU faculty, staff and administration, Clock & Seal has become the must-have ticket for every Seminole fan. The ladies of Alpha Chi Omega were excited to see Clock & Seal return after it was canceled in 2020, due to the pandemic.

AXΩ Staff Appreciation Week

This ladies of Alpha Chi Omega, Beta Eta Chapter are thankful today and everyday for the amazing staff who help make 518 home. Each fall we take a week to show our appreciation. Monday we surprised staff with their favorite candy, Tuesday we surprised staff with gift cards for lunch on us! Wednesday we surprised staff with social media features (see below), Thursday we surprised the staff with the big signs and messages of thanks for sisters… We are so thankful for each of our staff members and hope this week expressed our appreciation!

AXΩ Partners with Night Cap

The chapter recently partnered with NightCap to create Alpha Chi custom branded NightCap’s for distribution to chapter members and to pass out during upcoming chapter DVA and Healthy Relationships events.

What is NightCap? NightCap is a drink spiking prevention scrunchie. The company was co-founded by an FSU Alumni, Michael Benarde and his sister Shirah. Nightcap was featured on ABC’s Shark Tank. (Season 12 | Episode 12) where the founders made a deal with Shark, Lori Greiner. You can learn more about the companys’ story here.

How does NightCap work?

Image above from https://nightcapit.com/

The chapter was excited to parter to create custom NightCaps for the chapter and community and excited to share in hopes of encouraging other organizations to consider doing the same. For more information about how to order your own custom NightCaps click here.

AXΩ 80’s Prom Date Function

This October, the ladies of Alpha Chi Omega at Florida State hosted an 80’s prom date function. VP Risk Management, Bree and Date Function Chair, Tia planned a great evening for the chapter and their dates. The event took place at Dogwood House in Tallahassee, catering – Bluewater Cooking, DJ – Quinn McNulty, Bartending – Andrews Catering, Security – FDLE, Transportation – Mike’s Limousine.

The Night was complete with amazing backdrops, music, delicious food and of course a great time with sisters and dates!

AXΩ Light the Night 2021

The ladies of Alpha Chi Omega had an amazing time at Light the Night 2021. The Alpha Chi Omega team was led by co-captains Brittany Shechtman, MC ’18 and Ruby Mayeranderson, MC’21. The team DOUBLED their initial fundraising goal raising $6815 for LTN…

Alpha Chi Omega member Jenna Dake was LTN Overall Director and Member Sarah Morris was the Director of Public Relations. We are so proud of all they did to lead LTN 2021 and ensure it was a success. (featured in first photo block below)

Examine your Bias with PLAID & MyJourney

We utilized our MyJourney facilitators to assist the President, Panhellenic Delegate, and VP DEI to present Inclusive Practices: Recognizing Biases a program from OFSL and PLAID.

The speaker and activities addressed and asked us to question: unconscious and affinity bias. The message was for sisters to understand how it affected even the most commonplace interactions and social situations. We discussed bias and its impact on potential new members and our lifetime members. We appreciated the detailed module we used for the evening.