If you’ve ever been to Quad Day, you know it can be a little daunting with the balmy weather, an overwhelming array of booths and the hordes of students. But if you prepare yourself for these factors, you’re in for a worthwhile campus experience during which hundreds of RSOs will gather in one location and attempt to sell their purposes and spaces on their sign-up sheets to you. Ultimately though, you have the power to decide whether one RSO is an appropriate fit for you or not.

At my freshman year Quad Day, I took it upon myself to carefully study all of the organizations I came across and think deeply about each one. Was Adventure Club actually my secret passion? Did I really care about Greek life? Did I want to get involved in a club sport?

At the end of the day, the decision was quite simple: Say no to the clubs that failed to captivate me and sign up for anything that sounded remotely fun, which ended up being a large amount. I signed up for some related to community service (Illini Fighting Hunger), some I would forget about one second later (Chain Management Club) and some I didn’t even understand (October Lovers Club).

What’s reassuring is your signature on these sign-up sheets is completely nonbinding; you don’t have to ever hear from or seek out these clubs again if you decide against joining them. But if you find yourself enjoying the events they host or other members’ presence, you have yourself to thank for taking a chance of an organization you might not have heard of otherwise.

College is often deemed an exploratory era. It’s a time when you can delve into your identity and discover yourself on an elevated level, and there’s no better time to embark upon this journey of self-actualization than a day where many of life’s pleasures and opportunities are being set out for you on a silver platter to pick and choose from. This is the day to say “yes” to anything appetizing on the menu.

Some might argue this tactic of signing up for anything that catches your eye lacks strategy and is a waste of time, but it actually allows you to open your mind up to activities you never would have imagined trying, and you might even like them. That’s the goal everyone strives for, but you can never accomplish it if you stick to your comfort zone and shy away from anything you’re afraid of being judged for. Think of it like this: High school is for judging, college is for exploring. So head over to Quad Day and try your hand at fencing, a capella or water polo. How else will you be able to find out if your destiny was to be a world-class rowing champion?

[email protected]