Written by Abbey Masters
The problem of scarcity states that there are a finite number of resources, yet an infinite number of needs competing for those finite resources. It is a fundamental economic principle and a key driver of human behavior. We feel its weight each day as we try to meet needs ranging from hunger to social belonging. Maslow puts it best: As our basic needs are met, we pursue more complex ones, but the pursuit never ends. The problem of scarcity is inevitable.
Pretty much everyone on earth can agree that scarcity is an issue. It is how we solve this problem that divides us politically and ideologically. This piece is not political, so take a deep breath and relax. I’m not here for politics either. However, I do believe we let the problem of scarcity creep into other areas of life where it doesn’t belong.
Around this time every year, I have felt the pangs of scarcity in the club process. I am guilty of hyper-analyzing interactions with potential new members (PNMs). I wonder if they liked my club. I wonder if they liked me. I wonder if we will get a good pledge class this year. Are there enough girls doing the club process to go around? Certainly not, the problem of scarcity says, and so my imagination creates a competition, one that can be incredibly unhealthy.
Just like everyone else, I strategize and plan how to win over PNMs. I analyze my competitors’ approach, forgetting that this “competitor” is a friend that simply wears a different jersey on Fridays.
It’s understandable why I would treat the club process as a zero-sum game. My primitive brain is wired to see social belonging as essential for survival, and that’s why rejection has such a bitter sting.
If they don’t like my club, that must reflect somehow on me. That must mean I made the wrong decision to be a part of this group. Unconsciously, I gauge the number of PNMs interested in my club to tell me if I made the right decision. If lots of people pick my club, that must mean I have somehow achieved some higher sense of social belonging, right?
That’s pretty backward if you ask me. I’m happy where I am. I have great friends, and I don’t need to look to external metrics to confirm my contentment.
Because I have been blessed by the community I have found, I want others to have as great of an experience as I have had. Sometimes I lose sight of the fact that someone else’s ideal Harding experience may not be the same as mine, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t equally as fulfilling, and it certainly doesn’t negate my own.
This year I have tried to push back on my brain senselessly applying scarcity. When anxiety breeds imaginary competition, I combat it by rooting for the good of another. After all, if there were more pockets of joy and contentment within each club, there would be less people competing for the same spots in a few clubs and higher distributions of people getting their first choice. Shouldn’t I root for that? Setting aside my pride sometimes makes this tough to do.
There are also 874 new students this semester and 722 students participating in the club process, according to Allyson Feather, the administrative assistant to the deans. This means endless potential for new friendships regardless of if you belong to a social club. Let us not succumb to the lie of scarcity, but instead, live freely in the abundance of opportunity for friendship and connection. Club process or not, Harding is filled with amazing people. A new friend could be just around the corner … if you refuse to break down the walls competition creates you might miss out.
