I am no stranger to being thrown into uncomfortable environments and having to make friends with complete strangers constantly. Since the days of starting daycare being the oldest of two I was the first to be thrown into a room of strangers and having no choice but to adjust. My school days went like this Daycare > Catholic School > Public High School > College and those training grounds helped me be comfortable with going to other cities/ events/ festivals and out to bars & clubs alone.

I’m well aware my schooling situation was pretty average, but the hard part was I never had any friends join me in the transitions to new schools like majority of my high school friends that grew up together because of the public school systems structure, so I started with a fresh slate every time and it sucked.

But enough of my childhood and on to what I’ve learned becoming comfortable with uncomfortable environments:

No one cares about you, Going out to clubs, movies, events alone set this in cement for me. The more I went out solo the more I realized just how far under the radar someone alone (ladies may be a different story) really is. Most people would assume everyone would see you and secretly make fun of you but I never had that happen to me (at least directly) and it became that much more comforting. Everyone is too concerned in their own affairs to care about someone out alone in the same room as them. Knowing that no one cares is strangely comforting to me now and I am not so worried about how I may come off as to strangers now. Making friends is way easier alone, This one takes some guts but with time you can do it with ease. When approaching a group of people alone you are no threat especially in the case of women, too many times a group of ladies would instantly run off when I approached them with my crew of guys like a pack of hungry wolves, you can’t blame them. Ironically majority of the groups I would talk to would be so surprised and impressed that I was out on my own that they would welcome me into their group with open arms (I imagine this is again because I posed no threat alone). You can do what you want without others influencing your decisions, This has become a recent annoyance when I go to other cities with friends or just new environments after getting comfortable being out alone. When you’re with a group of course you all have to comply and be ready to reject your personal plans for the group. Maybe you’re the only history buff in the group as you can imagine everyone would detest to going to a museum and change to an overpriced amusement park.

Some precaution, if you can go to the places you want or end up in awkward environments with friends embrace it. Everything is always more fun with others to share memories and experiences with, but don’t let that comfort of having others around keep you from trying new things when friends just aren’t available or willing. My journey of exploring new environments alone is no where near over it’s only become more exciting every time I get the new opportunity and I hope it inspires you to get out of that comfort zone of yours more often.

Thanks so much for reading! If you enjoyed it, please scroll down and click the recommend button. It would mean a lot to me. ☺