Does anyone remember sitting down to watch an animated film or a cartoon series during those nice Saturday mornings?
Now that you have that nostalgic image visualized in your head, remember those typical stories where a character would try to lose their personality in favor of putting on a mask that people would appreciate more? It doesn't work out the way it should (unless it was a turn from bad to good), and the story ends with the character embracing themselves for who they truly are.
They always repeated this phrase, "Be yourself."
Even though it's been repeated multiple times, you're bound to forget it during carefree elementary school to the cringe-worthy high school. In high school, it's easy to feel desperate and to want to fit in with a crowd of people.
After high school graduation, that first step you take into college life makes you realize that you're swimming with other fish in the sea. They're all going somewhere and you want to join them. It isn't that easy, if you're an extreme introvert. If you manage to end up hanging out with a group of friends, congrats! You are now part of a group.
Hold on... does that mean you have to be the same as them or like the same things as they do?
No.
Just because you are with a group of people that you can make new interests with doesn't mean you have to act like a clone nor a close sibling to them. Fitting in means that you are in a group, so you will be able to share the same interests as them.
... What if you don't fit into a group that you wanted to be in?
No big deal.
If you are alone, it's not the end of the world.
It's okay to feel lonely, everyone has been or will be in this boat at some point in their lives. You are not a loser! Maybe this isn't the right time for you to join a group yet. Don't take rejection as a sign of frantically joining other groups just to feel validated that you are a cool human. You are still your own human being, take a moment to appreciate that. Wearing many masks will make you lose your self-identity. College is not a place where you seek for other people to mold you into what they see. You are your own self, you are on this journey to become what you want to be. Not what anyone else wants you to be. If you want to start seeking out friends, the best thing that you can do is to join a group that has the same interests as yours or get involved with volunteering around the campus.
You don't have to change for anyone to make yourself fit in better. You're perfect the way you are.
