I love the challenge of pushing myself out of my comfort zone and trying new things. But even though I do it a lot, it never gets easy!
We all see people on social media doing new things or attending events (often with a bunch of strangers), and it all looks so effortless. Maybe you assume you’re the only one who ever feels social anxiety… but listen, I am right there with you! Even though I push myself socially and professionally on a daily basis, I still feel that familiar anxiety all the time. This is why I physically cannot stay at a party for more than 10 minutes!
The other weekend, I was invited to join an Outdoor Voices hike taking place an hour outside the city. It meant spending a Saturday morning with a bus full of strangers (and my plus one — aka my most nature-loving dog — @muppetsrevenge) doing an activity I rarely do: hiking.
This was NEW on top of NEW, and no matter how extroverted you are or what kind of personal goals you’ve set, this kind of thing is hard!
I pushed myself not only to attend but also to really participate and engage (not to mention stay for more than my usual 10 minutes). I’m so glad I did. I met cool new people, took a literal fall but got back up, and got in a great outdoor workout. A morning that I was worried could be sort of painful turned out to be really fun.
And I looked good (and felt super comfy) doing it! I love these Springs leggings forever and ever worn with a matching crop (I’m wearing XL in both). And I will be wearing this cute new printed jacket a ton this fall – it’s a perfect easy, light layer. I also want to give a shout out to these sneakers. I’m wearing a size 43 and love the unisex vibe and wide range of sizes.
So yeah, trying new things with new people IS hard. But (and I know I sound like a mom here) this weekend outing was further proof for me that it’s worth it in the end. To anyone else in the same boat, let’s all keep doing new things even though it’s not easy and let’s keep talking about it too!
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