How I’ve Made Meaningful Connections At Chico State

I’ve always considered myself an extroverted person, and I tend to recharge when I’m around others. It’s always a priority of mine to maintain my friendships and acquaintances, and to get to know people and explore as many varying perspectives as possible. Being a freshman at Chico State has given me the opportunity to make so many new and valuable friendships, and meet many different groups of people in varying settings.

I find it important to catch up with others, especially by spending one on one time with each other. I feel that this shows compassion and care in the other person beyond just talking in class or just saying a hello in passing. However, busy class schedules and extracurriculars can get in the way of this.  

Scheduling others into your day can be difficult, but not impossible. Texting has been a huge help in this, as I can just quickly get something together and catch up. When I have an especially busy day, I try to schedule something that will take around exactly 45 minutes. Some of my favorite quick activities are grabbing coffee, going to a pilates class in the morning, or just hanging out in the dorms. My favorite coffee spot on campus is Lovebird Coffee. Its new location in the BSS makes it incredibly easy to switch from classes into leisure time with a good drink in hand. (My personal favorite is their seasonal Pistachio Rose Latte). 

I’ve found that the people I can connect with the most have been ones I can engage with through discussion. I love others who challenge my thinking, and inspire me to grow as a person.  I’ve found that my current group and I debate a variety of topics, and we always end up finding connections and new ideas that we wouldn’t have thought of before. Weirdly, a lot of these debates happen in the dining hall. We always try to schedule certain dinners and lunches to everyone’s schedule, which can at times be complicated, but almost always pays off. 

Another piece of advice I’d give is to ask questions. You might think you know everything about someone, but sometimes there are just those perfect questions that reveal deeper parts of both of you. Besides asking about someone’s day, or just how they’re doing, delve deeper.  Additionally, let others know how you feel about them (positively). If you want to compliment someone, do it. If you appreciate your friend’s drive and ambition for something, tell them. As people, we tend to not appreciate things about ourselves, or even notice things that others would. Most of the time, we’re too busy picking ourselves apart. So, if you have something nice to say, say it.

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