The beginning of the school year is always ripe with possibilities: new paths to walk from your dorm to the library, new creations to test out at 7 th Street…and, of course, new opportunities to embarrass yourself in front of your peers. (Seriously, how many of us haven’t been called out for accidentally leaving the Bison without paying for our food)? And while it feels great to be back on campus with friends, the thought of being surrounded by 3,600 pairs of collegiate eyes can make it feel like your every move is under scrutiny.
Many Bucknellians return to school after spending the summer at home, or in a large city, or maybe at a summer camp. The relative anonymity of these environments – or, at least, the comfort therein that allows one to be unabashedly herself – contrasts with that of Bucknell, where “everyone knows everyone,” and can find themselves hyper-conscious of their actions. There’s no doubt that embarrassing yourself in front of a classroom full of your peers is more cringe-inducing than doing the same in front of your dog. But fortunately, experiencing moments that make you want to crawl into a hole can be good for you – in so many ways.
For starters, as the old saying goes, practice makes perfect. Apply this mindset to your embarrassing moments, and you will become more adept at letting them roll off your back – and therefore, a more resilient individual. Every time you feel your cheeks flush red, practice your most convincing “that-didn’t- faze-me” smile and then continue to get on with your life. If you’d prefer to fly under the radar, learning how to own your embarrassment rather than wallow in it makes it far less noticeable to other people.
Additionally, the worst thing you can do for yourself out of fear of embarrassment is to hold back from doing anything that might put you in an embarrassing situation. This applies to anything from speaking your mind to venturing into new environments. Strive to be propelled forward by your confidence rather than dragged back by your fears: in addition to being a universally attractive trait, confidence makes life more fun in manifold ways. You get to experience a colorful, varied collection of adventures that a shy person would not. You get to learn more, see more, and meet more people – who wouldn’t want that?
Furthermore, as you become more comfortable in your own skin and embrace your inner weirdness, people feel more at ease in your presence and want to spend more time with you. It will feel refreshing and liberating to remove yourself from a pedestal of perfection and accept the fact that you, a human, make embarrassing choices. So, what? We all do it; who are we trying to impress with our seemingly-errorless decisions?
And at the end of the day, even if you can’t find the power to embrace your embarrassing moments as they occur, be sure to file them away in your memory bank. More likely than not, they’ll make for a funny story someday!
Sources https://thoughtcatalog.com/kate-thomas/2014/09/5- reasons-embarrassing- yourself-can- be- excellent/ http://culture.firespring.com/blog/post/are-you- embarrassing-yourself- you-should- be