When starting university, so many new challenges are thrown at you. Freshers’ Week is exciting, you meet new people, you start cooking for yourself and you have a whole new space to decorate exactly how you want. But with all these choices to make, everything can become overwhelming. By week two, I found myself wanting nothing more than to shrivel back into a cave of duvets, Netflix and packets of Co-Op mini flapjacks. In other words, I wanted to shrink back into my comfort zone. So, here are my tips for coping outside of your comfort zone at university!
Be Active.
I have always been a proud person, therefore my fear of rejection often stopped me from trying new things throughout teenage life. Going along to competitive groups and societies terrified me. But I had to get out of this rut, leave my bed and start enjoying university actively! I began signing up for absolutely everything I could, trying to brace myself for the disappointment I was inevitably going to have to face. However, because I had signed up to plenty of different societies, I still had ten other opportunities waiting at my door when I was rejected from one of them. I wasn’t worried about the groups who didn’t want me, because I was so excited about getting started with the ones who did. Putting yourself out there is made a hundred times less daunting when you understand it’s not a big deal if it doesn’t go anywhere.
Embrace the range of module choices.
Of course, pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone at university doesn’t just have to mean extra-curricular activities. When choosing modules for my History degree this year, it was tempting to stick to things that I had already studied. Why would I risk choosing something I hadn’t learnt before? However, I was unable to take my first choice of modules meaning I had to take up some from the Classics department instead. Safe to say, I was very apprehensive! But just four weeks in and those modules are now my favourites. I am even considering majoring in Classics instead of History. It shows how important it is to explore new areas; you never know what could surprise you! Even if it doesn’t work out, you haven’t lost anything, just learned a valuable lesson in what you like and don’t like. It is all about learning about yourself and pushing your limits.
And lastly, don’t panic!
The first few weeks at university will always be hard but they are also an amazing opportunity to try new things and face fears that you never knew you had. I now know that, had I let my comfort zone limit me, I would never have discovered the new things that I now love. I am so grateful for the experiences I have gained, the friends I have made and the boundaries I have pushed. If theres a society out there that you’re apprehensive about joining, give it a go! You never know how things might turn out.