When someone says, “shoot your shot”, some might think in terms of basketball. Others, like my mom, might think about getting a vaccine. Making the first move when it comes to modern relationships is lowkey scary. We live in a society where we would rather not make the first move for the sake of not being embarrassed, or shall I say, rejected. Like, LeBron James blocking Andre Iguodala in the 2016 NBA finals type of rejection. Yes, rejection is always a possibility. But without trying, you will never know what the outcome may be. Here are 3 reasons why I think shooting your shot is worth a shot.
1. Because, why not?
Let’s set the scene: You’re about to slide into the DMs. You stare at the message 50 times before hitting send. A rush of anxiety sends nerves rushing throughout your body. You hit send. You close out of all apps and throw your phone frantically across the room. You have just shot your shot… what’s the worst that could happen? They could leave you on read, never open the message at all, block you; these are all what-ifs. But, what if the person answers. What if you hit it off? The rest is history. You might take a hit to your ego, but just because someone does not respond does not mean that you are not worthy of someone else’s response. You went out of your comfort zone and should be proud of yourself. Chin up!
2. You are worthy
A lot of people fear that they are just not good enough. It is particularly common to overanalyze everything about yourself when meeting or talking to someone new. You want to make a good impression. Whether it’s not being smart enough, or pretty enough, or talented enough, we all fall trap to this toxic thought process at some point in our lives. But this is just unacceptable. Remember, YOU are your biggest critic. Kyle from Tinder is definitely not noticing the flaws that you hyperfixate on on a daily basis. If you ever get to a low point, hit up your closest gal pals. Wear an outfit you feel most confident in, take some photos, and take a step back to realize how beautiful and amazing you are. It is so easy to be hypercritical of our flaws, especially when it comes to meeting a potential love interest for the first time. Don’t be so hard on yourself; you’re bound to be out of their league anyways.
3. Rejection is good
Rejection brings you back to reality, especially when you enter a situation all confident and feeling yourself, just to not receive the same energy that you put out. When this is the case, it is good not to take things so personally. You truly do not know what is going on in someone’s head, especially the first time meeting them. Also, it’s healthy to be humbled. Why waste your time talking to somebody that does not see how worthy you are of the utmost love and attention? They are actually doing you a favor.