5 Ways to Challenge Yourself

     Today I walked into my campus library completely absorbed in my own thoughts and mentally scanning my to-do list for the afternoon. I usually steal an entire table or couch for myself to avoid the awkwardness of asking a stranger if they are saving the other side of their table for someone else. Unfortunately, today there were no free tables or couches and to my demise I was forced into the uncomfortable situation of asking someone if I could share their space. But I am so glad I did. I met one of the most unusual, intelligent and interesting people yet so far on this campus. He is a computer science major but has a passion for equality in all things. He asked me what my major is and when I told him, he started asking me questions which challenged me to think outside my own preset beliefs and consider other thinking and ideas, all without pushing his own personal opinion on me. Needless to say, although absolutely no homework got done, I learned more about myself, someone else, and a new way of thinking that I would have never considered had I kept searching for an empty spot to sit by myself.
     Through this experience it sparked in me to consider other ways to push myself out of my comfort zone to achieve personal growth and become a more well rounded person:

1. Talk to a person you are in line with.

2. Let those "annoying" people on campus or on the street with all sorts of different petitions actually explain to you what they are advocating for. It may seem irritating, but you will learn something even if you still don't agree with their cause by the end of it.

3. Go try something new. Try rock climbing or snowshoeing or try a cooking class. These are great ways to meet new people and test different interests you might have.

4. Pick a flyer off a random wall of advertisements and go do what it is advertising. If that means some wacky pottery class or going to some garage band concert then do it, who knows what will happen. You may hate it or you may love it, either way it will give you a new experience to add to your list.

5. Pick three new foods to try that look disgusting at worst and "interesting" at best. For me, I have picked anchovies(absolutely awful), lavender-cranberry kombucha tea (eh, it was alright), and persimmons(delicious). It's kinda fun trying new things even if all it does is make you wanna gag!



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