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The Introvert’s Guide to College
Introvert: a quiet, reserved, or shy person who prefers situations that require minimal levels of stimulation.
College is hard.
It’s a new experience, a new level of pressure, and a whole new environment that you may feel almost thrown into.
But beyond all that, there are new social situations that you have to navigate, a lot of them where first impressions are your only chance to make an impression.
If you’re an introvert like me, situations like that and so many others can be daunting. You may feel scared, nervous, or think about avoiding social situations all together by hiding in your dorm and locking the door to ward off potential visitors.
And while I’m not innocent of doing that (maybe more than one time…maybe even this weekend), I’m also very aware that being an introvert all the time in college can lead to missing out on opportunities that could have been received if I had stepped out of my comfort zone a little bit.
So, for all the introverts out there on the Vanderbilt campus, this is the first installment in an officially unofficial guide on how to be an introvert in college while also navigating the social scene in different ways. It’s not always enjoyable or comfortable, but necessary.
And who knows, we may end up liking being around other people for extended periods of time at the end of it all.
Slowing Down: The Art of Embracing One Month on Campus
One month. It feels like ages, but we’ve only been on campus for one month. Going into move-in day and orientation one month ago, I was itching for everything to start: for the first day of classes, the first football game, the first night on the town. However, it has only taken one month for my mindset to completely change. The theme of this past month? To me, “slow down.”
Slowing down is hard in this day and age. We live in a society that tells us to go-go-go, urging us to never let down our personas of confidence and poise. We are expected to not only succeed, but to play the part, look the part, and act the part; in other words, twenty-first century “imposter syndrome” influencers have put societal pressure at an all time high. Thus, I think there are several ways we can “slow down” in order to further our social and academic growths this month on campus.
#1: Slow Down the Homework
Okay, okay. That’s bad advice. But really, if this is you, quit spending all of your time doing homework! If you find yourself spending more than a few hours working, stop. Pause. Take a break. Engage in some valuable social interaction, watch some Netflix, eat a Rand cookie, or just breathe. It’s good to be productive, but we also need time to just be. Don’t be afraid to take a break every once in a while. After all, a little self-indulgence is good for the soul.
#2: Slow Down the Comparison
As Teddy Roosevelt once said, “Comparison is the thief of all joy.” At a university so prestigious, it is incredibly easy to fall into the trap of thinking, “Man, everyone else has their crap together,” “Everyone is so much smarter than me,” or “Why am I the only one who is failing Gen. Chem?” Everyone has their own battles, and comparing only makes us even more insecure. Believe it or not, everyone else is having their own unique period of adjusting, which often consists of missing home, of feeling overwhelmed by first exams, and of sheer lack of confidence. You are not alone.
#3: Slow Down Studying in the Library
Don’t get me wrong; Central, Peabody, and Biomedical Libraries are great. However, after hours of reading in the dark and dingy cubicles of Central Library Floor 6, life can become…well…dull. Switch up your routine! Try studying on Alumni Lawn or in Panera Bread just down the street. A change of scenery can be a good thing!
I hope we use this next month to grow closer together as a first-year class. I hope we slow down and enjoy the time we are spending here. I hope we never take any second, any meal swipe, or any twenty-minute-walk-to-Wilson for granted. Let’s slow down together.
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Humor: Dumb Art Your RA Put on Your Door
Our RAs are mysterious figures. As their confused freshman underlings, we have a hard time understanding what thoughts cross their minds as they make critical decisions in regard to us. Perhaps most confounding is why the wall hangings our RAs created, meant to be the first things we saw entering our new homes, are such crap (with rare exceptions).
After an intensive half hour of research taking photos in Hank, Murray, Memorial, and North, I found a disturbing trend among RA art. The gold-standard work I came across was few and far in between. I knew a call to action was needed. If RAs really do care, we need a sign! Anyhow, here’s my evaluation of their bad art.
Plants:
What is the deal with plants, and more specifically, succulents? There were far too many hallways I came across with this as their “theme.” Not that most dorm decorations have anything to do with being a freshman or college life, but cacti take randomness to a new level. We’re in Nashville, so your RA can’t even make the claim that they’re trying to introduce you to the local flora and fauna. If anything, maybe they think you’re going to have a prickly start to the semester. That’s rough, when even the person paid to support you is subtly throwing shade.
Maps:
Now at first, you might think maps or postcards is a cute idea for a dorm. It means your RA cared enough about you to look up where you were from and make something personalized to welcome you to your first year of college. Well you thought wrong. If your RA really cared about you, they wouldn’t be posting private details of your hometown up on a door for anyone to see. Tear those wall hangings down and stay vigilant – any number of potential stalkers could have already seen your precious information.
Dragon Ball Z (I think):
Now here’s an example of actual talent. To all the floors with basic white-bread wall hangings (mine included), dream for a moment of a reality where your RA would actually care enough to painstakingly draw an anime character for every member of your floor. A further plus, this RA’s art gave me an excuse to stop writing and binge some of Dragon Ball Z in the name of research (can’t say it’s really my thing, but to each their own). Although other RAs certainly don’t care enough, the real question is why this one cares so much. I wouldn’t waste my talent on a bunch of bratty freshmen I wasn’t getting paid enough money to look after.
Pizza:
Pizza seems like a safe bet for a fun door decoration idea. But look just below the surface and there’s a frightening truth about how little this hall’s RA actually cares about their students. Dietary restrictions anyone? You don’t really expect me to believe that both those pizza slices are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free. The only appropriate food door hanging is a stalk of broccoli, and even then, RAs need to be careful that they aren’t peer pressuring anyone into eating healthier. I’m here for the Freshman 15 after all.
Old Town Road
I had to end on an uplifting note with what was by far my favorite wall hanging, “North House Road.” This is the epitome of RA art, something certain floors mentioned above should strive to be more like. Every time I walk down this hallway, the greatest song known to mankind inevitably gets stuck in my head. How could I ever ask for more?
Shut up and Dance: Free Concert
What do music and the First Amendment all have in common? The Shut Up and Dance show on Sept. 17 in 206 Alumni Hall at 4 p.m.!
Shut Up and Dance is a multimedia interactive concert featuring live music, trivia and fun with an emphasis on the importance of freedom of expression in the arts. It’s free and open to all Vanderbilt students.
Once called Freedom Sings, the show was renamed Shut Up and Dance after Eartha Kitt — the famous dancer and singer of “Santa Baby” (1953) — who was told to “shut up and dance” after speaking out against the Vietnam War. In essence, the show is dedicated to those who refuse to shut up and choose to speak out. With songs from 1957 to as new as last week, the music played will pay tribute to these pioneers of the First Amendment.
The show “features some of the finest young artists in Nashville, people who have played with Eminem, Kacey Musgraves and Dolly Parton,” said emcee and show creator Ken Paulson.
Paulson said he believes the music, as well as the interactive media presentations, makes the show like none other.
He encourages all students to come for the “educational, but much more entertaining” performances. According to Paulson, in the past, the show has done nothing but entertain.
Paulson said, “Inevitably, a student will come up to me after a show and say, ‘If I thought it was going to be this much fun, I would have brought my roommate.’”
So, be sure to bring yourself and your roommate for the spectacular show in two weeks!
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