Dear Freshman, Never Let Fear Guide Your Life.
Fear is instinctual. Everyone has it, and it has its benefits. Sometimes when you get that sudden feeling of “maybe I shouldn’t do this,” you probably shouldn’t do that thing. But this is only good in certain situations. Some of these situations include but are not limited to: walking around Nashville alone late at night, cliff jumping (unless you’re into that), or really anything that could be life-threatening or dangerous. Fear is good to keep us from doing those types of things.
However, fear also has it’s drawbacks. It can keep us in our safe little comfort zone, can keep us from pushing our limits, and/or accomplishing things we never knew we could accomplish. I learned this the hard way my freshman year.
Being at a new school with new people away from your parents is not the easiest task in the world, and for a more the more introverted-type like myself, it proved quite the challenge. I had to be able to push my fears aside to make new friends. Some of these fears told me “What will they think of me?”, “Maybe I shouldn’t introduce myself,” or the worst one of all: “What if they don’t like me?”
These are fears we all experience from time to time, but freshman year taught me not to listen to these silly little thoughts, push myself out of the comfort of my dorm, and make new friends. It helps to know that most everyone is in the same boat as you: Being at a new school with new people away from your parents. Everyone wants to make new friends. Everyone is ready and willing to make new friends, and are most likely just as afraid as you. You never know what a simple “Hey, want to go to the cafeteria sometime?” could do! Trust yourself that you can do this, tell fear to take a backseat, and know that this is going to be a great year for you.
Another big fear I had freshman year is: “What if I’m not good enough?” For me, this fear was about music. There are so many talented people at Belmont, which is one of the reasons I chose the school. This is a scary fear, and it is also a fear that kept me from practicing and pursuing something I had loved for so long. I had “lost my voice,” so to speak.
In order to get over this fear, I had to take a step back and analyze why I was afraid. This is what I figured out: I was so afraid of other people’s opinions about my creations that I had stopped creating altogether.
I had to get over this fear, and I did. I had to stop fearing what other people thought, and keep making music because it was, and is, something I love to do. And if you love what you do, it shouldn’t matter what anyone else thinks. If it brings you joy and self-worth, never ever stop.
You should NEVER let other people’s opinions get in the way of you doing what you love.
As I enter my sophomore year, these fears still enter my head from time to time. When they do, I just push them aside. Never let fear guide your life. It will keep you in your comfort zone and keep you from experiencing and learning new things. You just have to trust yourself that you are enough, you can do this, and that you are stronger than you think you are. Keep pushing through your fears, and you will do great things.
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