Being a “cool girl” has never been more in. I feel like everywhere I turn, both in person and online, everyone is stressing the importance of acting like you’re completely unbothered by everything going on in your life. Whether it’s in romantic settings, friendships, or even the general state of the world, I feel like I’m constantly being told that the best thing a girl can be right now is nonchalant.
The issue with this? I’m maybe the LEAST nonchalant person on the planet. If there were an award for “Most Chalant” I would probably be seriously in the running to win. This used to bother me to no end, mostly because I wished I didn’t have to care so much about everything all of the time. But over the course of the past month, my life has changed in ways I couldn’t have ever imagined with the start of the year, and my mindset is starting to change with it. I’ve realized that I can’t stop myself from caring so deeply about everything going on – and that might actually be a good thing.Â
Growing up, my parents always used to tell me that being nervous about something just meant you really cared about it; I’m sure from what I’ve already mentioned that you can then understand that I was a very anxious child. When you care so much about everything, sometimes it feels like your whole world will fall apart when things don’t work out.
The nice thing about this is that when you care so much about everything and you start to realize just how many good things there are to appreciate, everything starts to feel 10 times better. I actually think there might be no better feeling than letting someone see how much you care about them and getting that energy in return. When I look back on how my life was before, I realize I wasn’t showing the people in my life how much they meant to me – and now that I am, everything seems brighter.
This isn’t to say you won’t catch me sporting the cool girl aesthetic from time to time. But just know that while the outfit might seem nonchalant, the girl wearing it definitely isn’t. As I enter the second half of my college experience, I’m realizing that it’s better to care too much and let people know than let those words go left unsaid.Â