As children, we were always taught that strangers should be avoided. It was a way to protect us, since we were too young and inexperienced to own any quality judgement of this complicated world. With a few years of age, and more wisdom and knowledge, welcoming new faces shouldn’t be something we shy away from as grown adults. In a world of over 7 billion people, there’s a whole lot of random strangers out there with a diverse variety of personality, talent, and great minds. That’s billions of different people, who have some power to potentially change our world in so many ways.
Two years ago, I left the only home I’d ever known for the very first time. After officially accepting a new job, I made the decision to leave all the friends I’d ever known – every single person who had accepted me as myself, flaws and all – to move eight hours away to a place where I didn’t know a single soul. I was nervous at the thought of being alone in an unknown, small town. I was terrified that I wouldn’t fit in, and that I’d end up alone in an unfamiliar environment. The first few days, on my own for the very first time, it was like the first day of high school all over again – waiting to see if I would be accepted into the crowd, or stuck eating my lunches in a lonely area of seclusion.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that the ‘real’ world, isn’t quite as intimidating as the years we spend in high school; outside those walls of torture, long agonizing days, and drama is a simpler life. Sure, there’s some people in this world that aren’t quite as pleasant as the rest of us, but most people out here aren’t trying to purposely ruin your life for their self fulfillment. More often, people are more likely to help you, to benefit themselves.
Beyond your graduation ceremony and outside your safety bubble, life isn’t a contest of intense popularity. The purpose of your life, is a great opportunity to find out who you really are, what your amazing talents are, and how you’re able to conquer great success. Your life, is an open road to discovering a wonderful place of new faces, new adventures, and unique moments to enjoy yourself.
Since I left home, I’ve been lucky enough to meet a plethora of interesting, unique, and inspiring people. Sports enthusiasts, food lovers, comic nerds, hopeless romantics, creative genius’, and more fascinating humans that I met through work/Twitter/new places to call home, have become lifetime friends, great mentors, and good company. If I never made the decision to leave home and venture on in pursuit of my career, I likely wouldn’t have connected with a majority of these people, who live and work across the country. As shy as I can be sometimes, putting myself in a vulnerable place and introducing myself to the rest of the world, has paid off. I took a chance, and ended up with a great circle of great connections, wonderful friendships, and a whole bunch of people who I can’t picture my life without.
Our world can be an intimidating, judgemental, and scary place, but there’s also a lot of good things that this world has to offer (that sometimes goes unmentioned). Among the billions of us that inhabit this planet, there’s an abundance of charisma to indulge in, if we’re willing to open ourselves up to it and share. Although change is something most of us fear, exploration away from familiar surroundings and routines can often be worth the slightly uncomfortable moments. It’s when we bravely venture on that unbeaten path, that we eventually uncover greater things and the most influential people.
Your home, your good friends, the life you’ve created – keep those possessions close; they’re the things that made you who you are, where you are today. Just remember that it doesn’t hurt to see what else and who else is out there. You never know what you might find that makes you smile, and you never know when a random stranger could impact your life in the best way possible.
