I recently began classes at the University of Evansville with a major in Theatre Management and as I walk around on my very beautiful and small campus, its hard to get from point A to point B without seeing someone I even remotely know.
The theatre department here is a very close group and I suspect that I have introduced myself to every single person. However, I don't see a third of them and the ones that I still don't know their names are the ones I seem to pass the most on my way to class. Of course, it's easy to just flash them a weak smile and walk past rather than struggling with an uncomfortable conversation. Even when walking past someone you don't know, it is human nature to look down as you pass. Maybe you watch your feet kick out in front of you or maybe you pull out your phone and pretend to be busy. I can't remember a time when this isn't how I reacted to walking past strangers or even acquaintances. And I believe I might not be the only one.
This last Monday I decided to conduct an experiment on myself. Walking to my 5 classes that day I challenged myself to keep my head up as I walked. Of course I need to look down some in order to keep from tripping but when I passed someone I wanted to fight the urge to tilt my head and walk past. At the beginning I was curious to see how hard it would be...
..Turns out it's extremely hard! I failed on my way to my first class. Now this is probably because I hadn't drilled the challenge into my head. Or at least that's what I told myself. On my way to my second class I failed again! I told myself it's just because the boy was cute and I was shy, and not because he was just a human walking by. Later that day I realized it is just plain hard to keep your eyes up while walking past strangers.
I'm not sure why this is the case. Is it because I'm shy? No, if you ever meet me in person you would learn that isn't the case, immediately. Is it because I feel awkward around new acquaintances? I mean, I do feel that way but I also did this in my home town too, so that can't be. Why is it that people look down when passing others in hallways and sidewalks?
Although I cannot put my finger on the actual reason, I have a feeling it's because as humans we only feel comfortable with people who accept us. These strangers that we pass don't accept me for me, and therefore looking that person in the eye is uncomfortable.
So my first day of the challenge failed but I decided to make it a week long. Tuesday I managed to keep my head up while heading to economics and I might or might not have done a mini dance in the bathroom before class. Wednesday was a little easier, and Thursday I only looked down once. I can't call myself a professional because it's only Friday but I will say that the experiment worked.
Looking back on how I felt throughout the week, I realized that keeping my head up helped my confidence boost. It felt good that I didn't coward away from people and I was connecting to more upperclassmen in the theatre department. Keeping my eyes level as I walked past a cute boy only made him more interested, because my confidence was then radiating.
I want to encourage everyone to challenge yourself in this way. When shopping, walking through the hall of your school or whatever it might be; look up and walk. Be confident in yourself. Don't shy away from people because you don't know them. The reward I got from this experiment greatly outweighed the one or two awkward moments I encountered. Look up and walk. It's worth it.
Just, don't trip.
