I am probably one of the most awkward humans on the face of the planet.
Talking to people is not my forte, nor is having to be assertive and in-charge. I’ve always been better at writing and remaining in the background. And yet, as a sophomore in college, I find myself with a major in journalism and a position as editor of Reverb.
Many people ask me why I chose journalism as a major when I’m so bad at interacting with people, and, honestly, I don’t expect people to understand how I knew it was the way to go. When I first joined the newspaper, I didn’t know where it would go or how much it would actually benefit me. I wasn’t sure if it would be something I would stick with or even enjoy. Now, it’s funny to think I could have spent my first year of college doing anything else.
I fell in love, first, with the idea of being a journalist. Then, it was covering the music and art events on campus and writing about my experiences. Most importantly, it was having something I worked so hard on published in a newspaper that other people could read.
I’ve always been really touchy about other people reading things I’ve written, and at first, this was no different. But my love of doing it outweighed the fear. I loved being able to go to a concert or art gallery opening and talk to students and faculty about something they were passionate about.
In any situation, seeing someone’s face light up when they’re asked about something that means a great deal to them is incredible. Having the opportunity to put people’s voices out into the world, even on a small college campus, is why my confidence in writing for the paper grew.
When I was voted in as editor at the end of last year, I was so excited to have the opportunity to encourage other writers in the way that my peers and fellow newspaper staff had done for me. I was also terrified because it forced me, a tiny ball of anxiety, to interact with people on a daily basis.
I’m certainly still stumbling through this new position, trying to figure out how to thrive in a situation that is worlds outside of my comfort zone. I doubt that will change particularly quickly, as my awkwardness has not decreased much in my lifetime and being so young in such an important position is definitely weird and intimidating.
Quirks aside, being editor of my section and meeting so many amazing people through that has been the highlight of my college career so far. I would encourage anyone with an interest outside of their comfort zone to take the leap and shoot for the moon. Because if you miss, you could land among the stars, or in my case, on a lot of newspapers.