Whether you’ve blossomed into a social butterfly or still are too nervous to tell a barista they got your order wrong, lots of us grew up as really shy kids. These are the top ten things everyone who grep up shy will understand (even though there’s totally way more):
- Not raising your hand in class even though you definitely have the right answer.
2. Getting assigned a group project and just waiting for your teacher to pair you up with someone (or asking them after class if you can just do the project by yourself.)
3. Using the quadratic equation to figure out how to get out of talking to your relatives on the phone.
4. Accepting that you’re going to fail a class when you find out participation is 30% of your grade.
5. Starving half to death because you already said no when your friend’s mom asked if you were hungry.
6. Internally cursing out everyone who says, “It’s easy, just talk to people!”
7. Being more comfortable around pets than other people.
8. Overthinking everything you’ve ever said wrong since you learned how to talk and vowing to never speak to another person again.
9. Knowing all the gossip because people feel comfortable talking around the quiet kids.
10. And honestly, just becoming your own best friend.
You’ve got your own inside jokes and you’ll always understand your own references. Being quiet and to yourself leaves lots of time to get to know yourself. Many of the most successful people in this world grew up very shy. Lots of us have matured out of our adolescent bashfulness, but it’s okay if you haven’t outgrown your shyness. Research shows that shy animals in a variety of species tend to be better survivalists, so hey, there’s that.
