I Did One Fun Activity Per Week For An Entire School Year

I’m SO bad at being social. Small talk and mixers are almost painfully difficult for me. It’s not that I don’t enjoy the relationship aspect- because I do. It’s the sitting down and breathing thing that gives me anxiety. I joke that I need a leadership role to have fun at parties, and that’s because I have a job to do. If I can help refill a chip bowl or sit at a registration table, I don’t need to twiddle my thumbs or find someone who might be just as introverted as me to talk about the weather with.

Last summer, I had enough time to be truly bored, and as much as I’d like to deny it, I recognized it as healthy. Boring, but healthy. So I made it a priority to try something new.

Every week, I would do at least one fun activity. The only stipulations were that this activity wasn’t academic related (which projects my nerdy-ness loud and clear already), and it couldn’t just be me in my room alone watching Netflix.

Nine months later, I can say that I did it! Week after week, I’d add a new fun thing to my self-care calendar, and the longer I did it, the easier it became. People held me accountable until I could hold myself accountable. I’d often hear friends ask if I’d done my fun thing yet that week, and I found it life-giving to be in relationship with people outside a school or work context.

This experiment of mine has become a habit, and for that I am thankful. I learned the value of being intentional about being with people. I learned that introvert doesn’t have to mean loner. I learned that ‘unstructured fun’ can actually be worth my time. It’s especially fun when you get to take picture of it for social media. 🙂 If you find yourself seeking community or stepping outside your work bubble, I’d encourage you to give this a try too!