Richland Reflection

I am a strong Introvert and do not like big gatherings, but can deal with them by expending a lot of mental energy. An example of my Introvert status would be trick-or-treating on Halloween. I hated going up and interacting with people to the point I would make my brother handle the interaction and I would just get the candy. If my brother was not going tick-or-treating, then I just stayed at home.

There are people who on the outside are not sociable, because these people are shy. However, there is a difference between shyness and introversion. Shy people often avoid many things because they are nervous or they criticize themselves for speaking up. Introverts, however, will not be nervous or criticize themselves. Both shyness and being introverted are acceptable traits. It only becomes a problem when a person has a social anxiety disorder that significantly interferes with a person’s life. We want and need people to be the quiet thinkers who can go off by themselves come up with an idea and bring it back to a

I'm very outgoing person, but that doesn't work here at Hickman. I've learned that you have to either fall in the “smart” category or the “dumb” category being outgoing and fun to be around isn't really a thing. It took me some time to realize that there isn't a true friend here, once you tell your “best friend” something the whole schools know, so it's just easier to keep your feeling in or everyone know.

In the first few years, I was reserved. Because I only hung out with the people I knew and rarely stepped out of my comfort zone back in Florida, I acted the same way moving to Georgia. Making friends wasn’t important to me because I was used to being isolated. Going on to high school, I came to a realization that I needed to step out into the world. I knew that I couldn’t always depend on myself. I needed to make connections and branch out. I took my chances and joined clubs to help not only myself but others as well. High school was also the transition of my life where I started focusing on my grades. I started working harder and as the curriculum started to get more difficult, it only motivated me to be more diligent.

Since I was young, there was a communication barrier that existed between me and the outside world. My shyness led me to many downfalls on my academic side. Not understanding a topic would mean that I would never be able to clarify any questions that were on my mind. Until around 6th grade, I always considered myself introverted; I had the inability to blend in with strangers, peers and teachers.

It was not until freshman year in college that I realized how problematic my shyness and introversion had become. At Monmouth University, I was fortunate enough to be accepted in the Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) program along with 39 other students. As a part of this program, I attended a five-week seminar during the summer. Not only was I receiving six credits, but I was also engaging in activities to sharpen my leadership and social skills. After the

Growing up, I always had a hard time socializing at school, because I was introverted. However, I remember till this day that I was able to feel warm and not alone when I was able to help the other students who had trouble. In Highschool, I continuously tutor and help my peers in math class, and I enjoy it because it creates an icebreaker in creating friendships. I truly began to find myself through a first generation, college prep program called Upward Bound at the University of Texas at Austin. In the core enrichment classes I never hesitated to correct and question the professor who instructed my math classes. Then I was i recommended to join the Upward BOund Math and Science at the University of Texas Arlington, which is much vigorous enrichment core classes.

A few years ago, I struggled when interacting with other people. At family gatherings, I avoided talking to my relatives and my knees shook when I had to give any sort of presentation in school. I have been trying to overcome this for years, starting with when I began volunteering at Sunday school at my church. At first, I felt out of place and awkward around the boisterous young children who I was supposed to be helping. After a few months, however, things started to improve. Now, I enjoy making crafts and singing songs with the preschoolers at church. This, in my eyes, is the function of an organization like National Honor Society. I

Starting in the fall of 2012 was a big change in my thinking and learning skills. This was the year that I started my Liberal Arts Education here at Bridgewater College. Before I entered college everything had come easy to me whether it was sports or school, but during my first two weeks at school I knew that had all changed. In high school I rarely had to take notes and homework was optional in my school district and so I carried that over to my new classes at Bridgewater. That did not go so well because on the first test in General Chemistry I got the lowest grade I had ever gotten on a test. This was where college changed for me. From then until now was a change in the way that I learned both inside and outside of class. In the classroom I started to take better notes and really paid attention to the lecture. Outside of class I started to read and take notes on the textbook and also used the resources of the college and got a tutor.

I was able to make friends easily by applying my interpersonal skills amongst others. This included joining societies as well as, using my communication skills during my seminar group work discussions, where I demonstrated my teamwork skills by co-operating with others during a shared task. Working with others is a vital skill, as I did not only collaborate with them, but learn from them by listening to their thoughts, as we all had diverse ideas and perspectives. This point leads back to my anxiety of interacting within a new environment, which allowed me to step out of my comfort zone and, associate with people from different backgrounds.

Even the most introverted students such as myself could overcome the anxiety of large class discussions by starting out with smaller groups. Coming into high school was extremely intimidating, especially since it seemed as if everyone already had their own friend groups from middle school. A whole class discussion meant too many people sharing their opinions.

As a child I was shy, and still am, but I always tried to make friends. But that did not always go well because of the culture boundary’s that were between me and most of the other students. Many students of the same race would stick together, leaving me usually alone because of the very few Caucasian students in the schools. Spending most of my time working alone unless the teacher assigned groups. That did not change much when entering middle school. Middle school just became a bigger version of the years pasted. Spending my time feeling like I was the outsider because most people already knew each other. The first year of high school was no different from the past years, I began to gain a few friends who had classes with me. I tried to venture out and stared becoming friends with more people with the help or sports and my advanced classes. When you are a student in Advanced Placement classes you began to have classes with a smaller group of people. This was when I finally did not feel any different from the other students in my

As I have gotten older, some of the introversion has faded to a certain extent, but it is still present. Through my job as a Special Education Teacher, I have had to overcome a majority of my introversion so I can effectively do my job. On any given day, I will have to speak to not only my students but also the office staff, coworkers, and possibly some of the children’s parents. Conversation goes both ways, so to be successful at my job; I would have to be willing to be open and communicate with others more. I also have to realize that I need to make the first step sometimes. Not everyone is going to come to me; there are times I am going to have to go to others.

I was not always a social and outgoing individual and I considered myself unlucky in life. I never stood out and did not have enough confidence to attempt to

I seldom ask for help, and I don’t go out of my way to talk to people. From what I have learned in this course, I think that to some people this might make me look like a jerk. Or that I think I’m better than them. When In reality I’m just a little bit of a socially awkward person. It’s not that I don’t like other people, I just really enjoy spending time with myself. I know a lot of people, but I only have two or three that I consider my friends. I value the quality of my relationships more than the quantity. I would rather go out and do something with one or two friends, rather than a large group. I enjoy having the close relationships with my few friends, I have no desire to fill my life with a ton of superficial friendships that come and go.