HaU BLOG Posts
Hi chules!! My name is Sofi Garza, and I'm a first-year majoring in Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology. I can't believe I already have two quarters at UCLA under my belt, I feel like everything is going by so fast. I knew going to UCLA was going to be both fun and challenging for me. As much as I love UCLA, I was a little nervous to start here because I'm an out-of-state student so I didn't know anybody coming in. I also have never been to a school as big as UCLA; I'm more used to the tightly-knit community that my small high school had to offer. But when I got to UCLA and walked around campus, sometimes never seeing a familiar face and just a faceless mass of strangers, I was intimidated. But I knew going to UCLA would be good for me because it would help me branch out of my comfort zone. I'm an introverted person by nature, which means socializing and interacting with people can be emotionally exhausting sometimes. Because UCLA is so big, the number of people I interact with daily has skyrocketed. As much as I love getting to know people and making friends, sometimes all I want to do after a long day is go to my dorm room to relax and recharge my social battery. It's sometimes difficult to balance the desire to maintain friendships while also taking care of your social and emotional health. Last quarter, I had a lot more difficulty striking that balance. Last quarter, the social aspect of college overwhelmed me, and I often had a tendency to stay in rather than go out to meet a friend. My fear of social rejection from friends often stopped me from reaching out to people. But I knew that if I pushed myself out of my comfort zone, I would be able to grow as a person and feel more confident about my friendships and relationships. Branching out and making new friends was one of my main goals when coming to UCLA. For me, I would rather have the opportunity to make life-lasting memories with friends than miss out on that opportunity because I was too nervous to invite a friend to lunch or coffee. This quarter I was determined to stay true to this goal even when it was much easier for me to not do so. As a result, I met up with friends from last quarter more and developed new friendships with people that I met in my winter quarter classes. The fun times I had with my new friends helped diminish my fear of being rejected, because now I knew it wasn't a reality most of the time because people always want to make friends. I hope that next quarter I can reflect on what I learned from my experiences this quarter and continue to grow in my self-confidence and self-esteem. If you've ever felt nervous to put yourself out there, know that you're not alone. I want you to know that there are so many amazing opportunities waiting for you out there, all you have to do is believe in yourself and seize the moment!
XOXO, Sofi Garza
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March 2024
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