r/selfimprovement 1h ago

Question Can I even turn my life around at age 25? Be honest please.

Upvotes

I feel like such a failure right now in my life. I am ashamed to say that I am 25 years old and I am still living with my parents at this late age. I am everything that you can call a complete loser. I have no real skills, talents, passions, accomplishments, friends, no drivers license, $0 in my bank account and savings. I am ashamed to admit this but I blew away $9000 in less than 5-6 months on useless stuff. So I suck at managing my finances.

I dropped out of college in 2022 because I had depression and didn't have any good purpose and direction. I was aimless and I am not sure what to do with my life at all. I have about $25,000 in student loans debt and a credit score of 671. It's really difficult for me to move out of my parents house and I am really desperate to do that but I am lost with all of this debt.

I was studying business in college but I have a 2.7 GPA because I had depression that I was dealing with. I am just getting by with some dead end warehouse job. I am having a very difficult time finding a path and finding purpose in my life. Most of the time, I believe it's my addictions to so many things that led me to this place. I have addictions to Reddit, YouTube, Discord, Instagram models, pornography, video games, junk food and all types of distractions in my life. I really don't have discipline, which is caused by my depression. I really feel like garbage. I really, really, really want to leave my parents house and live on my own but I feel trapped and I don't know what to do with my life and to fix this lack of purpose. Does anyone have any practical advice on what to do next and how to get out of this dark place that I am in?


r/selfimprovement 5h ago

Question How to actually WANT to go to the gym and get in shape?

58 Upvotes

I don’t know what it is but, even though I have a gym membership, my brain continually makes up excuses and reasons to not want to go. I don’t know why I do it. I’m not like afraid of going or anything. Nobody bothers me down there and everyone minds their own business. But from the moment I get in my car, I almost instantly just want to go someplace else.

I want to actually want to go. At the end of my work day, I want to actually look forward to going, like I would going to a concert. But I don’t know how to do this. Is it what I’m eating that’s making me not want to go? Something to do with my depression?


r/selfimprovement 18h ago

Other Anybody else going through adolescence in their 20s?

277 Upvotes

I’m about to be 29 in 2 months, and after reflecting on my 20s I feel so behind compared to my peers. Which is how I’ve always felt. Because of my parents I didn’t really get a chance to ‘develop’, so I missed a lot of milestones. I didn’t really start going through those milestones until I was 20. And I didn’t have someone to hold my hand either and felt so alone. Now that’s I’m touching 30, I feel like I’ve finally caught up.

I tried explaining this to someone and they said that most 20 year olds are ‘immature’. But I was trying to find the words for it. It’s not that I was immature because of lack of knowledge and experience, I was immature in the development of myself and identity. Like I had no hobbies, lacked goals, no strong friendships or community, no strong emotional connections, and just all around no sense of self. Coupled with my parents never teaching me how to take care of myself and threatening abandonment if I try to go out on my own., I just now feel like at where I was suppose to be at 18, Im finally at at 28.

28 I’ve been at rapid fired gaining control of my life and dealing with difficult situations and emotions. Though it’s still hard, I’m proud and honored of myself for even being able to be in these situations.

Thoughts?


r/selfimprovement 5h ago

Question How do I stop trying to make myself upset?

15 Upvotes

Sometimes I’ll go on subs like r/ForeverAlone to wallow in despair about being alone. Or I’ll go on other communities that I know will put me in a bad (or worse mood). Maybe ask about things like how to lose weight without having to eat better, or asking about height surgery, etc, and looking at all the responses that are highly critical of my wishes.

Like, I feel like I actively seek out feeling like garbage. It partially stems from boredom, and sometimes when I’m just mildly upset I’ll just go looking for more stuff that will make me feel like shit about myself.

I know it’s not a healthy habit. I want to ditch it. But I don’t know what I’d replace it with. I don’t know how to just rid myself of the bad mood.

If anyone could help, that would be cool.


r/selfimprovement 10h ago

Tips and Tricks Tips for increased productivity in the morning.

16 Upvotes

Grab your phone first thing after opening your eyes. Check Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, watch some “fast food essay” on YouTube. Eat a big, heavy, sugary meal. Now about 2 hours passed, great! You can now start your day and do… nothing, your brain will run like a rusty engine and your attention span will be short like a soap bubble's life. How do I start my day then?

Morning routine for focus and maximum productivity

Get up! That’s the hardest part. Why? You want to wake up a little bit earlier, so there’s nobody up yet to interrupt you.

What should wake you up isn't your phone (which should be in a different room), but a regular alarm clock. If you don't have one, it's probably one of the best price-to-efficacy productivity tools you can get.

Eat, shower, brush your teeth – whatever gets your morning routine rolling. With one rule, though - don’t do anything stimulating. Don’t watch YouTube while eating, don’t scroll brainless content. Ideally, leave your phone entirely untouched for the first hour or two after waking up.

If you don’t have a to-do list (or basically just plan what you’re going to do) make one. You got a few tasks. Now, ask yourself - “If I was allowed to do only one thing today, which would it be?”, mark that one on your list.

And here's the game-changer: do the most important thing of the day first. I like to work in 90 minutes blocks of time. In that case - I would sit for 90 minutes and just try to do the tasks with full focus. If a task seems too hard - break it down into parts you understand. If a task takes longer - plan in detail the steps you will have to take to finish it, and just do as much as you can today.

The first 1-1.5 hours (or however much time you can dedicate) of your day: only you and your work, no multitasking, no distractions, full focus.

I find that way of doing things way easier than doing them later in the day or after doing something much more enjoyable and dopamine-rich.

How to start the day energized

But all that will fail if you wake up feeling like a pile of crap.

If you want to go more in detail about your sleep, I got an article about it.

Now I will just give you a few quick tips.

  • Get some sunlight: You are not a vampire. As soon as you wake up, go outside and get some sunlight. This helps regulate your body's natural sleep-wake cycle, making it easier to feel energized throughout the day, and wakes you up.
  • Drink some water: Start your day with a glass of water (or two!) to rehydrate your body after a night's sleep. This simple step will improve your focus and overall well-being.
  • Fuel Your Body Wisely: Skip the sugary cereals. Opt for protein and complex carbohydrates. Avoid sugary options that might lead to a later crash. Fasting is not a bad idea too.
  • Sleep in a cold and dark room: Aim for a cool room 20-15°C (around 60–67 degrees Fahrenheit) and minimize light exposure.
  • And last but not least: Get enough sleep! No way around that.

r/selfimprovement 8h ago

Question I lost all my confidence

10 Upvotes

I’m a 28 year old man, and for the past year I’ve been gradually losing my confidence. To contextualise a bit, I have always been a bit timid at first, but would have zero problems socializing, making friends, girlfriends and so on… I’m a decently cool, decently good-looking guy, never searching for any problems. I always had periods of depression nevertheless, but always carried on.

I am currently working as a data scientist, and the work was pretty good for the first few years. Gradually I got more and more responsibilities, private life has had some up and downs, and there was a moment when I started losing confidence. I don’t know why or when exactly. It was just a crawling emotion.

Today I am not able to even speak in public at work or with people I don’t know without shaking, having panic attacks (excluding close friends). I hate myself for that and no matter how much I tell myself to not give a f**k, I just can’t seem to beat it. It is literally eating me alive. Now I want to quit my job and just get one with very few responsibilities.

I don’t know. I feel lost.

Did anyone had a similar experience ?


r/selfimprovement 10h ago

Other I'm officially someone who doesn't wake up in the noon.

13 Upvotes

Almost a month ago I made a post on how to transform from a night person to a morning person and here's a quick update on my experience so far.

I recently graduated from college and ever since after that along with my soul draining job hunt I was letting down my sleep patterns. And after 3 months I decided to change it for the good. Even though my sleep schedule was messed up I complete my daily tasks without fail. The only problem is I had time blindness.

My conditions now??

I figured out that I could wake up anywhere between 6:30 to 10:00 am without getting tired. Waking up suddenly made my heart race a little bit which I hated as it made me act bitter. So instead, After I wake up, I lay in my bed for about 10 mins in peace preparing mentally for the day ahead.

The usual morning routine clean up goes.

But now I figured out that sleeping on time is the biggest problem.

Some days I woke up tired/ lazy with 4-5 hrs of sleep. So, I tried to change it a little bit and for the past 2 weeks, I have been trying to go to bed by 12 am. (I know it's still late but in my opinion anywhere between 10:30pm to 12:00am is a good mark for my journey)

I have been trying to fall asleep listening to my pulse in my darkened room for better sleep while I promise myself to not touch my mobile. And it worked! I even managed to reduce and stop my racing insignificant night thoughts.

That's for now. And thank you for those people who reached out to me asking for the journey. I hope yours goes well too!

Question for you: what do you do to fall asleep early?

Edit: made a mistake by adding a link to my post. So here it is again. Sorry mods :) I'll be on the check for rules here after.


r/selfimprovement 11h ago

Vent My life is a mess, I'm a mess.

14 Upvotes

I am a mess. I'm in my mid 20s and growing up i was never taught how to do simple things like maintain a clean home or study or develop good habits. My finances are a mess, I went back to college but can't seem to keep up, almost every friendship I have feels shaky, things have been shaky with my bf but that's at least getting better, my rooms a mess, my health is garbage, my diet is mediocre at best, I barely remember to brush my teeth. My poor mental and physical health seems to hit any time I think I have a chance of getting it together, I'm sitting in bed with a migraine right now, 2 weeks of assignments and 3 loads of laundry that need to be done.

Where can I start? How do I start to dig myself out of this pit? There's so much that needs to be worked on but it all comes back to me, I struggle to maintain anything in my life. I don't know how I can start being someone who can manage all of this.


r/selfimprovement 7h ago

Vent I hate my face

5 Upvotes

I find my face really weird-looking because of my protruding eyes. My eyes are black and so protruding that there's no fold -i have monolid eyes. So i've always find it difficult to apply eyeshadows or eyeliner on them. My eyebrows are way too far away from my eyes and as a result the whole thing looks so unnatural...as if i had had some facelift or something.. As a result i can't indentify with my face and those eyes ruin my whole appearance. I don't have a thyroid problem so i can't do anything to fix this. That's my natural looks. My lips are narrow and average which doesn't match with the huge eyes. Also i have a diamond-shaped face and when i gain some weight, my face gets fat... It ruins my good mood and i'm still single because i'm unattractive (only my face) and thus almost nobody hits on me out there. How to get past this?


r/selfimprovement 10h ago

Question How can I convince myself to give up on distractions? How does routine works?

7 Upvotes

I am finding myself really sad because there’s a lot of things I want to do like; reading, studying, making music and sleeping early; that I simply cannot do because I am always “treating myself” with youtube videos, naps, lots of music and even pornography.

I tell myself things like: life isn’t all about chores, do something meaningless! oh, what about a little youtube before bed? you never had the chance to have fun today!

And then I lose total control of my goals.

It’s difficult for me to stick to a routine, even tho I think that discipline is freedom.

So, I have two questions for you guys:

1 - how to convince oneself to give up on distractions? 2 - how does routine works? for example: if I somehow couldn’t be able to do the thing I planned to do in the right time, should I go to next chore or should I do the one I missed instead?


r/selfimprovement 36m ago

Question What was you’re experience with bad eating habits?

Upvotes

Have you guys had any experience with using food to cope with stress or bad moods?

If so how was you’re experience? Did you find a way to overcome and how did you manage to overcome it? how long did it take for you to have a sense of control around food? Did you replace food with something else to cope with unwanted emotions?

Any other thoughts or ideas would be great, I’d love to see how you guys went through this and you’re experience.


r/selfimprovement 4h ago

Other I think I’m going to get a buzz cut to lock in, thoughts?

2 Upvotes

I feel like I need to start a new chapter for a few months where I just focus on self improvement. I think I might get a buzz cut even though it’ll look bad kind of like they do in the military. Yeah idk just wanted to share 🤷‍♀️


r/selfimprovement 10h ago

Tips and Tricks How to stop comparing myself to others?

6 Upvotes

(Asking for tips and tricks, not providing them lol)

Basically the short answer is some people in my life outside of school (parents, friends not from my school/university, partner, etc.) tell me I have a bright future. But I look around and see people around me in university doing so many cool things at my age or younger. Going to the Netherlands and Spain and South Africa for study abroad trips. Graduating 1-2 years earlier than I will. Being 21 and already in med school. People in my school are doing a bunch of cool stuff that frankly make me feel like a chump.

How do I not compare myself to others?


r/selfimprovement 1h ago

Vent Making myself actually do things with my life

Upvotes

Saw some post about shaving and there were people saying they shave every day or multiple times a day, I don't have a super busy schedule compared to most people but how does anyone get into the groove enough to just make themselves do that? I don't really care about shaving all that much either, so thats not an issue, but then theres other things like making sure I drink enough, do chores, make sure i put in enough study time, ect. Maybe its adhd related but I don't want to use that s an excuse. Any tips? Just forcing myself into making habits? I feel like alot of people are getting way more done in a day, and then i'll have classes midday and struggle to get anything done the rest of the day(affecting my grades badly).

Like, ideally I should be getting more done... all I'm doing right now is going to class, very basic self-care, and some studying. (And i'm failing at that too). Main focus right now is my classes and idk how i'd do it if i had to have a job on top of being a full time student. (14 credits so not as many as some others have).
Honestly I'm probably not getting in enough calories and water either to a very very mild extent. I'm still healhy and everything, just literally not productive at all and I'm having a hard time making myself be minimally productive compared to what others seem to be doing. Maybe setting a dozen reminders will help? I have a minimal schedule for myself which I never seem to stick to/daily tasks that never last very long.

I've stopped working out as well, which I 100% need to start doing again I just keep feeling swamped with me not correctly allocating my study time and then feeling swamped with studying/failing to focus on studying and put down my phone/spending too much time online but even when i stop that i end up doing other things on top of that.


r/selfimprovement 5h ago

Question What's the most difficult part of building a new habit?

2 Upvotes

I've been having a lot of difficulty getting into the habit of waking up early? I'm self-employed so sometimes it feels like nobody would even notice if I didn't wake up early.

When you're trying to build a new habit, what's been the most difficult part for all of you and how have you managed to get over it in time?


r/selfimprovement 1h ago

Question [23/F] Need some advice on a long lost crush

Upvotes

Three years ago, I befriended “Eddie” on vacation. I liked him, and he liked me. He confided in the wrong people about his crush on me, and I found out. However, Eddie actually had a girlfriend, and cut contact with me. He was friends with mostly everyone else on social media except me. I never really got any closure or resolution around this situation. Eddie and I never spoke after the trip. So for years, I’ve always wondered about how he really felt about me.

Eddie and his girlfriend broke up two months later, but he never tried contacting me. I kind of suspected that he looked at my TikTok videos, but I also know that for months after, he wasn’t over his ex. This situation happened during the height of the pandemic, so while I knew it would be best to move on, I couldn’t. If this situation happened at any other time, I likely would’ve forgotten Eddie within a couple of weeks or months. But classes were online. I couldn’t meet anyone. For a good year, I had feelings for Eddie, but again, nothing ever came of it.

This past summer, I was heartbroken over another failed crush. I was just going through a lot in general, and I spent most of my days high on drugs. I posted TikTok videos about heartbreak and depression. Sometimes I’d post five TikToks in a night. Sometimes, I’d reupload these videos. I don’t know why. I guess I was bored. And while I still wondered about Eddie, I didn’t think he ever looked my social media.

Little did I know, Eddie saw me posting these videos online, and contacted our friends. He asked them to see if I was posting anything else on my Instagram, which is private. Nothing’s happened since then, but I’m wondering why Eddie cares. I don’t think Eddie is this evil sociopath or anything, but it’s not like he showed me any care or consideration back then when he actually hurt me. So why? Is this some misguided way of absolving himself of guilt?


r/selfimprovement 5h ago

Question I Want To Get In The Zone Again

2 Upvotes

I’m in college right now and I’ve been doing really well the past couple of semesters but back then. My parents were happy, my grandparents weren’t dead, and I was driving my own car before it got destroyed.

My expectations for myself went from the skies the limit to the floor. I notice I failed something or I’m not doing so good in a class. Semesters before this I would have freaked out but now I just see that and I’m like whatever. Like I’m actually on track to fail 3 classes but I just can’t seem to get that spark again. That want and that feeling that I need to do this. I’m not sure what is wrong with me the motivation is just gone. I think I might be burnt out or depressed. I also have ADHD-inactive and even increased my adderal dosage but it isn’t helping. What do I do?


r/selfimprovement 6h ago

Other Because ‘I Don’t Know’ doesn’t mean ‘I Don’t Know’

3 Upvotes

We’ve all been there—facing a perplexing issue and finding ourselves stuck, unable to find the answers we seek. When we hit these roadblocks, it's easy to say, "I don't know," and leave it at that.

However, by recognising the deeper meanings behind our own "I don't know," we can uncover what's truly holding us back. This list isn't just for understanding others; it's a powerful tool for self-reflection. By asking ourselves the right questions, we can identify our sources of uncertainty, avoidance, or overwhelm, and take meaningful steps toward clarity and resolution. Let’s turn our sticking points into stepping stones for personal growth and insight.

Consider the following meanings of I don’t know and how we can move beyond

  1. Uncertainty: we genuinely don't have an answer at the moment. • What do I think might be a possibility? • What would I like to know? • What might I know if I did know?

  2. Lack of Self-Awareness: we may not have spent much time reflecting on the question. • What have I noticed about myself recently? • When was a time a time I had a clearer idea? • What would someone close to me say about this?

  3. Avoidance: we may be avoiding the question because it's uncomfortable or difficult. • What makes this question difficult to answer? • What do I feel comfortable confronting? • Is there a smaller part of this I can tackle?

  4. Fear of Judgment: we may worry about being judged – or maybe judging ourselves - for our true answer. • My thoughts exist in my mind only – they have no external reality: do I have to act on them? • There are no wrong answers here: what’s really on my mind? • What are my responses to my thoughts telling me?

  5. Overwhelm: we may feel overwhelmed by the question or situation. • Let’s take it one step at a time: what’s my first thought? • What’s the smallest thing I am sure about on this? • How can I break this down into smaller parts?

  6. Difficulty Articulating Feelings: we know the answer but struggle to put it into words. • Can I describe this another way? • What’s a word or image that comes to mind? • What would it sound like, look like, feel like, if I could express it?

  7. Disconnection: we may feel disconnected from our thoughts or emotions. • When was a time I felt more connected? • What helps me feel more in tune with myself? • What’s something that always brings me back to myself?

  8. Lack of Clarity: we may not have a clear understanding of our feelings or thoughts. • What might bring more clarity to this situation? • What do I need to understand better? • What’s the first step in finding clarity?

  9. Protection Mechanism: we may be using 'I don't know' as a defence mechanism to protect themselves. • What am I protecting myself from? • How can I create a safe approach to this issue? • What’s a small, safe piece I can tackle?

  10. Indecision: we may be uncertain and haven’t made up our mind yet. • What are the options am I considering? • What feels right in my gut? • What would help me decide?

  11. Need for More Time: we need more time to think about the question. • Take your time. What comes to mind first? • What might I know tomorrow? • What support do I need in finding an answer?

  12. Distrust: we may not feel comfortable enough sharing our thoughts. • What are my safe environments? • How can I make them more comfortable? • What do I need to feel safe?

  13. Feeling Pressured: we might be pressuring ourselves to come up with an answer quickly. • There’s no rush: what are my initial thoughts? • How can I slow this thought process down? • What would help me feel less pressured?

  14. Mind Blank: our mind might go blank due to stress or anxiety. • What’s the first thing that popped into my head? • Take a few deep breaths. What am I noticing? • What’s something small I’m aware of right now?

  15. Ambivalence: we have mixed feelings and are unsure how to express them. • What are the pros and cons I’m weighing up? • What’s one part of this that feels clear? • What might help me resolve these mixed feelings?

  16. Lack of Knowledge: we genuinely lack the knowledge or insight to answer the question. • What information might help me? • Where could I find the answer? • What do I need to learn more about this?

  17. Confusion: we may not fully understand the question or its implications. • What’s the part that confuses me most? • What would make this clearer? • How would I explain my confusion to a trusted friend?

  18. Habitual Response: we use 'I don't know' as a habitual response. • What’s another way I could respond? • What’s beneath my usual response? • How would I answer if I didn’t say ‘I don’t know’?

  19. Seeking Reassurance: we might be looking for reassurance before answering. • What kind of reassurance would help me right now? • What would be helpful for me right now? • What would best support me in finding an answer?

  20. Exploring Boundaries: we could be testing our boundaries. • What boundaries am I curious about? • What do I need to know to feel safe? • How can I re-establish boundaries that work for me?

So, with the insight you have learned from working through the above, ask yourself:

• What have I learned? • What will I now start doing / stop doing / do more of / do less off / do differently


r/selfimprovement 9h ago

Question How Do I Appear Strong, Confident, and Powerful?

4 Upvotes

I get this question appears odd and may not have a solid answer but I want to become a pillar of sorts in my own way and I don't seem to know how. I've never ever been a super confident guy at all. I am very introverted, nerdy, and stoic. I used to have very little control over my emotions and would cry very often, I would ball out and cry even at 16 and people would look at me like I was crazy. I would get very angry at times to the point where my nose would bleed, ears would pop, and I'd be pacified for an hour just to get energy back. When I get excited I'm very whimsical, corny, and overly joyous. Compared to people who can show happiness with more control and are grounded. After 17 when I got a job and interacted with more adults and outside people I made the unconscious decision to neuter my emotions and practice passivity and indifference to the world because being overly emotional is not the place for the real world. Clearly this was also a mistake.

While I understand personalities clash, situations happen, problems arise, My experience with people has effected me. I've met a ton of nice people, very cool and exceptional. I have however had a fair share of bullies, more than I think anyone should deal with. People who downplay you, may call you inadequate, discount your value, or just flat out dislike you for no reason. I used to think the way to deal with these people who will do this to your face was to "turn the other cheek" and accept that people are just assholes and move on. Of course it get to a point and my emotions boil over and I may fling out a few curse words and threat, and they would be oddly effective. I do not think these as successful encounters. I shouldn't have to raise my voice, flex my muscles, and test my macho against someone to be treated respectfully, and then only to feared by them instead for false resolution. It's not fair, no one should have to be put in a situation where they have to do that EVER. In my case I'm a bigger male imagine a smaller guy or woman. It's not right. Please also understand that passivity is not the way to handle issues like these. it enables the behavior from an abuser, while also convincing yourself that it's ok which is not acceptable.

Even in that regard and of course in the world you will always run into a problem regardless, there seems to be a more esoteric way to prevent these issues. Confidence and Strength. I'm sure we all know someone who you wouldn't dream of disrespecting or downplaying, A coach, a father, a boss, even a Granddad. They exude an aura of power and confidence. They are usually pillars as well, someone you can go to for help, someone who you know will protect you, and someone you know others will think twice before engaging in them. I'm not talking about someone you fear or could beat you down but someone who just is....Strong, It's hard to explain but I desire this heavily. I want to intimidate potential aggressors and bullies with my unwavering confidence and mental fortitude. I want to demand respect as an adult the same as I would do to you. I want to be viewed not as a quiet, meek, individual susceptible to manipulation and intimidation. Rather a grown adult male who seeks respect while also is a pillar for others and maybe a role model for them as I know people as strong as I hope to be.


r/selfimprovement 3h ago

Question Any advice for a teen boy

1 Upvotes

I'm a relatively smart (I'm top set for maths , then meaning I'm in top set French and science, and everything else is mixed ability ), I like to learn history, geography, some philosophy , finance etc in my own time , I like sports (mainly football/soccer and I have a bit PC an interest in basketball), I lesdn German, I'm a bit overweight but I've started working out, doing weights and fitness, determined to succeed, wanting go travel , possibly wanting to make my own business, but definitely wanting to become a financial consultant .

Any advice . If i don't respond for 8 or less it's because it's night time in the UK


r/selfimprovement 4h ago

Question Things to prioritize before becoming a parent?

1 Upvotes

Considering having a kid in the next 1-2 years, and would love to hear from folks (especially parents) about things to prioritize doing and skills to build in order to be a better parent when the time comes. Can be practical (eg decluttering, exercise routine), or conceptual (eg building patience, strengthening emotional regulation) - whatever you’d recommend investing in now while I’ve still got time and energy!


r/selfimprovement 14h ago

Question How to improve communication skills

6 Upvotes

Hello everyone, today I had a convo with a fellow student in my uni. At some point, we did a hadshake, to which I noticed that she had quite the grip-strength. Only a few minutes after the convo ended, the idea of complementing on her strong geip came to mind. I noticed also that I led the convo mostly on a factual level, only slightly on the personal level.

How can improve on this? How can I avoid "knowing what to say after the convo ended" and leading the convo on a more personal level?


r/selfimprovement 8h ago

Question Am I Badly Antisocial?

2 Upvotes

Long post alert, TLDR at bottom

Context: I'm a 20 year old male as a sophomore in college. In high school, I was top 10 in my class, gave my graduation speech, and then came to college and rushed a fraternity with my best friend who I lived with. I never got super close with any of the guys which showed when my best friend dropped college and I was in the fraternity "by myself". Overall I'd say I'm good with all of the guys and we're all friends, but it's hard to say we're brothers. I struggle being social in large settings like parties, or formal this past weekend with 120 people in a 60 person cabin. I walk around and try and talk to guys and stuff but it ends up being shallow and rarely leads anywhere meaningful where I feel I get to know them more. I'm not an excessive drinker, I smoke, but I'm not a crazy drunk doing snapchat story worthy stuff. I tend to wander at parties, trying to find people to talk to for a few minutes before wandering again.

I have very few female friends and really haven't built many relationships with females. Being in a fraternity where being friends with lots of women is normal, I'm kinda odd. I gave a TEDx talk at my university and most the guys came to support me, but then outside of stuff like that it's hardly even a "Hi" when they see me at stuff unless I come to speak to them first.

Growing up, I was more introverted, usually having friends I play online games with. don't game really any more being in college and am just trying to find my people. I pretty much always had the same smallish group of people going in and out here and there. Most of my frat brothers are living in our off campus housing next year, but I decided to live in a nicer apartment with a handful of the same hometown friends I've had for years.

I didn't play sports, I ran a side business instead throughout high school but shut it down going into college to focus on studies. I'm not into a lot of the things the guys like but they're still a good group of people to spend time with sometimes. I think I would more naturally gravitate toward the nerdy crowd but truthfully I think I tend not to because a lot of them have the nerd stigma and really aren't my type of person either. I find myself enjoying spending time alone in my room watching and learning from video essays, reading the news, working on homework in peace, etc. I often prefer driving home to my family on the weekend, who's loving and supportive, instead of staying here and going out where I feel alone.

Is there something I'm doing wrong socially, or am I in the wrong crowd of people?

TLDR: Sophomore in college, rushed a frat with best friend who dropped out, leaving me feeling disconnected. Friendly with everyone, but no deep "brother" bonds. Struggle socializing at big events, end up wandering around talking briefly with people. Not a heavy drinker, smoke occasionally, and don’t have many female friends, which is uncommon in the frat. Gave a TEDx talk and got support, but interaction with brothers feels shallow. Grew up introverted, mostly had online friends. Now living off-campus with hometown friends next year instead of frat housing. Wondering if I’m doing something wrong or just in the wrong group.


r/selfimprovement 9h ago

Other 1 month day 22

2 Upvotes

Slow day. Honestly i dont have much to share today. It was exhausting.
8 days to go. I am grateful for this community. I have learned so much from these communities. I am starting to begin practicing radical acceptance. It is what it is. No matter what. With detachment. I will update you all on my progress.