“Why do I shy away from meeting new friends or avoid hanging out with them?”
She sat there a bit upset.
“Well, let’s see. “Sometimes, it’s all about expectations.” I began.
You expect to be somebody else other than yourself.
“This requires a lot of effort. It won’t sit right with your soul. The whole time, you’d be pretending, shoving your true self into the closet, and for what? Even if people end up liking “you,” they’d still be enjoying a “made-up” version of you.”
“So, what should I do it instead?”
“Show up as you, the polite, respectful, unpretentious, unassuming you. Those are your genuine character traits. Don’t apologize for them or try to hide them away.”
Your expectation of who people are or how they’d be like.
“Our ego loves to gauge itself whether it’s higher or lower, greater or lesser, better or worse than others. Why? Because it likes to know where and how to position itself against others. Then, it either gets a sense of pride or feels so insecure.”
“How should I manage that?”
“Receive people as they are, or, as they present themselves, without judgments, expectations, and your personal agendas.”
She pondered for a moment, looked at me, and smiled.
“I’ll come back tomorrow to see you.”
“I’ll be here.”