How ClubIn Has Enriched My Life
By Paulina Grasse
Translation: Paulina Grasse / Patricia Vasquez
Firstly, as someone who was born and who grew up in Munich, I felt like I might not have the right to visit ClubIn. It’s actually an open meeting for everyone between 17 and 27 years old, with special focus on international youth work and the different cultures of the visitors who have come to Germany recently or a few years back. I thought I wouldn’t fit in because of that reason, but when I overcame my doubts and came to an open meeting, that changed quickly. Going was definitely worth it.
I met so many interesting people at once and had nice and deep conversations. The evening was so beautiful and enriching for me that I decided to visit ClubIn regularly. Apart from the open meetings that are ideal for meeting and getting to know people in a relaxed atmosphere, many events take place there. There are events like grilling marshmallows on a campfire, karaoke nights, dance classes, specific country themed evenings, foosball tournaments, hiking trips, etc.
It might sound dramatic, but thanks to ClubIn, a new time in my life has started. A time in which I finally leave my comfort zone and have the courage to go out and communicate.
Deep down, I knew I was already somewhat an extrovert who needed connection to other people in order to feel happy. For different reasons, I spent lots of time alone anyways, only had 1 or 2 close friends and didn’t have an active lifestyle at all. One reason for this might be my fear of what other people think about me. I especially fear they think I am too boring or that they might not like me, but the visitors of ClubIn are all so nice, honest and tolerant that it took my fear away. Every time I go down the stairs to the club, I feel a little less afraid and look forward to going there. I learned so much about myself and realized that I’m much more of a social person than I thought before, and that connecting with others makes me bloom and charge my batteries. Consequently, after a long time I feel really happy again!
In general, this confidence has made me go out and meet people more often than I used to. There aren’t enough words to describe how grateful I am. It might not be very outright obvious, but thanks to the team and the visitors of the club, my life has changed for the better.
With this I would like to end by motivating you to also try something new, something you are afraid of because you never know, it just might be something good for you. In the beginning it will certainly be hard, but it will be worth it. For the ones struggling with social anxiety or shyness, I would really recommend visiting ClubIn!