First of all, I must distinguish that “playing a character” is not the same thing as “role playing,” although I do not discourage against the latter.
This weekend, I propose a challenge. Pick a character, a variation of yourself that you want to explore, and practice being outside your normal self. If you are typically planned and scheduled, be spontaneous-you all weekend. If you are typically drunk and sloppy, practice being controlled and classy. If you are typically responsible, be a balanced amount of young and crazy. Be silly instead of serious, nonchalant instead of dramatic, mellow instead of hyper, enthusiastic instead of pessimistic.
Dress the part if you need to! For example, as I write, I am being nerdy me and Barnes and Noble on a Friday evening.
If you traditionally complain that you have trouble meeting men, go and talk to some. If you usually wait around for a guy to make plans for you, take initiative and make some yourself. If you have trouble making new friends, strike up a conversation with some strangers. If you normally lounge on the couch and watch the weekend go by on your television screen, get dressed up and go party. If you always say you will meditate and get in touch with yourself, actually do it this time. Embrace a new side of you that you may not have even known existed.
Too often we put ourselves inside of a box entitled, “me.” In fact, we are much more than can ever be contained within four walls. That is why we must challenge ourselves and our comfort zones. There is so much left to discover. We put a lot of effort into learning something new at our job, about current events, about someone else, and about our hobbies, but lets not forget that learning something about ourselves is the most important thing we could spend time on.
kiss kiss,
Cleo