Guy Experiences 5 ‘Girly’ Things He Was Afraid To Try Because They Made Him Feel Weird — Realizes They Are Actually ‘Cool’
There's always value in expanding our horizons.
Monstera Production / Pexels Variety is the spice of life, or so they say.
It can be easy to get stuck in a rut and not try new things, but one college student recently expanded his horizons and liked the end result: Feeling good about himself.
A guy experienced 5 ‘girly’ things he was afraid to try because it felt weird, then realized they’re actually cool.
Jackson Penney held a notebook in his hands as he explained, “I made a list of stuff I was initially afraid to try because I was a dude and it made me feel weird, but now I’ve tried and they’re actually really cool.”
1. Pinterest
Penney’s first new experience was Pinterest, exclaiming, “Pinterest is cool as [expletive].” He described Pinterest as “personalized pictures that you have already shown interest in.”
The internet’s centralized vision board has served him well, as he explained, “I got all of my tattoo inspiration from it and a ton of outfit inspiration.”
2. Plucking his eyebrows
Penney described a small thing he tried that made him feel great about himself, despite having been initially worried about trying it: Maintaining his brow shape by plucking.
“It’s the most bare minimum thing ever, but I basically just make sure I don’t have a unibrow,” Penney said, describing his process. “I do the bare minimum, and I look in the mirror, and I’m like, [expletive],” he reiterated. “Literally just any tweezer, just pluck the middle, [it] helps.”
Photo: Philip Boakye / Pexels
3. Using a scent diffuser
Atmosphere and aesthetics are simple yet important ways we can make our living space feel comfortable and welcoming, and Penney went all in on using scent to create ambiance. After investing in a scent diffuser, he described how the product has changed his life.
“I spent 25 bucks on one, just some basic Amazon one, and I put little three drops [in] and now my room is like a eucalyptus tree,” he said with a sweet sense of wonder. “It’s like peppermint. And all I have to do is feed it some water, and suddenly my whole room smells like I Febrezed it, and I cleaned it — I don’t have to clean! I just turn it on. It’s awesome.”
4. Moisturizing.
In another solid example of how valuable it is to take care of the little things in life, Penney explained how his newly established skincare routine makes him feel good.
“I thought that I wanted to have rough hands, 'cause I think my dad has really tough hands, I just thought I didn’t need to do that,” he explained his stance on moisturizing. “Skincare’s actually cool. It makes me feel good.”
Photo: Monstera Production / Pexels
Penney’s uncovered the secret: There’s something inherently wonderful about the simple process of putting on lotion after washing your face. In taking the time to take care of ourselves, we’re telling ourselves we’re worth it, and practicing self-love in action in a very accessible way.
5. Wearing accessories.
Penney gave his perspective on wearing jewelry, specifically, wearing rings: “It makes me feel cool.”
“Just a little something,” he said, showing off his hands. “I can’t do more than two, it makes me feel weird. But even just little accessories, I think worth adding.”
People in the comments were here for Penney’s journey of self-discovery.
“The boys are healing! We love to see it,” came one comment. “Positive masculinity,” said someone else.
It's important to always try new things despite preconceived notions.
By investing in himself, Penney is broadening his horizons and crossing traditionally rigid gender binaries to uncover more about what makes him feel good, both physically and emotionally.
His fun experiment shows that caring for ourselves in small ways has huge effects on our sense of self-worth.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.