Comfortably Uncomfortable

Hey friends,

Welcome to roam’s second newsletter! If you are new here, my name is Ansh Mundra and I am the Chief Growth Officer here at roam. I’m also responsible for writing, curating, and editing what you are about to read.

Like last time, we will be splitting the newsletter into three sections:

• life lessons from a fellow international student 📚

• tips and tricks we would have wanted our younger selves to know 😮‍💨

• growth updates from our side to show you what we’ve been up to 🫱🏼‍🫲🏽

Instead of a story, our guest writer for today writes about the lessons she has learned from intentionally placing herself in uncomfortable situations.

Sound good? Let’s jump right into it.

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone Merely Expands It

Life lessons for this newsletter are written by Mahika Rathod. She is an international student from Gurgaon, India and graduated from New York University this May with a BA in Biology on the pre-med track. She is a currently on a gap year to prepare for medical school, working as a Research Assistant at Weill Cornell Medicine and building a startup, NetWeave, as its Chief Executive Officer. Mahika loves sunflowers, golden retrievers, hitting the weights at the gym, and tennis.

Venturing into a new country for education is an exhilarating and daunting journey – be it at any age. For international students coming to the United States for college, this journey prompts more than just academic growth; it entails embracing new experiences, cultures, and challenges. You will have said your goodbyes to your family, leaving behind the comfort of familiar faces, places, food, and conveniences. I know firsthand how tough that can be. It’s a big leap, one that shows just how determined and brave you are. You’re opening yourself up to a world of new possibilities. You’re about to meet people from all walks of life, try things you’ve never imagined, and see the world through a different lens. Most importantly, you’re on your own now, navigating new paths and discovering strengths you never knew you had. You get to figure things out for yourself and grow beyond those comforts.

The comfort zone is a sanctuary of familiarity and ease. It encompasses safe routines, environments, behaviors, and people. While the comfort zone provides a sense of security, it can also limit personal growth. Stepping beyond its confines can be daunting; it means facing uncertainty, potential setbacks, and the fear of the unknown. However, when you dare to push beyond your familiar boundaries, you don't just step into the unknown; you expand your comfort zone, creating a larger space for growth, adaptability, and resilience. What was once unfamiliar and intimidating gradually becomes a new normal. 

The reality is, you will make mistakes and learn, say the wrong thing and learn, take the train downtown instead of uptown and learn, color your white clothes and learn. Fail, yet still learn. Don’t shy away from growth, new experiences, and meaningful connections. Embrace discomfort, for practice will make it comfortable.

Set Realistic Goals

Start with small, manageable goals that push your boundaries without overwhelming you. Gradually increase the complexity and challenge of these goals as you become more comfortable – for the gymrats: progressive overload is key everywhere.

Embrace Discomfort

Recognize that discomfort is a natural part of growth. Instead of avoiding it, embrace it as a sign that you’re pushing your limits and learning new things. Over time, what once felt uncomfortable will become familiar, and your confidence will grow.

Seek Support

Surround yourself with supportive friends – people that want to grow and work on themselves. Try to find people who are better than you in some way. Take the opportunity to learn from those around you by being proactive but not dependent. Reach out to mentors, professors, and TAs. Use your resources to maximize your benefits from college.

Many universities offer support services for international students, including counseling, academic advising, and cultural organizations. Don’t hesitate to reach out for help and guidance when needed. It can be hard at first but the worst that can happen is they say no and this really wouldn’t change your outcome. You will find your community but be open minded and accepting.

Reflect on Your Experiences

Take time to reflect on your experiences and the progress you’ve made. Celebrate your successes, no matter how small, and learn from your challenges. Keep a journal or talk to a friend. This can help you process your thoughts and feelings.

Create Visibility for Yourself

One of the biggest issues international students face is getting lost in the crowd.

After all, there are so many of us and it is easy to follow the herd.

It is easy to forget your individuality and what makes YOU distinct in favor of fitting in and avoiding uncertainty.

Let me ask you this, though - how and why do you expect job offers and opportunities to be thrown at you when no one knows you?

When no one knows how talented you are or what you stand for.

People attract people, not embellished words on a resume.

One way or another, you MUST create visibility for yourself. The more you get comfortable showing your work to the world, the more like-minded people will approach you.

The more they will want to get to know you and work with you.

The way I create visibility for myself is through content creation on Instagram by showing the world whatever is going in my life + what interests me.

So far, the only thing I regret is not starting earlier. Committing to content creation has opened doors for me I didn’t know existed.

In fact, I got my job at roam because of posting videos on the internet. More on that soon, though.

Create visibility for yourself. Purge the voice in your head that says no one will read or watch what you make because, trust me, someone will.

And that someone might be the key to the next chapter in your life.

roam’s Growth Update

Hey, I’m Krish - founder and CEO of roam 🌏️ 

We’re big believers in building in public, so this section is for those of you who are interested in watching us grow. Every week we share exciting news and updated stats about our progress, so stay tuned!

Here’s what we’ve been up to this week 🌱

• Sonia crossed 2,000 users and was used more than 7,300 times 🚀

• hired our first-ever batch of summer interns (design, growth, tech) 😍

• crossed 370 subscribers on our newsletter 📈

• we gave Sonia a voice and added a form upload feature ✨

• formed a partnership that helps students get H-1B’s w/o the lottery 🔥

• started designing our next big product → shipping early August ✍🏽

Coming up soon 👀

We’re hosting week 3 of our 8-week webinar series this Sunday at 10am EST. This time, we will walk you through the legal essentials and visa regulations that you NEED to know as an international student.

We have also invited a partner that can help you get an H-1B visa, after graduating, without going through the lottery! Join our webinar to learn how it works :)

If you made it this far, you’re a real one! 🫶🏽

We sincerely thank you for taking the time to follow along as we continue to build products to support the millions of international students who risk it all and leave their homes in search of a better life abroad 🙏🏽

PSA - We want YOUR international student journey and story to be featured on our newsletter. Please email us at [email protected] with some of your background and we will be in touch :)

That’s all for this week’s newsletter, see you soon!