I helped a guy buy makeup and the world didn't explode
Last night during a romantic evening walk across campus with my boyfriend as we enjoyed the first chills of fall, I decided to duck into the nearby CVS to buy some nail polish to commemorate the change of season. (Nail polish is one of my many retail addictions, and Zach helped me pick out a lovely dark blue and burgundy which I immediately put on.)
While we were there, I noticed a guy I'd seen around campus nervously browsing the makeup isle, hands subtly hiding a few hickies hanging out on his neck. Scared and embarrassed, he had no idea what he was looking for.
After picking out my (gorgeous (thank you Revlon!)) shades, I walked over, motioning to his neck and asked him if he needed a little help. "Not a makeup person?" I asked. "No," they nervously giggled. "I've never done this before."
I gave him Wet n' Wild's Coverall Color Corecting pallet, explaining that the yellow would balance the purple, and the green the redness, and helped pick out a foundation color right for him. Keeping in mind that this wouldn't be something he'd be using often, I kept it in the low price range, constantly reassuring him there was nothing to be embarrassed about.
I mean, how many of us have had that awkward "oh god, I hope mom doesn't see this!" period of trial and error?
After we left, Zach made a comment about me being a nice person that took me off guard. "You probably just saved him a lot of time," he said.
This got me thinking. Why don't we help people more often?
I've noticed a similar mentality surrounding compliments over the last year. After reading an article encouraging people not to be afraid of complimenting strangers, I took it upon myself to try it out. I dish out around 3-6 random compliments a day to people I don't know. Whether I like their hair, their shirt, their shoes or their smile, I do my best to let them know. I have people tell me all the time they wish more people behaved that way.
My point is, don't be ashamed to do something nice for other people. At the end of the day, he needed information I've had years of experience with. Gender or how little I knew him had nothing to do with it- I had the opportunity to make his life easier, so I took it.
So whether it's telling somebody their outfit is on point, or helping somebody cover up a night of fun, don't be afraid to speak up and brighten somebody else's day. You never know how much they need it.