College. It’s a time where students work toward getting a degree and figuring out their futures through a blur of sleep deprivation and overwhelming stress.
But college is about much more than getting an education and handling busy schedules. For a lot of us, it’s a time when we start becoming the people we want to be for the rest of our lives.
In high school, our worlds were condensed in small groups of friends. College is a whole new world, where suddenly you realize you can be anybody you want to be. You start making more serious decisions, ones based less on “fitting in” and more on your personal preferences.
But as soon as you start living your life the way you want, your peers will be waiting on the sidelines, judging where you belong in the world of stereotypes.
When I was a freshman, some of my coworkers were talking about the possibility of going on a camping trip. I was enthusiastic about the idea, and one girl gave me a confused look and said, “I didn’t think you’d want to go. You’re a girly girl!”
I assume she had seen me around wearing dresses, and putting two and two together, she labeled me a “girly girl.” I’d never even had a genuine conversation with her.
Not only was she reducing who I am to one phrase — “girly girl” — but she was also making a generalization about me based on just one part of who I am: my physical appearance.
The way I dress doesn’t have anything to do with whether I like to go camping, but it made me realize how easily people jump to conclusions.
Am I a female? Yes. Am I a girly girl? No, because there’s no such thing.
Even if the term “girly girl” made sense, would that simple label define who I am as a person? Absolutely not.
I wear dresses because I love wearing dresses. I wear makeup because I think it’s fun. Yes, I use Pinterest, and I’ve spent more time than I’m willing to admit looking at pictures of cute animals on the Internet.  
But I don’t do any of these things because I’m trying to identify with a certain category or stereotype, and I certainly don’t do anything to please others. Quite simply, I do what I want and I do it for me.
Show me a list of reasons why you think I’m a girly girl, and I’ll show you a list of boys I’ve beaten at Super Smash Bros. Stereotypes are meaningless.
There’s no single characteristic that defines who I am, because who I am is a complex intersection of all the different aspects of my personality.
Anyone who makes generalizations about others based off of race, gender, physical appearance or any one facet of a personality ignores the complexity of what it means to be human.
As we all trudge through life and learn more about ourselves, there are always going to be people who think they know you better than you do.
Whether you want to dye your hair pink, change your major or try a whole new lifestyle, the most important goal should be your personal happiness. There will always be people out there who criticize you, but in the end, any energy spent judging others is wasted.
So don’t worry about being perceived as a “girly girl,” or a “hipster” or “nerdy.” Categories like those mean nothing in the grand scheme of things. No matter where you go, people will try to place you into meaningless stereotypes.
College should be a time when we step out of our comfort zones and leave behind our insecurities.
Judgment is inevitable, especially in a college setting. But it’s important to keep an open mind and ignore the criticism thrown your way. You do you. After all, no one can do you better than you do.
Shirin Chowdhury is a 20-year-old English junior from Manhattan, Kansas. You can reach her on Twitter @TDR_schowd.