My footsteps seemed impossibly loud as I walked into the classroom, and it felt as if everyone was watching me. I glanced around, taking in the unfamiliar eyes staring me down.

I'm never going to fit in here.

One of the eyes turned away from me and began to speak. She formed strange sounds with her mouth in a language that wasn't familiar to me. I turned around and ran out of the room, feeling so alone, so deserted. Salty tears stained my cheeks.

A week ago, I had taken a 14 hour long flight from

Generic_City to Generic_City. It was my first time being somewhere else other than my home country, and I felt so intimidated by the new environment. Strange shapes, strange sounds, and strange people with impossibly bright hair and piercing eyes surrounded me. It was all beautiful to me - but at the same time, the most horrifying thing I'd ever seen. I felt trapped in a haze. This haze was brimming with thoughts of never fitting in, never adapting to these alien surroundings, and mostly - the crushing feeling of homesickness.

This haze pushed me down into a deep cavern, and I was encapsulated by darkness. Even though my parents tried to find me in this cavern, every search effort was in vain, until something miraculous happened. An angel, perhaps, entered the deep labyrinth and ushered me out. Her name was Ms. Generic_Name. She gave me a new perspective, a new bias. Ms. Generic_Name told me to view this unfamiliar atmosphere as something special, a new opportunity - not a hostile monster trying to swallow me whole. She told me to be glad of the change in my life. This was the first time I had ever listened to somebody's opinion and savored it in my heart. I didn't know the importance of listening to the viewpoints of others at the time. I thought

I

always knew what was best; after all, nobody knew me better than myself. I took her words and used them as fuel for learning English and making friends. I thought her words were all I needed, but somehow, I was still in despair. I still struggled. So - I decided to let someone else tell me what they thought was best.

After school, I talked with my parents. I told them what I felt, that I was always alone. That I felt so, so homesick. They told me it was good to feel that way. Moving overseas was a tough thing to endure, and they said it was healthy to let myself feel down sometimes. They told me I didn't always need to pretend I was happy when I was not. These two opinions from Ms. Generic_Name and my parents shaped me as a person - I learned to let people in, and know that seeking multiple opinions is a wise thing to do. Because of this, I learned to speak English and surround myself with a group of compassionate, kind friends who guided me through my darkest times. I learned to let in my parents and take notice that they always wanted what was best for me. I learned that I didn't always know what was best, and that was okay.

I can't name all the things I've earned through listening to multiple opinions. But, I can name the many benefits of listening to multiple people. Everyone has gone through unique things. After all, our lives are not the same. What people have experienced shape them as a person, and since we're all different, some people may offer advice that's helpful to you while others may not. You'll never know if you've sought out the best advice if you only listen to one person.

If you hear multiple pieces of advice, you can learn new things, such as I did. As mentioned earlier, not everyone has gone through the same things. If someone has been through something that you haven't, it can prepare you for the future and teach you a lesson. Also, people have different biases. If you only hear one side of an argument and not the other, you can't know for sure which side you stand for. Since you don't know anything about the other standpoint, you can't make an accurate conclusion.

Finally, people have blind spots, because we're only human. One person could have partially helpful advice, and another person might have the guidance that the other was missing. If you've heard "incomplete" advice, such as I have, it may not help you as much as it could. If you listen to someone else's opinion, they may correct the blind spot. This would help you to the full potential.

Seeking multiple opinions is an important thing to do. When you're stuck in an impasse, these pieces of advice could be the only things to get you unstuck. Multiple opinions can help you know that you've found the best advice possible, teach you something new, and make sure you've received all the guidance you need. So, ask multiple people for their opinion. You never know what it could teach you. 