Introducing one heck of a human, Tommy Murray, this week’s #FreeToBeFeature!

Name/Age/Pronouns: Tommy Murray, 19, he/him

Hobbies: Basketball, Golf, Volleyball, Walking around downtown Chicago with my friends, Walking or just sitting with music playing

How do you think you come across to others?:

I hope I come across as an authentic and trustworthy person. I’m a very attentive person, especially within groups, so that makes it easy for me to tell how people within a group are feeling. I try my best to reach out to people, mainly if they seem overwhelmed with something or if we haven’t caught up in a while. I like to be super honest with people which can be good and bad, but I hope people realize that my opinions and input are genuine which is more valuable than a fake opinion just to appease others. I’m a very passionate person, especially when doing something I enjoy. Sometimes it blends into a form of competitiveness, but it also allows me to bring energy into what I am doing. Ideally, I’d like people to view me as a confident person; however, among people I don’t know well, I struggle being completely confident and its definitely something I’m working on.

What do you think people wrongly think of you?:

This is tough to answer. If I truly knew the answer I would probably change an aspect of how I act around others. I’d have to echo my good friend Hayden Miller’s answer about people thinking I have my life together. While I’m super happy and content with where I’m at mentally, academically, and socially, there is a lot of stress in my everyday life that I deal with on my own time and cover-up in public. I also think some people would imagine my life to be super care-free and easy. While I am super blessed and fortunate, a lot of people don’t actually know a lot about me other than my Instagram posts or Snapchat stories which means they don’t know about my work ethic or what influenced me to become the person I am today.

What are you looking to attract more of into your life?:

I’m hoping to attract more outgoingness in my life. Sometimes I’ll be super tired of socializing at a point, and even though it’s good to take breaks once in a while, college is meant to push you out of your comfort zone. With that being said, I know that living in RowHouse with 8 people next year will force this growth upon me in a good way, and I’m excited to meet a lot of new people. In terms of a more personal decision, I need to read more. I probably haven’t read a book outside of school work in like four years and I’m at the age where reading is super beneficial heading into my career.

How would you describe your relationship with yourself?:

It’s definitely always changing. I was super short growing up (4’11 entering freshman year of hs) so I always felt insecure or overlooked. I never really felt comfortable talking unless it was within my group of close friends. The only time I was confident was while playing sports. Because of social media, I was super envious of others, whether it be their social life or popularity. However, over the past three years, my mindset has changed a lot. For starters, I grew physically (6’0 now, cheers) which helped a lot with my confidence. I also realized how staged social media is and that everyone’s life is going to be framed up perfectly when they’re picking and choosing what they share to their followers. My first real semester of college was the first period of time I was able to enter a new environment with this new mindset and confidence. I was meeting a ton of new people at once, and none of them had known the 4’11 kid that walked into his first day of high school so it felt very empowering. I’ve also focused on surrounding myself with people that I actually enjoy to be around and bring the best out of me. This means finding a close-knit group of friends that I feel super comfortable and valued amongst, which I’m super fortunate to have.

What makes you feel loved?: Being around my family and close friends. Being comfortable having meaningful or personal conversations with someone. Being recognized for something I did well or the effort I put in. Check-in texts and calls from my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins etc.

All-time fav scent?: My grandma baking banana bread

Soundtrack of your life?:
I never really have a soundtrack. I more just have one song that I’ll play on repeat for 5 days and then never touch again for a year. Right now that song is “I Wanna Help Your Mind” by Goth Babe. Last song was “White Teeth Teens” by Lorde.