Why I Stopped Fighting for a Seat at the Wrong Table
I came across a post on social media about the "Chair Theory," and for some reason, it stayed with me long after I finished reading it. It was one of those simple ideas that quietly make you stop and reflect on the people in your life. The theory asks us to imagine life as a large dinner table. At the tables where you truly belong, people naturally pull out a chair for you. They make space because they genuinely want you there. You don't have to ask. You don't have to convince them. You don't have to become someone else just to deserve a seat. Then there are the other tables. The ones where you stand awkwardly, hoping someone notices you. The ones where you constantly wonder if you've said the wrong thing, if you're interesting enough, or if you simply need to try harder. You find yourself doing more, giving more, and sacrificing more, hoping that one day someone will finally say, "Come, sit with us." That thought hit me harder than I expected be...