There was a long stretch of my life where I kept trying to follow the “right” way to connect: the pacing, the scripts, the unwritten rules people seem to absorb automatically. And every time I tried them, I felt like I was playing a character instead of actually showing up as myself. What I didn’t struggle with was connection itself. I’ve always known how to read people, how to follow the moment, how to let curiosity and energy guide a conversation. It was the performance of connection that exhausted me, not the connection. Eventually, I realized the problem wasn’t me. It was that I kept trying to use language I was never meant to speak. When I stopped forcing myself into formulas, relationships became easier, more natural, and actually enjoyable. Now I help people figure out what their relational style looks like — without scripts, games, or pretending to be someone they’re not.