I desperately want people to know that I'm gay, and I'd like to let other young men around me know that I'm looking for a boyfriend. I'm very submissive and generally keep to myself. Every time that I've tried to come out in the past, I've always taken it back or said it was a joke after i got too afraid. :help:
Don't come out unless you're ready to. And what I mean by that is you don't have to let people know until you yourself are okay with it. I don't advertise my orientation, but I don't hide it either. If people ask, I'll tell them the truth but only because I'm okay with it. Just came out to my family recently, and to be honest I'm not sitting too well with it. But I think it takes time.
While I'm sure that you're eager to come out and find someone to connect with, it's important that that's not the only reason you're doing it. Like Jax12 said, you don't need to advertise. If you're ready to come out when you're ready to come out, then if you affirm it when it comes up in conversation, people are going to believe you. The hard part is sticking to it, I know. Coming out is one of the scariest things you can do in your life. But when you're ready to come out, you'll know. And you'll stick to it. There's no rush. So don't rush yourself. You'll know when it's the right moment for you, and it'll be easier to keep yourself from taking it back.
It definitely takes time. Some of my friends came out in high school and had the shittiest time. Although I was dying to get a girlfriend and felt like a coward for hiding in the closet, I feel college was the right time for me to come out.
It's perfectly fine to only let select people know at first, people you know you can trust and be open with. Not everyone is going to like the news, but that doesn't matter in the big picture. What truly matters is that at the end of your days, that you do not regret the life you've lived. If you know that you are gay, and that is your true self, you wouldn't want to keep your true self hidden all of your life. Don't die with your music still inside of you. Each and every person is a unique, beautiful, divine being purposely put here right where we are, right when we are, and just how we are. Don't question if your true nature is good or bad, because it can't be bad if it is your honest self. We come from a source greater than ourselves, yet, we are part of that source, an extension of all that is. When we express ourselves fully and honestly, we fulfill our personal destinies.
