Need some help convincing?

“But where do you get your protein? ”

You’ve probably been asked this question many times. More than often, you’ve probably hit some bumps in the road when it comes to convincing your family members, co-workers, friends, and even strangers what a Vegan is and how your lifestyle choice works for you. With the holiday get-togethers rolling on in expect to get a lot of questions, but here’s a list of tips and answers to help you on through:

(1) Create a yummy vegan dish to share.

Be sure to start off with what I call “transitional foods.” Best place would be a vegan dessert. Try baking some vegan cookies to bring to a holiday potluck, or even a vegan pie or cake that’s sure to please event the sweetest tooth. From then on move on to “comfort foods” like vegan mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, macaroni/potato salads, and veggie burgers. These would be great for barbeques and will lightly transition their palates from what they are used to. My favorite thing to do is to first have them try the dish, get their praise about the dish, and then casually tell them “it’s vegan too.” Their surprised faces are worth it ;)

(2) Introduce them to other Vegans.

Did you know that Vegans make up less than 1% of the U.S. population? A lot of times the people who can’t relate to you being vegan like to single you out because you are the only one that they know. Solution, introduce them to other Vegans! Go out all together and they’ll see that the way you order and plan out your meals are actually very typically, and in some cases necessary, for a vegan diet.

(3) Plan ahead and go to places that have a variety of vegan dishes.

Being the only Vegan in my family I am faced with going to restaurants that have no vegan options. I am then posed with the statement “you should be thankful that you have food, just eat what they have!” To avoid this, PLAN AHEAD. Call the restaurant and let them know your dietary needs. I have to admit that in some occasions I’ve actually used the statement “I have dietary allergies.” Trust me, a restaurant responds more to the word “allergy” than “vegan.”

(4) Explain the reason for your choice.

We each have our own reasons for choosing this lifestyle. Sticking to this lifestyle shows how dedicated we are to that reason, so share it. Whether it is for health concerns, animal cruelty, or religion, do as much research as you can on the topic and be ready to make a full presentation and come up with rebuttals. The more dedicated you look in front of them the more they will see how important it is to you. For example, my reason is animal cruelty. I try to explain what happens and even show them pictures and videos of animal cruelty if need be. However, don’t force it on them. Ask and if they agree to see it then show them. I find that persuasion without force is the best way.

(5) Relate veganism to something important to them.

What are they passionate about? What’s their religion? Do they love the environment? Do they love animals? There are many ways to relate veganism to someone’s passion. In other words, bring it all the way home. It’s a good conversation starter and it’ll definitely spark their interest. For example, my father is Buddhist and relating compassion to veganism is what I do. I even did a little research and was able to find a lot of evidence on Buddhism supporting veganism. How can you argue with that?

These are just some tips and pointers to help bring some stress relief to some of you having problems convincing the family members or planning holiday dinners. Just remember that if all else fails, some people just can’t be swayed. Just take comfort in knowing that we all go through it and support each other.

Anyone else got helpful tips?