What me talk to strangers?

Many people find it difficult to talk to strangers. What will I say? What will I do, will they like me ? or just What will they think of me? Yet at the same time speaking to new people (strangers) is the only realistic way to meet new people and expand your circle of friends or business contacts – so what is it we find so difficult?

Your parents will have told you never to talk to strangers or take anything from them. Remember stranger danger? It’s great for the safety of children, but a different psychological hurdle. It holds us back subconsciously judging strangers as people to be feared. Yet if we don’t meet and enjoy new friends our social circles will continue to get smaller and smaller. In effect you can become stuck.

In essence as the saying goes you will need to kiss many frogs to find a prince. In other words some of the time it’s not going to work we are going to fail we will be let down. But in practice we will turn up people with whom we go get on and whom we do trust

Each person you come in contact with tells you something about the world they will have their opinions but if they judge you harshly – Do they have to be right or would you prefer to believe yourself? Most likely they are having an off day and need someone to take it out on. SO move on don’t dwell on the incident there are plenty of others out there.

So start by smiling, it makes you more approachable – ask open questions and ask the other person about them. Comment positively about them all of these are good first moves to a friendship.