Social Abnormalities Part 1

Today, I feel like it'd be a good day to elaborate on something people tend to greatly overlook. How to let people know in a nice way that you're either not very talkative, or that you don't want to talk with them. Some people in society are extremely talkative and want to be everyone's friend, whil some of us would much rather enjoy the quieter side of things. Personally, I feel that I'm someplace in between these two spectrums of reality, as are plenty of people.

A few good friends of mine don't exactly see eye to eye, and that's not because of any past hostilities, or any major issues between them, they just don't mesh well together, which is understandable. There are close to 8 billion people in this world, you're not going to be able to get along with all of them. Anyway, back to the story/lesson here. One of my friends, the more social one, came up to me and was attempting to hold a conversation with the entire group of us, the group being a bit more reserved and less talkative. Personality wise they don't exactly mix well, one would overpower the others, and the others would feel slightly claustrophobic, in a sense.

In this little scenario,there are three possible outcomes, which many more could fit into. The first of which, would be the more social person could change how they act oh so slightly, by possibly quieting down a little, and speaking less frequently, turning the attention back to the group instead of themselves. The second would be for the group to adapt to the social person slightly, by paying some attention to them, but not exactly talking directly to or about them. It's a bit more difficult to change an entire group's outlook than it is to change one person's, but it's a possibility nonetheless. The last of the three is the one I find most common and most effective, the use of a Bridge.

"What is a Bridge?" you may find yourself asking. Well, a bridge is the name I've come up with for people as myself. Normally we'd be accepted by both the group and the singular social person, and most of the time, the more social person is looking for the Bridge for one reason or another. Either way, the Bridge would be used as a connector of the two, swapping between both the reserved group and the social person, combining the conversations and building them into each other. Most times this may just be used to get through the small incursion, but some times it also bridges the way for the group to be more accepting of this outsider.

Which ever way it goes over, the easiest way is to appease and not reject. If someone comes up to talk to you, even if it's a salesman in a mall or a passerby in the hallway to class, just smile and say hello. Trade a few words, then continue on your way. It'll leave both you and the passerby in a better mood, and would open the door to new friendships and possibilities in the future.

I hope this has helped, and I hope you all have a lovely day.