Here’s how I tend to respond when I enter a room full of people I don’t know:
- I find something to occupy my time – Play with my phone, doodle on paper, read my Kindle (you wonder why I carry this stuff…)
- I pretend I don’t see people…often I don’t…but I’m likely to pretend just in case.
- I hide in the lobby until the last possible moment…
- I find someone I do know and latch on to them…
- I secretly hope some likable Extrovert will approach me and break the ice… (Really, it’s not that I don’t want to talk, it’s just starting the conversation that’s often difficult.)
Replace kindle and phone with book and DS, and that's me. Well, also, I'm not a huge talker, especially with ice breaking/small talk kinda thing.
ReplyDeleteinteresting...
ReplyDeletewhat do I do when I enter a room full of strangers?
hiding until the last possible moment - yes. also making an escape at the earliest possible moment.
trying to find something I can pretend I'm doing - somehow it seems more acceptable to stand around holding a cup of tea than without a cup of tea; looking at a noticeboard/poster/picture on the wall is a way of pretending to be doing something sane and normal whilst all you're doing is trying to blend into the background whilst wondering what on earth you're doing here and how long before you can go.
not sure about pretending not to see people, with me it's more a case of looking around but not being sure about the appropriate level of eye contact, sometimes I smile at people and I've been told that the message in my smile reads "keep away" which is totally not what I mean by it, I'm just wanting to seem friendly but haven't a clue how to start a conversation...
which is why, yes, if I find someone I do know I'll latch onto them...
and yes, I do very much hope that a likeable extrovert will come and rescue me... I need someone to get a conversation going...