As I work up to the ever awkward question, Can I join you, I'm learning that some people are much easier for me to approach. I saw Billy sitting alone at a row of three tables and asked the question posed in the title. Without fanfare he responded "no" and I sat. He was finishing a rice bowl and with no books or computer I could easily provide the distraction. He is very similar to me, (except for physical size) which made him easy to talk to. He is in his sophomore year studying electrical engineering. He works for some technology firm as a repair technician and is completely involved in electronics. He went to Brazil (the southern, cold part) on a "mission for [his] church" and is now trying to regain his educational footing. Billy was very easy to talk to and as he left he asked for my name for a second time. Maybe he was glad to make a new friend too.
I can draw some pretty vague conclusions so far,
1. The earlier in the day I meet someone, the less stressful the day is. Procrastinating it only causes anxiety and doubt.
2. As I can approach some people easily, it might take a few days to meet those people I find intimidating. I'm sure we find different types of people intimidating. My goal of this project is to overcome these fears completely, so that means one day I will have to make conversation with anyone from the mean looking arrogant guy in the jacked up truck, the cocky basketball player with low riding pants, or even the "hot chick" (don't get excited there's only one hot chick for me, and we've been married for 5 years) who seems oblivious to anyone without an extensive list of zeros at the end of their paycheck.
No comments:
Post a Comment