Hubby and I went to a little get together at his friend Jim’s house, which included Jim’s girlfriend and his friend.
The anticipation of a social activity still makes me anxious, but I did it! Yes, I made five or more faux pas (that I know of), but I just ignored it. In certain situations, hubby helped me out with an explanation of what the person was talking about, and he did it in a way that wouldn’t seem odd.
I suppose I can come across as odd, but I don’t care as much anymore. A part of it is because I’m in my forties, so I am not as self-conscious as a twenty-something. The other part is learning social skills by rote, which hubby, my mum and my kids have taught me.
I also learn by observing. For example, I noticed that in a non-personal, know-the-person-well social situation, only say things that last at the most 15 seconds. A minute means talking with a person individually if they bring up the topic first. Even then, say something for 15 seconds then wait for them to say something.
I also learned to follow the leader. No one brought up work, so I didn’t even thought my small business is something I enjoy talking about. But, I will save that for talking with other business owners, which I am learning also, but that’s another blog post.
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