Shatter That Ice

I used to be an introvert. I was so shy in high school that I would just die if a girl talked to me. When I got to college things seemed to change for me. I think it was my suitemates that brought me out of my shell. After the first semester of school I was a flaming extrovert. This also may have been attributed to the fact that my bipolar disorder was causing me to be very manic throughout my college years. Whatever the cause was that made me an extrovert is not the point of this post. What is was how I started to feel about public speaking and breaking the ice with new people. When each class started at the beginning of the semester I would sit or stand in front of the class as though I were the professor. I would start talking to the class as though it were my own. I would ask a few questions like “How are you guys doing?” or “Been to any great parties lately?” I would ask all kinds of questions to get the class talking. Then eventually the professor would come in and the class would laugh because they realized I was just a student when I took my seat. I quickly became friends with many of the people in my classes. Another way I would break the ice was a simple deception. I was a monitor at the arena where the gyms were for the college. A lot of the athletes would come and go and it was my job to check everyone’s badge and make them sign in. I would then memorize their names. The next time I saw them I’d be like, “Hey Lucy! How are you doing?” Lucy would be shocked that I knew her name and ask me how I knew her. I would say something like, didn’t we meet in a class? Or weren’t you at a party recently? Anything very generic, to get them to think we had met before. They would vaguely remember and ask me what my name was again. And that’s how I was on a first name basis with many of the athletes at my school. I’m not saying you should be as bold as me, but I am saying don’t be afraid to break the ice, shatter it. Tear down your wall and meet as many people as possible. You never know who your next friend will be. Or maybe the next love of your life.