A Lesson About Going To Meet Ups
I love the excitement of meeting new people. It gives me the opportunity to practice showing up in an authentic way.
We humans are engineered to be social and tribal. For centuries our survival depended on it. That human connection helps us grow as people and become the best versions of ourselves.
Last night I went to a Meet up event for people between the ages of 20 and 45. It was cool. I met some people whom I wouldn’t have met otherwise. We talked and laughed and just shot the breeze. It was easy.
What I learned is that when I’m being authentic, people usually reciprocate that behavior. It’s something magical that happens when you give someone a genuine smile and have an interest in who they are.
A couple of months ago I learned that a lot of us walk around with the same insecurities. We are afraid of being judged and truly just want to be liked.
When I was talking to this guy last night he seemed a little standoffish as if he really wasn’t interested in talking to me. Once I noticed it, I said to myself, maybe I’m laying it on a little thick. Let me stop with the generic canned questions “like what do you do”.
I also changed my mindset and focused on making the guy feel accepted. After awhile, he became quite chatty and I learned some cool things about his interests and his personality.
It’s easy to judge people and create a story about who they are and how they perceive us. But when we can put that aside and come from a place of value and who we want to be in the world, we can open the door for some cool possibilities like making a new best friend.
I see going to Meet up events as an opportunity to not only meet new and interesting people, but to also practice my emotional intelligence and how I interact with others. I can treat it as an opportunity to indulge my curiosity and connect with people in a real way. I can build community and improve how I engage with others. I can treat it as research for my writing. I can use it as a way to get myself deeply rooted in my city.
So what’s your story? How will you go out and connect with the world?
