4 Ways to Sharpen Your Social Skills

Social skills are a vibrant part of life. They help us connect and share with each other, they help us grow and learn, not to mention they help us feel heard and understood. Social skills are an incredibly important skill that school do not always teach. Having the ability to socialize brings meaning and value to our life. Some of us are more skilled in this area, some of us could use improvement in this area. Either way, maybe you need a little guidance on how to improve your social skills?

Here are 4 ways to sharpen your social skills:

1. Overcome mental blocks:

   Try and let go of things holding you back mentally. Some of us shy away from conversations or meeting new people due to the fear of being judged. Let go of the “what if” thinking mentality and challenge yourself to be brave.

2. Create a safe mental space for yourself:

   By feeling safe in your own body you can regulate your nervous system. This can help you stay connected and grounded. You can create a safe space through calming techniques, meditations and grounding exercises. Use your senses to bring yourself back into the social space you are in.

3. Approach someone new:

   Go and say hi to a new person. This can be a challenge if we are worried about judgement and do not feel safe. Make it fun, and try an ice breaker to reduce your tension. A great way to do this is by using a joke or laughing to make the conversation flow and reduce your anxiety.

4. Go to a new place:

   Visit a new place and try to venture outside of your comfort zone. Getting out of your routine can help you learn to confront your fears. Start small, go to somewhere new within a proximity of your comfort zone and then branch off from there. This will also make your goal more attainable.

Social skills are such an important, under rated skill. To be successful and live our life to the fullest we need connection and a sense of belonging. Social skills can help us create a sense of community to live life alongside our family, friends and people of the world.

Our Therapists Share 6 Social Skills for a Healthier You

Humans are social beings. We seek connection, unity and inclusiveness. As we grow older it becomes more difficult to connect with others. We become more selective, stricter with social guidelines of whom we could befriend. Socializing can feel like hard work for many of us. What if there was a way that could help us socialize more openly, with confidence and positivity?

Here are 6 ways to help you regain connections and better socialize with others:

1. Be open minded:

   Realize that having an open mind is a key to making new lasting relationships. Going into a new place, event or social setting as if you are ready to make friends and listen to others. This mindset will help you attract the people you want to create new relationships with.

2. Love yourself:

   By loving and knowing who you are you can be more confident. Go into an event knowing what you bring to your relationships and portray this. This confidence can help others be more attracted to your energy, which will also make you appear to be more socially available.

3. Practice what you want to say:

   By rehearsing and reciting how to introduce yourself, you can make yourself less nervous about the event. Having a couple of funny lines or stories is a great way to meet people. We tend to gravitate to stories about dogs, pets, babies and common interests. Come up with a way to gain potential connections by having a couple of lines that you want to say.

4. Find people with common interests

   People like you, want to be friends with you. The key here is you have find them. Having similar interests makes us automatically more likely to connect and be more able to socialize with each other. When we have similarities a group or bond can naturally grow.

5. Know your non-negotiables:

   We all have those pet peeves or values that are deal breakers in any relationship. Go into a socially setting knowing what your non-negotiable are. For some people it is telling the truth, for others it is a specific sense of humor, or possibly even an affinity for dogs. Know what your deal breakers are in a relationship and if you hear them when you are getting to know someone, realize this may be ultimately what breaks the relationship.

6. Go out and practice:

   Try, try and try again. The more you expose yourself to social settings and new people, the more practice you will have in socializing. This will make you better equipped to meet others and help you lower any social anxiety. Take baby steps and slowly but surely put yourself out there. You can do this!

Socializing in this post pandemic era is a struggle. Humana want to feel as a part of a community and culturally some of us seek this more often as well. People have become very used to isolation and are not even aware of how our social skills may have regressed. It is important to be empathetic with yourself, and help yourself get back out there again. Trying to connect, gaining more confidence in your social abilities and finding a great group of friends are all things you can accomplish.

Have you heard about our Serene Mind Social Skills Groups? Coming this fall we will have a social skills group for kids, teens and young adults. Each group will be geared to a different age group. We hope you come socialize with us!