Just Passers-By

Have you ever noticed the loss for words, or even body gestures, that you seem to have when you see someone you know on the sidewalk between classes? Do you freeze up and avoid the situation and keep walking without saying hello or even nodding your head? Turns out this lack of communication has overcome the world we live in here at Brigham Young University.

The awkwardness that we experience isn’t necessarily because we don’t want to say hello. The problem is rooted in our self-confidence. The root of the problem can be summed up, from my observations, as the lack of confidence that we hold when approaching other people in a social atmosphere. This may seem weird, since BYU is full of social bugs, but the cold hard truth is that we don’t have the confidence to even make eye contact with someone as we walk by them

I experience this day in day out while walking the walks of campus. As the person who approaches me gets closer and closer, we tend to look at each other quickly and then quickly act as if we don’t see each other at all. It’s as if the sidewalk has more worth than the person that is walking past.

The question still remains, as I am still at a loss for an answer. Why do we ignore each other? Give us your theory by posting on our blog. Be sure to ask your friends. You can also join our Facebook group and let us hear your experiences. You can find the Facegroup by searching for Missed Communications.

-Mitch Staley