So I'm standing in the elevator of my building, next to this one girl who I must have passed 78 times by the end of this semester, give or take. As soon as the elevator door closes, she immediately pulls out her cell phone, doing everything in her power to avoid eye contact as if in this moment she just saw the most interesting thing in the world pop up. Coincidental, right? Naturally, I pull out my phone and scroll mindlessly through non-existant texts, old emails, or my Instagram newsfeed, which I have probably seen already. Because making eye contact is a legitimate crime in college. And for what feels like an hour, we stand in silence because God forbid someone actually says something.

Is it just me, or does it ever bother you how anti-social technology has made us? I know that parents and adults constantly tease us about this and yell at us to get off our phones at family dinners, but it wasn't until I got to college that it really made me think about how phones are used as a shield from others. And the sad truth is: we're all guilty of it.

As college students, we go in and out of elevators everyday. You know, to eat, see our friends, and maybe go to the occasional class. We're given the opportunity to meet someone new everyday, yet most of us fail to take advantage of it. We conform to this culture of "unfriendliness" because we see everyone else behaving this way and are under the impression that this is normal. But is it?

Here's another classic example. You're walking to class, taking in the beautiful scenery around you, then boom: you see someone you know coming from the opposite direction. Now, let's say this person is not someone you're close with aka not your best friend, your roommate, your "big," or your sorority sister. It could just be the girl you sat next to one time in your science class or your best friend's boyfriend's roommate, who've you've clearly met multiple times. You give a warm smile and are about to open your mouth to say "hey," when you realize that they've made eye contact with you for a split second, only to return their eyes back to their phone and completely ignore you. Excuse me, what? I know that you saw me, okay. WHAT is wrong with us and WHY do we do this to each other?! Well, there's a number of reasons.

1. Some people think they are too cool for school. Newsflash: you are not. If you are one of these people, you should probably re-evaluate your life because if you keep it up, you won't even have any "friends" to continue not saying "hi" to.

2. Fear of rejection: we get scared to say "hi" to someone we don't know that well because we think "this person is going to judge me for being friendly." Because in our generation, being friendly is considered a "sign of weakness."

3. We use our phones as a justifiable excuse for why we ignore people. But guess, what? It's not justifiable and unless you are the President of the United States, or maybe Beyonce, I'm pretty sure you can spare 10 seconds off of your phone.

So the real question is: how do we change this? I'm not gonna lie and pretend that I am always this super friendly, social butterfly, who has zero fears of talking to people I am not that familiar with. It's scary to go out of your comfort zone, it is. But the most important thing to remember is: it's worth a try.

True life: one time at a party, a girl walked up to me and goes, "OMG, I follow you on Instagram!" I have never met this girl in my life and here she was approaching a total stranger just because it was in her human nature to be friendly to others. As I looked back at her, I immediately recognized her face and name, and we started laughing at how funny it was that we knew each other without "really knowing each other." There should be more people like her in this world.

Was what she said bold? Yes. Risky? Yes. But a mistake? Definitely not. We realized that our hometowns were coincidentally near each other and then exchanged phone numbers before leaving the party. Since then, we have texted several times, and always say "hi" to each other in passing. It just goes to show that worrying about being "awkward" or "weird" is a waste of time. Just go for it!

So when you're done reading this article, pick your head up and think about how you can make an effort to pay more attention to the people around you. Even choosing to not look at your phone in the elevator is rebellious in itself because it shows the other person that you are at least willing to make conversation. Ask someone in the elevator if they know anyone taking a certain class. Tell someone to have a good night when getting off the elevator. Compliment someone's outfit. Go say hi to someone at a party who's visiting from your high school or from another college, who you may not have seen in years, but who you know still remembers you. People appreciate friendliness and those who don't are destined to live miserable lives, trust me. So be friendly and be bold, because you never know what friendships could come from it.