Like many others that are introverts by nature, I absolutely hate small talk. Quite honestly, I tend to use my cell phone as an excuse and a distraction to avoid small talk in places like waiting in line at the store or before events start or, most often, before class starts.
One day last semester before my anatomy class began, I was sitting in a lecture hall of over 150 people and I realized that not one single person was talking. The only sounds were quiet clicks of people texting and the occasional chuckle from someone that was watching a video or sending a funny snapchat.
I began to wonder, why in the world would so many intelligent people who are sitting together that also have a common interest in the topic of the class not have anything to say to one another? Moreover, why were we so interested in talking to other people through our screens instead of people that are physically next to us?
After noticing this trend of my peers (and myself) to spend our few spare minutes before class tweeting, texting, and snap chatting, instead of talking to each other, I decided that I needed to make a change for myself. Quite honestly, I felt like I was becoming addicted to my phone. So, my goal for this past semester has been to put my phone down before class and try to talk to people that are sitting near me.
The first day of class it was pretty easy to talk to the people around me. For the most part, everyone welcomed conversation and wanted to get familiar with the peers that would be spending the next 16 weeks together. Once we got past the usual, "what is your name and major" conversation, my inner introvert took over and it became a lot more difficult to have conversation. Did I keep my phone in my backpack every single day before class started? No, but I felt that as long as I continued to keep my phone away for a majority of the time and attempt to make small talk with my classmates, then maybe something good would happen.
Did I meet my newest best friend or a famous classmate? No, but as I continued to talk to the people around me, I realized that other people also stopped checking their phones for the few minutes and chat before class started as well. I also realized that I was developing good friendships with the people around me.
For the first time in my introverted college career, I had classmates with which I could compare homework questions and study. That might not seem ground-breaking, but for me it was incredibly comforting and affirming to know that my efforts to be more social had paid off with friendships.
Does small talk still stress me out? Yes! But I am so glad that I chose to put down my phone before class this semester and stop using it as an excuse to not feel awkward when talking to people that I didn't know well, and instead develop friendship with the people sitting with me in my classes. I am going to continue this challenge for myself for the rest of my college career. I invite and challenge others to do the same.
