Recently, I came to know of the phenomenon known as the Seattle Freeze. It is essentially an occurrence in which Seattleites seem to be distant and cold, or not as interpersonally inclined.
For instance, say you were wandering the streets of downtown Seattle and you would notice that individuals on the street seem to mind their own business and go about their days, with little regard to what you’re doing. It can be viewed as both a blessing and “curse,” for lack of a better term, in my opinion.
From my own personal experience, it seems that everyone either has their own circle or is a lone wolf, traveling and doing things on their own. If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to take closer notice the next time you find yourself in a coffee shop or other public place; I guarantee you will find this to be true.
Honestly, I can’t complain because I like this culture where you can be on your own and it’s considered a norm, you’re not considered an anomaly in your community for doing so. At the same time, it can also be considered a hurdle when trying to get to know people and develop lasting relationships.
In order to transcend this barrier, it takes more effort than you’d expect to establish a good sense of closeness and trust in the rather frozen atmosphere. In order to melt that external barrier down, you have to go out of your way to take the initiative to strike up a conversation or bring out the warmth in a person.
Right off the bat, a typical Seattleite may not open up, but it’s a process and soon enough you’ll find that your closest friends may be the ones that you were once scared to approach (seems ironic, I know).
Now that I think about it, I may be both the “perpetrator’ of the Seattle Freeze and the victim. In my neighborhood, I have rarely ever exchanged words with our neighbors… and I have lived in the same house, with the same neighbors across the street, for 13 years.
At the same time, they have never reached out to say hello or engage in conversation, so I guess it’s mutual. Instances like these are not abnormal in Seattle’s cold, dreary environment, and it simply could mean that people are too busy to take a second look or stop for conversation. I would assume that a similar phenomenon is present in other major cities.
To overcome this freeze, you just have to remain persistent and venture out of your comfort zone as much as possible, and you’ll definitely see the results.
