How to Win Friends? Learn now

It's that quality that draws you to someone. You've seen them... those people who always seem to be the life of the party (or the life of any situation really). Yeah sure, you may want to be like that person, to have that sort of attention (not mentioning the number of friends!), but how do you start? Well, read on and find out!

STEPS

1. Be Brave! Go up and approach somebody! Yeah, it's normally hard to start a conversation with a stranger and keep it going, especially if you're intimidated by a new atmosphere, a new situation (a new school, perhaps?) or whatever. But going up to somebody is the first step to making friends. Once you've got one person you know, then you gain more confidence and will be more willing to step out and make friends with somebody else next time. But you have to make the first move. (See TIPS for a general rule of thumb.)
2. Establish Eye Contact. This signals that you would like to get to know the person and people tend to trust somebody with whom they have eye contact. Don't overdo it though; you don't want to freak the other person out. When you're talking, you could pretend you're thinking and look at the wall (Read TIPS for more info on this)
3. Introduce Yourself. It's polite for one thing, and this opens up the avenue for them to introduce themselves. This also signals that you would like to get to know the person, and they may respond by wanting to get to know you too. People respond better to somebody they know the name of and the real bonus is that next time when they see you in a crowd of unknown faces (and when you're feeling intimidated by the unknown faces and feel lonely), they can call you by name and get your attention (instead of waving their arms wildly about or not trying to get your attention at all)and you won't have to get through the crowd alone. And if they don't introduce themselves, you can just casually ask their name: "Sorry, I didn't catch your name?" or "What was your name again?"
4. Be Interesting By Being Interested, and Avoid Awkward Silences. People like to talk about themselves, and who would blame them? It's the best subject they know, and they could go on for ages! So ask them questions about themselves. (see TIPS for good starting questions). The more you show that you would like to get to know more about the other person, the more they'll feel comfortable with you and (hopefully!) the more they'll like you. And voila! You've gained a friend (well...almost!)
5. Remember. If you remember one titbit of info about them (as well as their name, which is a real bonus!), then you can carry on the convo you had with them the last time and they will appreciate that you remembered something about them (though not all are likely to admit it!). This indicates that you value them (you took the time and brain memory to bring it up again!) and they may want to reciprocate. (see TIPS for a clue on how to remember their name and other stuff)
6. Give Compliments/Encouragement. How do you feel when someone tells you that you look good today? Or that you have the best set of teeth in the world? Or that they like your jacket? Exactly! People feel good when they receive compliments - it encourages them and they feel valued. Try not to give them random compliments though (like telling someone they have great teeth when they have braces!); they will realize that you're desperate to please and be liked and be likely not to believe you.
7. Be Confident In Yourself. If you don't feel confident in yourself, chances are that you show it. When people see that you don't believe in yourself, then they are likely to treat you the same way you treat yourself - with no respect. Write down a list of your excellent unique qualities and skills and carry this list around you when you feel your confidence drooping. Or, better still, make a list of all the things you can do, plus the things you're grateful for, in the morning before you tackle the day.

TIPS

WARNINGS