In the current age there are so many challenges that can prevent us from building meaningfull connections with the people around us. Sometimes there are pandemics and othertimes we prefer online connections over a good conversation in real life.
That it becomes increasingly difficult to actually get to know somebody is unfortunate. But that it’s difficult doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. For example when going out with friends you might be on your phone because of a habit. The benefit that everyone uses their phone at any point is that when you are conscious about it you can change how you and your friends/family look at the phone. Instead of taking the initiative of looking on your phone take the initiative to remain looking around you and looking at the people you know. Instead of losing track of the people around you start losing track off the alerts on your phone. They can wait, they will still be there when you come home. Your friends wont be.
As the world becomes a more digital place, we cannot forget about the human connection. – Adam Neumann
When you learn to pay less and less attention to your phone when people around you are going to build better connections with them. No matter what is being said (or not said) anything will be better then hiding behind a screen. Earlier generations either never had a phone to bring with them or even better they had a phone but not a laptop in their pocket. Our recent mobiles turned into laptop and they are becoming even more useful than laptops. Because making a video or taking a quick photo is not something that a laptop can offer. While all these posibilities are extremely useful it also has it’s own set of negatives. When we need certain information instead of asking it to others we rather pull out our phone and search away. While asking something to a stranger may not seem bonding with someone, but it builds a skill to talk to different people.
Besides looking for the people around you for wisdom you can also communicate with them solely for the purpose of communication and connection with others. How long has it been since you spoke to a stranger? Granted during the pandemic it is/or wasn’t easy or even allowed to speak to everyone from close range. In order to feel connected to your environment be sure to say hello to strangers and sometimes start a small conversation you never know how much they might need it. The more you start connecting with strangers around you the quicker you will do the same for friends of friends who you meet and the more fun you will have. The more connections you build even small connections with strangers may end up being your favor in the future. You may have talked to someone now who ends up being your colleague in 5 years. You never know who you meet and what the advantage could be in the future.