I have heard from multiple people that eye contact is essential in letting a girl (or guy, I guess) know you’re interested.

But what is the 411 when it comes to said eye contact? Do you keep looking until she does? Do you then keep staring? Or is like looking at the sun? What’s the deal?

  • @NineMileTower
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    2102 months ago

    You won’t get good answers on social cues from Lemmy. You might get good Linux tips though.

  • pirate-dad
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    452 months ago

    From my experience, if you make eye contact, look away briefly, then look back. If she’s still looking at you, hold eye contact for a moment and smile. If she likes you, she’ll likely smile back.

    If she’s purposely avoiding making eye contact the second time, don’t be a creep, carry on with your day 👌

    • @[email protected]
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      152 months ago

      There’s a very thin line between the longing look of admiration and the cold gaze of a serial killer.

    • tired_n_bored
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      2 months ago

      No no no. If she’s purposely avoiding eye contact you have to stare at her with wide open eyes and a big smile.

      If she walks away follow her, if she starts running away from you, run after her. She’s telling you to come over.

      That’s how you conquer a woman /s

  • @[email protected]
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    382 months ago

    In her book “How to talk to anyone” Leil Lowndes suggests that when speaking with women it’s best to maintain constant, unbroken eye contact to signal attention and interest. She goes on to note that even when engaged in conversation with multiple people one should act as if their eyes are constantly glued to the woman, only briefly looking away when another person is speaking and behaving as if your eyes are irresistibly drawn back to the woman of interest. She believes this formula is best in male to female conversations and female to female conversation.

    By contrast, she notes that when engaged in a male to male conversation, one should regularly break eyecontact as not to be perceived as a threat. However, one should still act as if your eyes are being irresistibly drawn back to theirs.

    … I have no idea what Lowndes’s qualifications are and frankly this sounds like a formula written by an alien trying to understand humans but hey maybe theres some merrit to it idk

    • Tiefling IRL
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      392 months ago

      She goes on to note that even when engaged in conversation with multiple people one should act as if their eyes are constantly glued to the woman, only briefly looking away when another person is speaking and behaving as if your eyes are irresistibly drawn back to the woman of interest.

      Honestly, as a woman, if a man started doing this to me in a group I’d be freaked the fuck out

      • Vanth
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        242 months ago

        Yep. As if women would never perceive men as a threat based on the same signals men would use to perceive threat.

        Men, logical and hunter warrior manly men. Women, attention seekers. Therefore, stare down pretty women to show manly manness.

        Alpha bro evo psych is so wild.

        • @finitebanjo
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          2 months ago

          Yeah but due to conditioning from many generations of patriarchy, the man being perceived as a threat might actually help his chances. A disproportionately high ratio of women seem to enjoy threatening sexual partners.

          If getting laid is the only goal, the male has more to fear from not trying than fear of rejection. That and pepper spray.

      • @weegee90
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        72 months ago

        Focussing… Focussing…

      • @Dkarma
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        -12 months ago

        I think they mean 1 on 1

        • @[email protected]
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          52 months ago

          Jesus christ dude

          She goes on to note that even when engaged in conversation with multiple people one should act as if their eyes are constantly glued to the woman

    • @[email protected]
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      142 months ago

      Kinda sounds like it would be the same kind of thing that brought forth the whole “alpha male” thing.

      • @[email protected]
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        62 months ago

        I got that vibe throughout the entire book. It really smelled to me of someone trying to justify their own success when in reality she was probably just born with the right connections.

    • @[email protected]
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      92 months ago

      Okay but where’s the line between “unbroken eye contact to signal attention and interest” and just being a creepy stalker?

      • Jay
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        172 months ago

        Varies with attractiveness.

        • @Dkarma
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          22 months ago

          Can confirm. Have been told I have dangerous eyes.

      • @[email protected]
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        52 months ago

        Well, I got the impression that the author was mostly hanging out in upper class society. So while she’s asserting that these rules are universally applicable, her frame of reference seemed to be mostly talking to people in situations like fundraisers and galas. I imagine she’s operating on a framework of always having some prior knowledge of the people she’s engaging with.

      • @NeoNachtwaechter
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        22 months ago

        the line between […] just being a creepy stalker?

        Depends mainly on your own looks, and a little bit on the question if she’s already into you:

        Are you closer to George Clooney or The Real Life Hunchback?

    • @Maggoty
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      22 months ago

      The only community I’ve been in where men constantly break eye contact is the military. And that’s because we were in Iraq and constantly checking out surroundings as we talked. Men are not gorillas. Eye contact is perceived as paying attention to the conversation.

    • Fat TonyOP
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      52 months ago

      Well… where do I find the most qualified social media then??

        • Fat TonyOP
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          Alright, I’ll be right back.

          Edit: They all just told me to take it off. Very unhelpful.

  • @Shardikprime
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    312 months ago

    First you need to approach in a non threatening way. Ideally, by shouting “I am bigger and stronger than you! If I wanted you dead, you’d be by now!”

    That way they know you are NOT a threat

    If possible, make them feel secure by brandishing a weapon of any kind. That way they know they WILL be safe near you

    • Fat TonyOP
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      52 months ago

      Ah yes, the pufferfish method.

  • @andrewta
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    262 months ago

    I love the errors you get and the timing of the errors

  • @greedytacothief
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    212 months ago

    So I think the question could be refined a little. Eye contact helps build connection between people, but it’s not the only piece of the puzzle. Maybe a better question is “'How do I communicate more empathetically?”

    There’s another question; “How do I let someone know I’m interested?” This question is related to the first in that trying to get close to another person (being vulnerable with each other) and communicating your feelings is how you let someone know your interested.

    TLDR: get to know them and tell them you’re interested. If they say they’re not interested you can probably still be friends since you already got to know each other. Empathy and humility/vulnerability are key in building relationships.

    • @steeznson
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      Yeah people like it when you take a genuine interest in them so asking about their hobbies and passions is also a good way to flirt. Basically you are trying to give the other person the sense that you are equal parts interested and impressed by them.

      Edit: Been with my wife for 13 years now so this is probably bad advice for youngsters. These days they likely stare at their phones and send aubergine emojis to each other while sitting 2 feet away

      • @greedytacothief
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        42 months ago

        I’m not yet 30 and I think it’s good applicable advice. I think you can actually practice a lot of these skills by making friends. The difference between romantic and platonic isn’t that big.

  • sunzu2
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    202 months ago

    The idea is that y’all both Exchange a glance long enough to both notice, short enough to not creep each other out. A subtle smile to seal the deal.

    Then go say hi to confirm.

    If you feel awkward at any point either you suck or the answer is no, that’s where the real skills is at IMHO

    • Cid Vicious
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      172 months ago

      The fact that your autocorrect is capitalizing Exchange makes me think you’ve had some bad times.

      • @NotMyOldRedditName
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        22 months ago

        Not OP but I’ll often rework what I’ve written and sometimes a word that was the start of a sentence is no longer the start, but fuck, doing it all on mobile can be a pain in the ass and I don’t always notice or bother to correct it.

        • Cid Vicious
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          32 months ago

          I just assumed it meant they were working on Exchange servers which is a guaranteed bad time.

    • @[email protected]
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      22 months ago

      I feel awkard at literally all times, even when alone. Got any tips for that, aside from not sucking?

  • @lwuy9v5
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    2 months ago

    Behavioral mirroring is often a sign of trust or comfort, and applies to levels of eye contact as well. If someone is subconsciously doing the same things you are doing (e.g. longer and more direct eye contact if you initiate, more or slower blinking, more smiling, more relaxed postures to mirror yours), those are good signs of interest.

    The converse is also true. If you are doing a lot of direct eye contact, and it seems like the other person is often looking away or closing up their body (crossed arms or rotating their torso away), that’s a sign to reduce some of those behavioral signals to match.

    I’d say there isn’t a “This exact amount” to most things, as people are all different in their preferences, and it’s more about adjusting up and down with someone, in response to their small non-verbal or body language signals. They will likely be doing the same with you. Also, as others have mentioned - you can be more direct with words. If this is something you’re unfamiliar with and there’s someone you trust, you can say directly that you’re uncertain and ask something like “I’m not great at knowing how much eye contact feels correct, could you let me know if you notice too much or too little?”. If they are friendly with you, they’ll also likely be comfortable with the small request.

    Also, just to say it - eye contact can mean the general eye area - it doesn’t mean your exact pupil to their exact pupil. I find that if I focus on the literal eye/pupil, then I get strained trying and keep attention on that specific small area. If I focus on the general eye area (nose/forehead/eyebrow/general eye) - they both can’t tell that it’s indirect eye contact and it’s easier to let my body auto pilot focus

    • Fat TonyOP
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      22 months ago

      What do you mean by this, exactly?

      • @GrabtharsHammer
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        172 months ago

        Different people are different and therefore feel differently about how eye contact should work. Eye contact isn’t a magical love potion that works the same for everybody.

    • @tpihkal
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      152 months ago

      In the US, 411 was/is a phone number you could call for “information”, specifically directory assistance. Many carriers no longer offer it.

    • sunzu2
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      32 months ago

      411 is number I think they post on high ways when people don’t know where to find what they need in the area.

  • @finitebanjo
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    2 months ago

    You look them deep in the center of their eyes and breath deep and smile and then you use your fucking words to tell them.

    There is an evolutionary trait that checks potential partners for eye dilation after prolonged eye contact, supposedly to check for defects, but all it does is a little Seratonin so it’s useless in a world of rational choice.

    • Skeezix
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      72 months ago

      Words? What is that. Where do I buy one?

    • oce 🐆
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      22 months ago

      You look them deep in the center of their eyes

      Like in between the eyes or in the middle of one eye? If it’s one eye, do you pick one or do you switch? At which frequency?

    • Fat TonyOP
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      52 months ago

      Do I sound like a handsome alien, at least?

    • @buddascrayon
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      42 months ago

      I have no idea what you’re talking about.

  • @daggermoon
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    92 months ago

    Any advice for autistic people who are uncomfortable with eye contact?

    • @[email protected]
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      52 months ago

      As far as I know I’m not autistic, but hate eye contact and just kinda decided to not worry about it? Eye contact is cultural anyway, and in some countries it’s unusual or rude so I guess I just decided it’s not that important to me. That’s one option!

      But for practical advice on improving if that’s what you want to strive for I find it’s easier to practice with someone you’re comfortable with. Looking between their eyes while talking casually. Not like staring, but reminding yourself to look up occasionally during conversation. And increasing the length of time you hold eye contact until it’s uncomfortable and look away. It’ll become more natural to you over time :)

      There’s also videos available on YouTube that are for practicing eye contact but I found them creepy. My mistake was probably smoking weed beforehand, so maybe don’t do that!

      Best of luck to you!