Boring people don’t go very far in their careers. Boring people don’t get invited to the best parties. And boring people definitely don’t get to go home at the end of the night with the best looking singles in the bar.
Long story short – if you’re boring (or, even if you simply come across as boring), chances are good that you aren’t living the life you could be!
Think about the people in your life that seem exciting or intriguing. What perks do they have access to, simply because they appear to be doing more with their lives? Maybe they’re offered more interviews or promotions, simply because people want to be associated with them. Or maybe they have an easier time meeting new dates, as their larger networks make it possible for them to receive more recommendations.
If you don’t feel like you’re as exciting as you could be, take a look at the following three tricks on how to seem more intriguing:
Trick #1 – Do something different
The fastest, easiest way to make yourself seem more exciting and confident is to simply do more stuff. Sounds too easy to be true, right?
In fact, what often makes people interesting is the activities they involve themselves in. The cute girl down the hall might not seem nearly as intriguing if she didn’t spend her nights salsa dancing, while the fact that the guy in the next department over spent his vacation surfing in Australia gives him definite brownie points when it comes to being exciting.
So if the key is doing something, what should you do? Here are a few options to consider:
- Do charity work for an organization you support
- Take a cooking class
- Learn a new language
- Take up a new instrument
- Attend dance classes
- Try new restaurants in your area
- Join a book club
- Travel to somewhere new
Really, your chosen pursuit doesn’t need to be glamorous. As long as there’s something that’s captivating your attention and providing fulfillment beyond going home at night and watching TV, you’ll automatically seem more interesting to your peers.
Trick #2 – Meet new people
The second key to coming across as more exciting is to meet new people. Here’s why…
As adults, many of us fall into ruts. We hang out with the same people and we do the same things over and over again. As a result, we know pretty much all there is to know about our chosen companions – and this loss of excitement threatens to make our relationships boring.
The obvious solution is to get out and make new friends. When you have different groups of friends, you’ll naturally appear more intriguing, as you’ll occasionally find yourself in the position of having to turn down invitations to events. And when you turn down these requests for your company, people tend to assume that it’s because you have bigger and better things on your plate – thus, making you more exciting by comparison.
Fortunately, meeting new people is easy and will likely occur as a result of taking up any of the activities described above.
If, however, you find that invitations to get together aren’t forthcoming from the groups you’ve decided to join, don’t panic – you have two other options:
- Check out any Meetup.com groups in your area. This service offers tons of different get-togethers – from hobby groups to outdoor enthusiasts to business networking clubs – all of which have been expressly formed to help people meet others.
- Be the first to suggest an activity. You never know who in your life is simply waiting for an opportunity to do something fun, so don’t be afraid to be the person who puts an invitation out first. Remember, the worst thing your new friends can say is “No,” which leaves you in no worse of a position than you were in before you made the request!
Either of these options will help to broaden your social calendar and make you seem more exciting compared to your inactive peers.
Trick #3 – Keep your ego in check
Finally, keep in mind that – even if you’ve followed these recommendations and immersed yourself in new activities and new groups of friends – part of being intriguing is keeping things to yourself. Really, there’s nothing intriguing about the guy who spends all Monday morning holding court by the water cooler and sharing every detail of his weekend exploits!
Though it can be tempting to berate your colleagues and acquaintances with tales of how exciting you’ve become, keep your new experiences close to the vest. Don’t brag about all of your newfound passions, and don’t bully your way into conversations in order to showcase your new hobbies and friends. Sharing your pursuits in a modest way – and only doing so when it’s appropriate from a conversational standpoint – is the best way to automatically appear more intriguing.