Search This Blog

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Hey, Wait for me...

It happens to me all the time, I start walking together with someone - engaged in conversation - and then they are gone. Disappear? you ask. Well sort of, but not really. Rather what I am describing is what occurs when the party to whom I was speaking takes off walking ahead of me for some distance. The person never looks back. He or she is not conscious that the company that was once by their side is no longer there. Or that is what seems to be the prevailing thought until once my travel companion reaches our destination I am once again acknowledged over the shoulder.

Who started this trend? I really do not walk that slow. Please understand that it takes a lady careful calculation to "click-click" in high heels, sway her hips from the right to the left, and then move her head in unison. How we do what we do here when wearing heels is not just some random movement. (If you treat it random, it will show and you won't look cute at all!) We especially need ladies to slow down their pace when walking with other ladies - help us out here.

The ideal walking pace would be one that allows a conversation to continue or begin for that matter. Take the time to make eye contact with the other person with whom you are walking and talking. This activity forces you to remember you have someone talking to and walking with you. If the other person drops out of sight behind you, it is not the Rapture, so do not think you were left here on earth. Instead stop walking, turn around, and wait for them to catch up. Leaders may have a natural tendency to walk ahead of the pack so if you are one, take note.

I get this funny feeling when someone walks off ahead of me, almost as if I am losing a race of sorts. So maybe competitive people (like myself) have a hard time feeling as if we are in second place?