Hello guys!
How are you? It’s Hiroko from Gold Coast, Australia.
Everyone who is reading this blog may be thinking about studying abroad or working holiday♪
You might imagine that you can make a lot of friends from overseas and you will be able to speak English very well….
That’s good, that is one of the purpose of living in other country.
But, to be honest, sometimes it is really hard to make friends with foreigners.
That might be because of you still don’t have the confidence to speak in English, you don’t know how you open the conversation….perhaps you don’t know much about other countries…
There are many reasons to make you nervous.
A language school is the quickest way to make friends because you can see your classmates everyday and you can have a lot of time to get to know each other.
But, how about a Party or an opportunity you might only see other people one time??
You may be invited to someone’s Birthday Party…BBQ Party…and so one.
In that opportunity, you might feel nervous and uncomfortable with people who you meet for the first time.
Why am I talking about this?
Because I’ve felt the same way before and recently I went to Birthday Party for one of our students from Chile last weekend, I felt everyone should talk to each other more and not only making a group with friends who you already know!
Of course, if you are not a shy person and you can enjoy meeting new people, this is not a big problem.
But I think most people feel difficult, especially the first time they meet someone new.
I am not sure if this will help you but I would like to introduce how I’ve overcome this matter.
It will be fun if you can meet more new people, right??
Ok, here we go.
Don’t worry about your English so much.
People think this is the main problem why you can not get along with new people.
One time, our students told me they can’t enjoy dinner or party time at their home stay because they speak faster than usual and they can’t catch what they are talking about.
I KNOOOWW!!! This is hard, isn’t it!?
When I was a high school student, I homestayed and I couldn’t understand the family at all during Dinner time because their English sounded like a spell.
I was quiet all the time, and I couldn’t laugh with them at the same time as they laugh.
Even now, I can only understand 70% of the conversation, but I have to be a listener sometimes because I can’t catch their natural speed.
But please remember, this is nobody’s fault.
It is natural for your Host family or native friends to speak with natural speed as the same as Japanese people do.
So don’t feel you are not part of their conversation or they don’t care about you.
They just want to enjoy their time with you, too and they forget you are a learner.
There are some tips you can try!
If you are a beginner level in English, you should ask them if they can speak a little bit slower and clearer. However, even if you ask them, it will still be difficult to understand everything.
You don’t have to be sad, because you’ve just started studying English, just enjoy the atmosphere and the time. The important thing is being in the same place.
Sometimes, you just have to take chances about not being able to speak English well.
If you are a pre-intermediate or intermediate level in English, it would better to be a listener or questioner.You may be able to use your English better, but I think you still feel it’s difficult to catch their English.But if you can make simple sentences, you can ask them many questions.
About food, family, lifestyle and their country….there are many!
If it is difficult to tell your opinions, ask their opinions and let other people talk!!
Let’s find a chance to talk to new people.
When you go to a party with your friends, you may feel braver.
But if you just hang out with the same people at the party, you may loose your chance get to know new people.
So let’s find a chance to talk with someone new!
For example, go and say hello to the host (Main person at the party), and ask him/her who the people are at the party, or to introduce you to same new people.
You can go with your friends if you feel comfortable.
or food, and say hello to people near you.
Common questions are about:
・Work/Studies
・Relationship to the host
・Nationality
・About country you live in right now
etc
It’s just a time to share the moment and not a time to find a best friend or partner.
It is ok if you couldn’t make any friends, don’t worry.
Just enjoy getting new information and sharing the time with them.
If you find someone who you want to see again, the easy way is to ask for his/her Facebook or contact number.
But don’t feel it is a waste of time or you don’t get anything from the party.
If you have any link with them, you might see them again!
If you really want to make friends, you should go out more!
Don’t miss your chance to be curious!
If you feel you are always with the same people, just look around and find a new opportunity.
New opportunities won’t come to you, you have to go out and get it.
You may have a lot of chances to see many people in abroad, so you should make it real!!!
I hope this article will help you for something!
