What makes a person friendly?

Dear positivity enthusiast,

I am going to start this out in the way that every single teacher and professor has told me to not start off a writing piece.
The Merriam-Webster defines “friendly” as “relating to, or benefiting a friend: such as showing kindly interest and goodwill, having or showing the feelings that friends have for each other.”
Being friendly at it’s core is just about working towards being someone that can easily be approached, and more importantly, being open to anyone interacting with you. I would like to think that I am a friendly person, and all of my friends are people who I would say are friendly.
But I think a huge distinction is if you think someone is friendly, or if you think someone is approachable. I have lovely friends that oftentimes look like they are going to kill whoever comes up to them next.
Being friendly is about doing what you can to bridge that awkward gap that you have right after you meet someone.

Working to be able to be that person is scary, it really is, but I think more than that, it’s something that requires you to be able to want to connect with people.

Have fun making friends (it never gets easier),
Your Cool College Cousin
Dear positivity enthusiast,
Nothing beats a genuine smile and a willingness to talk to someone. Fake smiles are easy to spot. The animal part of your brain immediately recognizes when someone is being phony and that’s universally off-putting.
I believe most people start life with a friendly demeanor, then bad experiences cause people to develop emotional armor in response.

If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, try talking to a 14 year old girl. She’ll probably immediately scowl at you, then roll her eyes and look away as a signal of how lame you are. Not a great way to start a friendly conversation.

This self-defense mechanism has been beaten into them by a judgmental society.

So smile genuinely, open up, be vulnerable and ask people questions. Some people can and will be jerks, but don’t let that harden the friendly person you were born to be.

Also put down your phone.