Let’s face it; we’ve spent far too much time cooped up inside our bedrooms that the lot of us have forgotten what staying outside in the sun for the majority of the day fees like. What’s worse, most of our socialization and interactions have been limited to social media and through screens, which means there’s a really high chance that we’ve blundered away all our communication skills throughout this global pandemic.
So, to help address this alarming trend of people losing their confidence and will to socialize, we want to introduce to you the best and most accessible teacher of all, your community. Yes, by the community, we mean those people closest to you like your neighbors, the cute couple who run the coffee shop two blocks down, and even that active runner you see pass by your house every morning. In these trying times, it’s important that we reinforce the need for connection, and what better way to hit two birds with one stone than by engaging with the community.
Trust-Building Projects
While it may be hard to believe, many communities have remained active throughout this pandemic and have found ways to connect and support each other in times of struggle. And, just because you don’t see them pop up on your news feed doesn’t mean they don’t happen at all! So, we strongly recommend doing your due research and just simply look around. There could be posters and signs about a community event, and we suggest joining trust-building projects.
- Meet New People: It’s natural for communities to hold trust-building projects, and that’s because many people acknowledge that we can go a whole day without ever leaving the house. These projects help you meet new people, and you get to train your charisma and speaking skills by making a good impression. Plus, who knows, you might even find your best friend in the crowd!
- Reinforce Community Spirit: Trust-building projects also have the benefit of reinforcing community spirit, and as you meet more and more people, the community becomes stronger and unified as a whole. This essence of cooperation and working together also has the effect of making you feel more open to communicating with more people.
Volunteering And Community Service
One level above trust-building projects that are more concerned with meeting people and encouraging connections is volunteering and community service. Here you’ll have a mission in mind which is to do some collective good for the community and helping out. One advantage of these over trust-building projects, apart from the help you’re providing, is that working on something together is a great conversation starter.
- Trains Leadership: Although volunteer movements and community service is typically led by a point person, there will be plenty of moments where they require everyone to group up and take the initiative. As a result, you also get to train your leadership if you choose to step up to the position, which directly improves your charisma and speaking skills as well.
- Improves Collaboration Skill: Volunteer programs and community service is all about collaboration and working with a team. So, whether it’s putting your empathy into action through hospice homes or doing a community clean-up drive, you’ll always have someone volunteering alongside you.
Spearheading Events
Last but not least, you could also consider the opportunity of spearheading your own events and collaborating with the neighborhood so that everyone is informed and you get many participants. Nothing teaches charisma better than being the point person yourself because everyone looks to you and relies on you to handle the entire thing. Plus, it’s the direct opposite of just scrolling through your phone and letting the algorithm decide what’s engaging for you.
- Builds Confidence: If you’ve been feeling down and your self-confidence is dwindling, spearheading events is an excellent way to boost your confidence and self-esteem. And, when everything goes as planned, and everyone had a great time at the event, you get a sense of accomplishment that nothing can rival. Of course, we don’t expect you to start out with something big from the get-go, so work your way up until you feel comfortable.
- Hones Responsibility: As the point persona and head of your event, you will also be honing your responsibility as you’re working with multiple people and collaborating with teams. It teaches you how to communicate and understand people from all walks of life and exposes you to challenges that you wouldn’t encounter by staying at home. It teaches you resiliency and the toughness to keep going.
Improve With The Help Of Your Community
Overall, if you want to work on your charisma and speaking skills but don’t know how to go about it, then all you need to do is be a more active member of your community. There’s a lot of things you can achieve through collaboration, plus you’re also helping out other people who need all the extra hands and support they can get.
