Do you want people to be excited to hang out with you?
If so, then you need to learn how to be fun to be around.
And that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today.
I’m about to share with you the exact same advice that I teach to our clients in our social skills coaching program.
What You'll Learn In This Post
1. Develop Your Sense Of Humor
Growing up in a traditional Asian family, having a good sense of humor didn’t come naturally to me.
In fact, my conversations with my parents typically revolved around academic and career success.
That’s why I was so serious all the time.
Check out this podcast interview with Kristen Carney, Founder of Kristen And Chill, where she talks about how to develop your wit.
If you can relate to my experience, just know that you can figure out how to make people laugh.
You just need the right information and enough practice.
If you’re wondering how to be fun to be around, having a great sense of humor is very important.
To help you get started, I encourage you to start watching more comedy shows.
Make sure you pay attention to the material, timing, and delivery of the joke.
When something makes you laugh, ask yourself why and take the time to analyze it.
And then, do what you can to implement what you just learned during your next interaction.
To help you get started, you can just repeat other people’s jokes for now.
That way, you can get a feel for how things work.
You’ll see some quick wins which will help you come up with your own material eventually.
2. Get Out Of Your Head
Remember, you need to be courageous if you want to learn to be funny.
You have to be willing to say and do things that may break social norms.
If you want to know how to be fun to be around, you need to get out of your head and stop overthinking all the time.
Whenever you feel anxious around people, just realize that nobody is paying as much attention to you as might think.
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The reality is, everyone is so concerned about themselves anyway.
Even if you do something silly or embarrass yourself, most people would’ve forgotten about you by the time they get home.
By keeping this perspective in mind, you’ll figure out how to be less self-conscious.
As a result, you’ll act more like yourself and show your true personality whenever you interact with people.
3. Tell Good Stories
If you’re wondering how to be fun to be around, you have to be able to communicate yourself effectively.
That’s why you have to figure out how to tell good stories.
Check out this video if you want to know how to express yourself better verbally.
The next time you share something, make sure you structure it well.
Set it up by creating contrast, use descriptive words, and release the tension when you make your point.
Also, avoid using technical terms and leave out unnecessary facts.
Use your hands to accentuate your points and vary your tonality as well.
When you do those things, you’ll come across as a captivating storyteller.
As a result, you’ll have more engaging interactions with anybody you talk to.
4. Don’t Judge Others
If you want to learn how to be fun to be around, you have to be empathetic.
Make an effort to see where other people are coming from.
Just because both of you have different perspectives on a particular topic doesn’t invalidate their opinion.
The thing is, you don’t even need to agree with them.
So stop trying to change their mind and try to prove them wrong.
You just have to put yourself in their situation and see things from their point of view.
That’s why whatever you do, avoid getting into an argument with someone.
Stay away from sensitive topics like religion, politics, sex, and race.
Be light-hearted, respect your differences and focus on finding commonalities instead.
That’s a more productive conversation to have than getting into a heated debate about something controversial.
5. Stay Relevant
If you’re wondering how to never run out of things to say, you need to know a little bit about a lot of things.
Make an effort to stay relevant if you’re wondering how to be fun to be around.
That way, it’ll be much easier for you to relate with others and contribute to any group conversation.
Personally, I recommend you pay attention to trending topics, popular shows, and current events.
When you know you have something valuable to share, you’ll feel a lot more confident interacting with anybody.
6. Show Some Vulnerability
We all relate to people’s struggles better.
That’s why you shouldn’t be afraid to show some vulnerability.
Embrace your imperfections and let others see who you really are.
Remind yourself that it’s okay to make mistakes so stop trying to be perfect all the time.
That being said, you have to find the balance between being vulnerable and sharing too much information.
This is not the time to air out your dirty laundry and dump your emotional baggage on others.
My advice is to open up incrementally by sharing a small secret about yourself.
Gauge the other person’s feedback and see if they reciprocate.
By being vulnerable first, you encourage the person you’re interacting with open up as well.
If you want to know how to bond and build deeper friendships, this is one of the best ways to do it.
7. Ask Interesting Questions
First of all, there’s nothing wrong with making small talk.
At the end of the day, you have to be able to exchange polite pleasantries especially with people that you just met.
But if you want to figure out how to be fun to be around, you can’t get stuck there.
If you want to have more meaningful conversations, make sure you ask interesting questions.
For example, instead of asking someone how they’re doing, you can ask them what’s been the most interesting part of their day.
Instead of asking what they do for work, ask them if they have a passion project that they’re working on.
Instead of asking what they do for fun, ask them what’s a skill that they’ve always wanted to develop.
Do you see how that works?
These types of questions really get people thinking and will prompt them to open up more.
On that note, make sure you have your own answers to these questions as well.
That way, you’ll be able to get to know other people better and on a more personal level.
8. Be Interested In Others
Most individuals who struggle socially tend to ruminate a lot.
They’re so in their heads that they’re actually not present during their interactions.
If you want to deepen your relationship with others, make sure you practice being a good listener.
Give the person you’re with your full and undivided attention.
Be present, put your phone away and really try to understand what they’re sharing with you.
When you do, you’ll improve your connection with anybody that you talk to.
When you’re in the moment, you’ll be able to come up with the right things to say a lot easier as well.
9. Look For Commonalities
Familiarity builds comfort very quickly.
That’s why we like people who are similar to us.
If you want to know how to be fun to be around, explore mutual interests as much as you can.
You can do this by asking open-ended questions which require the person you’re interacting with to share more.
For example, instead of asking someone “Do you like your job,” you can ask “What do you like most about your job?”
Do you see the difference?
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You can also volunteer more information about yourself.
In this case, if someone asks you what you do for fun, don’t just give them a short response.
Take the time to elaborate on your answer.
Feel free to discuss what got you into one of your hobbies, what you like about it, and how it makes you feel.
By doing these things, you and the person you’re talking to will have lots of information to work with.
That could trigger other topics that both of you can discuss which makes it easy to maintain the conversation.
10. Be Positive
Don’t you hate it when you’re around someone who complains all the time?
If so, then avoid being that person.
If you want to figure out how to be fun to be around, you have to be able to manage your emotions.
Regardless of what’s happening, it’s important that you stay cool, calm, and collected.
If you haven’t already, I highly encourage you to adopt a mindfulness practice.
When you meditate and journal regularly, you’ll be able to control the way you think.
You’ll be able to reframe your limiting beliefs and choose more empowering thoughts instead.
This will help you become less reactive especially during stressful situations.
When you can maintain a calm demeanor consistently, people will feel more comfortable in your presence.
11. Give Compliments
Imagine how good it feels when someone says something nice to you.
It’s pretty awesome, right?
If you want to learn how to be fun to be around, be generous with your compliments.
Make an effort to see the best in others.
Check out this video if you want to know 5 ways to make people like you instantly.
It can be as simple as noticing if someone just got a haircut.
If you like their outfit that day, make sure you say something about that as well.
But if you want your compliments to stand out, praise people’s efforts instead of their physical appearance.
They’ll appreciate it more because you’re giving them props on something they had to work hard for.
12. Appear More Friendly
Remember, nobody can read your mind.
If you want to figure out how to be fun to be around, make sure you appear more friendly.
If you rub people the wrong way, then you’re already swimming against the current.
As the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a great first impression.
We all make snap judgments about people right away based on what we see.
Think about it.
Would you want to talk to someone who’s slouching, have their arms crossed, and has a frown on their face?
Probably not, right?
That’s why you have to pay attention to how you’re coming across.
Or else you might be pushing people away unintentionally.
In order to appear more friendly, remember to have a more open body language.
Stand up straight, keep your chin up and avoid crossing your arms and legs.
Maintain proper eye contact and have a genuine smile on your face.
By doing these things, you’ll come across as more inviting to others.
When you look approachable, more people are going to be inclined to interact with you.
13. Try New Things
Remember, a boring life leads to boring conversations.
Doing the same activities over and over again won’t give you a lot of topics that you can discuss.
That being said, make an effort to educate yourself and do novel activities on a regular basis.
Not only will this make your life more exciting, it’ll also give you more things to discuss with others.
You’ll be able to relate to a wider range of people and you’ll come across as a high-value person as well.
If you want to know how to be fun to be around, you need to do interesting things consistently.
Conclusion
If you’re wondering how to be fun to be around, I just shared with you my best tips.
Feel free to go through them again and implement them as much as you can.
And now, let’s turn it to you.
Which one of these tips are you going to implement first?
Are you going to develop your sense of humor or work on telling good stories?
Send me a message on Instagram and let me know.