Published on 12, July, 2020
Following a recent discussion I note that some people say they have learnt how to do eye contact. My question is how do you do it?
I have been asked if I am listening as the only way I can consciously try is by looking to the side of someone or looking at a nose or tie. If I look towards someone's eyes I feel like I am staring so then look away.
I don't care what people think when it comes to this. I tend to find though that it's the people who I feel very comfortable around who I can look into the eyes of.
Most of the time though I find it much easier to concentrate on a conversation if I just look at the floor. Sometimes people question if I'm paying attention and it's annoying but I tend to just shoot back with something along the lines of "I am happily keeping up with this conversation" and it tends to shut them up.
Luckily at university I've seem multiple academic people do similar to me and I don't know any one of them who is openly diagnosed with ASD. Obviously this doesn't mean that they aren't but I would be highly surprised if all of the people I'm thinking of happen to have ASD.
Failing all of this, if I feel like I am in a situation where eye contact is needed, I tend to give them a split second of eye contact every couple of minutes and that seems to work fine. I don't find this too overwhelming.