[nfbwatlk] FW: [Youth-outreach] How Blind Youth Can Confidently Introduce Themselves To Strangers In Any Social Situation

[Jedi]

Sure. But the parents may have few social graces themselves. I would 
also add that one should seriously consider whether or not to add that 
they're a proud member of the NFB on first meeting someone. For me 
personally, I wouldn't say so right away not because I'm not proud of 
my membership in the organization, but because such a comment may 
invite questions about blindness that I may or may not want to 
entertain at the moment. I guess then that one should first ask 
themselves if they're in a mood to educate before mentioning blindness 
in any way at all. Just my two cents.

Respectfully,
Jedi

Original message:
> Excellent social tips below. However, I am moved to wonder where the 
> *parents* of the blind teens discussed below are? Isn't it the parents' 
> job to teach the social graces?

> Mike


> -----Original Message-----
> From: youth-outreach-bounces at nfbnet.org 
> [mailto:youth-outreach-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of John Bailey
> Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2011 7:27 AM
> To: Youth outreach projects Support List
> Subject: [Youth-outreach] How Blind Youth Can Confidently Introduce 
> Themselves To Strangers In Any Social Situation

> How Blind Youth Can Confidently Introduce Themselves To Strangers In Any
> Social Situation

> Over the past few years, the national Federation of the blind of Virginia
> has made extraordinary efforts to reach out to the blind youth in our state.
> One excellent example of this outreach effort is the opportunities and
> activities the NFBV have for blind teens at our annual state convention.

> During the weekend of November 4, 2011, Potomac chapter president and Youth
> Track coordinator Tracy Soforenko organized several activities for blind
> youth that the kids would find fun while also being educational. Tracy
> invited me to participate in one of those activities.

> Tracy asked me to talk to the kids for a few minutes about techniques they
> can use in order to feel comfortable introducing themselves to strangers in
> new environments.

> Part of growing up is to learn the social skills necessary to interact with
> others. These skills are essential for anyone who wants to be successful in
> advocating for themselves. Many of our blind teens are unsure about their
> skills and are therefore reluctant to interact with others. Tracy set up an
> environment where the teens could practice their skills among friends. The
> teens got to practice introducing themselves, shaking hands, and carrying on
> a conversation. And, the youth had the opportunity to become friends with
> successful blind role models.

> This isn't just the challenge for blind teens. Many adults blind and sighted
> can be intimidated by having to introduce themselves to people they don't
> know. I gave them some tips they can use to help break-the-ice at any social
> situation.

> One of the questions everybody has when they meet somebody new is, "what can
> we talk about?" Here are two things right-off-the-bat you can talk about
> with any stranger anywhere.

> No matter the situation and no matter who you talk to, you have two things
> you can already talk about. The first topic you can talk about is the reason
> you are both there. All social situations have some reason for gathering.
> The reason could be work related, it can be someone's birthday party, it
> could be the meeting of a local civics organization, and it could be
> anything. One good way to break the ice with a complete strangers to ask
> them, quote what brings you here? Quote

> Here is a second way to get a conversation going where you almost don't have
> to lift a finger to participate. Asked the stranger about themselves. People
> love to talk about themselves. They love to talk about their families. They
> love to talk about their work. All you have to do is to listen. Believe me,
> the better you listen, the more they will like you. It's just human nature!

> It's perfectly normal to be nervous when meeting new people. I've given you
> to tips that when you face any social situation, you have two sure fire ways
> to start a conversation with anyone.

> The first tip is to ask the person why they are there. Odds are, you are
> both there for the same reason and there is already something you can share.
> The second way to get a conversation going is to ask the person about
> themselves.

> Now that you can introduce yourself to any stranger in any social situation,
> don’t forget to mention that you are a proud member of the National
> Federation of the Blind.

> John Bailey is membership Chair for the National Federation of the Blind of
> Virginia. If you have any questions or would like to contribute any
> additional advice, John can be reached by emailing him at
> john_bailey17 at hotmail.com


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