We have all been there. Falling for someone only to realize that they don’t view us in “that way.” Ending up in the friend zone can be embarrassing and emotionally draining. Wouldn’t it be helpful to understand what signs were flirty and which ones are friendly? In short, flirting signals physical attraction, whereas friendliness focuses more on one’s personality.
Read on to learn the difference to discover how to land the love of your dreams:
- Are They Interested in Just You? If the object of your affection is solely complimentary to you in a crowd, then they may be flirting. Yet, if they are being nice to a large number of people then they are more likely to be acting friendly towards you.
- How Do They Respond to You? When you try flirting with them, watch for their reactions. If they are receptive then chances are, they are interested in you. If they become turned off by your advance, then they were just being friendly.
- Watch Their Actions: If they try to get physically close to you, especially if they have lingering touches, this is a big sign of flirtation. If they remain distant or acting in a joking manner, then mostly likely they want to be friends.
- Eye Contact: Typically, when flirting a people will make and sustain eye contact.
- They Take Sincere Interest in You: In a friendly pairing, a person will take interest in you, but may leave things at a superficial level. When one flirts, they will dig deeper into your story trying to learn more about you, your life and your interests.
- Body Language Matters! Do they lean in when they talk to you? Do they wink or give you a sly smile? These are all signs they may be flirting with you.
- Do They Mention Being Single? If someone mentions that they aren’t in a relationship it is a clear sign that they are interested in pursuing you romantically.
- They Make You the Center of Attention: Friends will include you in conversation, but will drift off eventually to other people. A flirter will pointedly make you a focal point of any and all interactions with you. A flirter goes out of their way to make you feel special. If they are really into you, they will steer you away to a more private location to eliminate all distractions.
- It Feels Like Grade School! Flirters love to playful teasing the object of their desire. They will always incorporate details of previous conversations into their teasing as a way of showing you that you matter to them.
- Sustained Interest: Friends will casual interact with you. Someone with romantic intentions will seek you out and even inquire more about you with your mutual friends. If you met a person at a party, talked the night away, but left without getting their number and suddenly you hear from a friend they were asking about you – it’s a clear sign they were flirting!
- Inviting You Out: Both Friends and Dates like to hang out. But it’s the context of the where, when and how. If they are looking to spend time with you in a group, you are probably chatting with a friend. If they want to check out that art exhibit you brought up the party and then go to dinner with you – they are flirting with you.
- Tall Tale Text: If you get a text. Look at the context of the words and emojis. Friends will send joking comments or images without much substance. Flirting will have more eye winking, possibly inuendo and deeper context.
