By Bob Larkin for Bestlife©
Everyone has annoying traits, whether you sing along to every song on the radio or insist upon keeping “Cotton Eye Joe” as your ringtone. And while some people are comfortable letting you know just how grating they find your behavior, there’s one surefire sign that people find you annoying, according to experts—and it’s one you’re probably not picking up on, either.
“If you notice that the person’s shoulders or feet turn away from you or they look down at the floor (or their phone), it’s a sign that they’re trying to escape the moment,” says licensed clinical psychologist Jamie Long, Psy.D.
However, Long says it’s also possible that “the topic of conversation got too intense, too one-sided, or is just taking way too long to finish.” Either way, it’s important to try to ascertain their comfort level and switch gears if need be. That’s not the only way you may be putting others off, though—read on to discover signs you may be annoying other people without realizing it.
1. You always steer conversations back to you.
If anyone’s ever accused you of making conversations about yourself, it’s likely you’re bothering others with this behavior on a regular basis.
2. Most of your conversations are vent sessions.
It may feel great to get out something that’s been weighing on you, but if all of your conversations seem to turn into vent sessions, that can easily rub others the wrong way.
3. You can feel the energy change in a room when you enter.
If the mood suddenly changes the second you set foot in a room, this may be a sign that your pas behavior has made your presence unwelcome.
4. Your conversations are full of awkward silences.
Everyone runs out of topics of conversation from time to time, but it becomes worrisome if it seems to happen every time you talk.
5. Their pupils constrict.
Want to know if you’re annoying someone? A little eye contact will clue you in.
6. Their voice gets louder.
As someone’s level of frustration rises, so will the volume of their voice.
7. They sigh. A lot.
A sigh isn’t just a sigh, at least according to researchers out of Norway, who found in a 2008 study that people tend to sigh when they’re in a negative mood.
8. You hear about parties after the fact.
Just learning that everyone you know was at the “party of the year” last weekend? It might’ve just been an accident, especially if the host insists they “totally emailed you an invite.” But if it happens more than once, you might be getting left off the guest list for a reason.
9. Friends have stopped calling, emailing, or texting you back.
10. They’re avoiding your personal space.
11. Nobody argues with you. Ever.
12. You’re never in group photos on social media.
13. You go in for the hug, they go for the handshake.
14. They avoid eye contact.
15. They cross their arms whenever you’re talking.
16. They answer a phone call while you’re in the middle of a sentence.
17. They don’t ask you personal questions.
