Socialize: Developing our Personality and Self-Image

Being a student of sociology, I know that we are a product of our social experiences. When we socialize we develop our personality and self-image. It is during that process that we learn to cope with the different experiences that we encounter in our daily lives. It is through socializing we are able to develop skills that will enhance our ability to function as human beings. Without the interacting of other human beings we may not be able to have growth intellectually and/or advance culturally. When we are placed in an environment that we are not accustomed to, we tend to first look for something that we can relate to and then we gravitate towards it. However, because we are all social beings, it does not matter if we are an extrovert or an introvert, we will find some way to interact with another human being.

The first place we begin the process of socializing is in our home. This is where as a child we adopted the skills and behaviors that were practiced as our own. We find that we often act similar to our parents whether consciously or unconsciously, believe it or not we do. The behavior patterns learned at home often go with us out into the community.

The other environment that we learn to socialize is in our community (church and school). This is where we learn to interact with others outside of our immediate family. In the initial stage of our interaction we tend to socialize the way we were taught in the home. What normally happens is that if we were not taught the basic communication skills, basic manners, being kind and considerate of others, taking turns appropriately, and greeting people, our social interactions will be a little challenging.

To move away from the base of how we develop our social skills, let’s look on some of the benefits of socializing with other human beings. Being a person who gets involved socially can help with overcoming shyness. Once you overcome shyness, you will build your self-confidence up. Having a higher self-confidence will allow you to have a more positive self-image. Socializing can be a bit challenging if you are shy, but as they often say – face the fear and fear will disappear. Through social interaction you can erase the fear of shyness. Take it step by step. One interaction at a time! When socializing becomes a habit you will develop courage and will be able to gain the other benefits of socializing.

We are meant to socialize and it is through social interaction that we build friendships, relationships and connections with others who may or may not share our views. Socializing allows each individual to share their own thoughts. It is through the sharing of our thoughts we are able to gain a wider perspective on different ways of doing things. We will get the opportunity to develop our communication skills and learn a lot more about ourselves. Through socializing we will also find out what our strong points and weak points are. Socializing allows us the opportunity to benefit from others whose strengths and weaknesses are compatible with our own. Through these interactions are how great ideas and businesses are formed. We all complement one another, but you’ll never know unless you socialize with others. Socializing also increases our network and we all know the saying that our network determines our net worth.

Socializing also helps to reduce stress. How? In social gatherings as human beings we often share a lot of opinions and beliefs about ourselves and the world through conversation. Socializing often leads to laughter as well, and we know that laughter is medicine for the soul. Socializing can be fun, but it also provides each person with a sense of belonging and being part of a community.

University of Michigan  found out in a research they conducted that social interaction improved cognitive performance. Let’s bump up on our social interaction!

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