If you—like me—live in perpetual fear of being the boring person no one wants to get caught standing next to in a social situation, then take refuge in this fact: There are five possible traits that can earn you “fun person” status with other people. So even if you don’t boast all of them, you still have a shot at peer-acceptance. (Phew, right?!)
By cross-referencing studies on the subject and extrapolating from the “Big Five” personality traits, Glenn Geher, PhD, a professor of psychology at the State University of New York at New Paltz, found that a life-of-the-party personality is composed of a handful of attributes: extraversion, open-mindedness, humor production, humor perception, and creativity, reports Psychology Today. Just like the overarching Big Fives, you can think about each of these qualities existing on a spectrum. So maybe you’re really tuned into smart humor, but you just can’t quite get the whole extraversion thing down. Or maybe you’re super open-minded, but only so-so at cracking jokes.
“Creative people have been found to be high in emotional intelligence, which is a key factor in social relationships.”
Dr. Geher also explains that creative minds often rise to the surface as the type of lively, observant folks you want to say a toast at your wedding, or act as your buffer during awkward convos. “We are deeply entertained by highly creative people, including high-caliber musicians, artists, comedians, actors, dancers, storytellers, architects, and so forth,” he says. “Creative people have been found to be high in emotional intelligence, which is a key factor in social relationships.”
Sure, there might be rare social unicorns out there who exhibit all of these traits at once. But just think about the Michael Scotts, the Phoebe Buffays, and the Leslie Knopes of the world. Each sitcom clown found a way to be fun on their own terms: awkward silences included.
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