with guys? What do you do when they start getting persistent or make a move on you?
I’m a friendly person, but I don’t think of myself as being flirty. That’s been confusing for some of the guys I’ve met in hostels, who think I’m interested in them because I’m so welcoming. In the past, if I’ve been too nice, they’ve tried to make moves on me. It’s happened so often that people have told me not to expect anything else. I’ve even had to give in and let them have their way with me because I felt like I’d led them on.
That’s not how I want to make friends, so I’m wondering, what do other women do when they want to make platonic friends with guys? How do you handle it when they start getting too persistent or make a move?
I’ve been in a lot of awkward situations with men in the past, so now I’m more careful about how friendly I am. But I don’t want to distance myself from potential friends, either. I want to be able to make friends with anyone, without worrying about it being interpreted as something else.
The only way I can think of to handle this situation is to be direct with the guy and let him know that I’m just looking for a platonic friendship. I also try to be aware of my body language and make sure that it’s clear that I’m not interested. But it can still be hard to know how to handle the situation when it does happen.
It’s important for women to be able to make platonic friends with men without worrying about it being misconstrued as something else. We should all be able to have the same level of comfort and safety in our friendships, no matter what gender our friends are. So, what do you do to ensure that your platonic friendships stay platonic? How do you handle it when someone starts making a move?