The Psychology of Walking
Or Walk This Way
This is based entirely on a workshop session that was run by a friend of mine, so all is attributed to him; though I'm not sure what his original source was. The rest of this is my own theory and speculation.
If you are a naturally
observant person (or just very,
very bored) you may have noticed something about
the way we walk. In a crowded setting, when two people walk directly at one another, a
miniature game of "mental
chicken" occurs and one person will
give way to the other. What I found really interesting is that this
process isn't
random: certain people give way most of the time and certain people just don't.
This is what I learnt in the workshop: people that
exude an
aura of
confidence rarely have to give way. If you
strut, people will recognise this and
part like the red sea. All you have to do is walk
upright, keep your back straight, chin up, eyes front and think
confidence. Personally, I've noticed that I fall into the group of people that give way, despite being a bit
physically
imposing. It's my
personality: I'm not naturally very confident or
extroverted and I dislike drawing attention to myself -- hence I
sidestep and give way in such situations.
It's always possible to change, of course. All you have to do is try to act with confidence,
throw caution to the wind, look like you mean it and just
walk. I've been making a
conscious effort
not to give way when I walk, but there seems to be a highly-developed
sixth sense that acts like a big
neon sign above my head,
proclaiming: "This guy will give way!" So far, I've bumped into about seventeen people in the street, just because I kept walking when they thought that I'd move. I obviously look like someone who'll give way but then
surprise the crap out of them when I don't: it screws up their
waydar. Sooner or later, you build up a "
don't fuck with me" aura and can stride through
pretty much anything. I'm still
nursing a very
bruised shoulder, though, so I suggest you practice before attempting to
walk through walls.