Interpersonal Skills Stack Exchange
Interpersonal Skills Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [awkward-situations]

For questions about situations which are awkward for anyone concerned. This tag should be used when awkwardness is the key part of the problem.

Some interpersonal situations involve a degree of awkwardness, and sometimes this awkwardness can lead to problems. This tag is for questions where the aim is to avoid potential awkwardness, achieve some goal in spite of awkwardness, or do something similar.

364 questions
286
votes
10 answers

What to do if you are accidentally following someone?

Imagine this: you're a male in their late twenties. It is dark and you're taking the shortest route to your home/car/llama. After sometime you realize that you have been following someone. To make it worse, the someone is a young woman walking…
Relix
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152
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3 answers

I was mistakenly identified as a criminal, and this has caused rumors. How can I convince my friends that it is all a mistake?

A while ago, I was at a popular, busy local nightclub (this is in the Unites States) and ran into a friend of a friend. Let's call her Anne. After a bit of conversation with Anne, and mutual name-dropping of our overlapping social networks, a…
Scott Smith
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140
votes
24 answers

How do I answer the question "why are you vegan?" honestly, without making them resent me?

I am a vegan, only for ethical reasons. It is something I'm very willing to discuss. I have deliberated about it very carefully, for a long time, and have read papers and text books on the philosophy of ethics on my spare time in order to help me…
Bridgeburners
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136
votes
7 answers

Girlfriend's nosy mother keeps expressing that she'll show up unannounced

Some context: my girlfriend and I have been dating for a year, and we've decided to move in together now that she has graduated and found a job in her chosen career. We're both financially independent, and made this decision after a lot of…
Cork
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130
votes
12 answers

I'm 24 with a 4-year-old son. How to handle uncomfortable questions from people?

I'm 24 years old and I have a 4 year old son who was conceived by accident. I don't know about other countries but that's definitely not usual in mine (Spain). My son's mother and I broke up about three years ago but we get on well and are…
Ander Juaristi
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124
votes
10 answers

I live in a desirable, world-famous vacation spot. How do I handle visiting friends and set healthy boundaries?

I currently live in a desirable locale which is a world-famous vacation spot. Suddenly, I have a lot of friends and they want to visit me. I don't want to be rude but I have a few issues: For them, it's a vacation. But I'm not on vacation, I live…
magma
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119
votes
18 answers

How to talk to a girl who's sitting next to me but wearing headphones?

Over the past couple of weeks, there's been this really cute girl who sits near me inside a coffee shop, which has a cozy, "productive" vibe to it -- everyone's doing work on their laptops. I want to start a conversation with this girl, but there's…
D.Hutchinson
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114
votes
17 answers

How can I respond when someone asks me when I'm going to get married to my girlfriend?

Frequently I'll have my friends and family tease me, or ask questions about when my girlfriend and I are going to get married. Sometimes, they'll even make these kinds of jokes to me while she's around, which is very uncomfortable and awkward. (I…
DJMcMayhem
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110
votes
17 answers

How to let tech support subtly know that I am proficient without showing off?

I manage a couple of small websites for friends and family as their admin, ranging from installing wordpress to full-stack web development. In this position I often have to contact the support of hosting companies or domain providers because some…
Wolter
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108
votes
8 answers

How to avoid explaining science to strangers

So, I was at a Barbeque the other day and a situation occurred that, well, I'm getting tired of. It happens almost every time I meet a new group of people. When you meet someone, eventually you come down to finding out what they do for a living. I'm…
ErosRising
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99
votes
9 answers

Refusing free goods as a blind person

As a severely visually impaired person, I use a white cane in the public and unfamiliar shops for identification purposes and as a mobility aid. I regularly encounter sellers at bakeries or fast food restaurants who would like to give me my entire,…
Carolina Winter
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98
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5 answers

How to talk to a one night stand about her potential breast lumps issues?

I'm Brazilian, 23, and I went on a date with a Tinder match yesterday afternoon. At some point things got more intense and as I was fondling her breasts I felt two big lumps on her left one. We've only talked for a week and that was our first date,…
Henrique Bispo
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96
votes
11 answers

How to respond to someone when they ask how much you earn?

When I'm at social gatherings/parties, people would inquire about my job and, because I'm an app developer, they think I earn substantially more than I do. (Oh, the joy!) They then follow up asking about my job with something along the lines of…
Bradley Wilson
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94
votes
5 answers

How do I tell my internet friends I'm actually female?

So I joined this online group roughly 2 years ago for a specific purpose that I thought would be short lived. It's centered primarily around a sports team and I came there from a social media site where I remain anonymous. I like to remain anonymous…
anonymous idiot
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94
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17 answers

How to handle people blocking your view and breaking the rules at the theater by not sitting in their assigned seats?

A while ago, my parents/brothers and I went to visit a theatre performance (in The Netherlands, where we live). We booked really nice first class tickets with empty seats in front of us. We booked them very last-minute, hoping we would be lucky, and…
Tinkeringbell
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