Anyone experience awkwardness when saying goodbye

Post Reply New Topic

Other people seem to very fluently and naturally say most appropriate things with perfect timing when they say good-bye. It's as if everyone were following a prepared scenario. The conversation leading to saying good-bye seems to flow very naturally. I don't have that ability. I tend to make everyone awkward by disturbing the natural flow. I always feel awkward and embarrassed.

I do. I don't know when to stop, sometimes how to stop. And the only ways I know how to 'stop' is either interruption or simply looking and walking away from them while randomly waving at them. Or at least 'lucky' enough for someone to call me away from the conversation. I don't make up 'excuses' to leave easily, unless it's urgent.

Even the conversation ended, I still end up waiting them to reply back to me only to hear silence. In the end I can't determine whether I lack of voice volume or the conversation ended.

When a party is involved, I prefer to leave a party as early and as unnoticeable as possible. I could only tell the host depending how close the host to me, or how necessary I have to tell them I'm leaving.

Gained Number Post Count (1).
Lose Time (n).

Lose more time here - Updates at least once a week.

Usually, the only large parties I am at are family gatherings and we are obligated to go around and say our goodbyes to everyone. I understand why this is the right thing to do, but I hate it. It is so awkward, especially if I didn't talk to most people. It feels so dutiful (on both my part and theirs), rather than genuine. That is not to say there is awkwardness in the overall relationship - usually there isn't. But, it makes me wonder why we all force ourselves to do this.

At any party, I always make sure to say goodbye to the hosts and thank them. I also say goodbye to the people I know, if I am at a party where I only know a few. The other people will find out later that I've left.

In the distant past I was given a year off from my job, as I was intolerably stressed out. At the end of that year, I simply never went back to the job. Ever since then, I've felt hugely relieved that I never had to go through the 'Leaver's Presentation' business, the thank-yous and goodbyes etc. I watched people doing that sort of thing for years, never understood how they could do it, and dreaded ever having to experience it.

I've also had the same experiences as others on this thread at social events. I once sat for about two hours with three people I didn't know and didn't like, after everyone else had left, simply because I didn't know how to 'take my leave' earlier.