Nerds are truly treasures to friendships and to society. But why do we see less nerds mingling with regular people? That’s because we think they do, but they don’t. We often mistake nerds with geeks. There’s a fine line between the both. Geeks love sci-fi, fantasy and all kinds of fictional, but they aren’t always studious. Nerds on the other hand loves fictional superheroes and related entertainment too, but their first priority is academics. Their intense passion for education is also a reason why they hang out with people same as them, to share information and to learn new things.
Befriending a nerd is not easy, but it’s not impossible as well. Here are tips on how to make nerdy friends in no time.
1. Be open for knowledge
It’s important for a nerd to have a friend who has opinions more or less similar to them. Knowledge is fuel, so if you want to make a nerd friend, you must always be on the lookout for information and knowledge about their specialty area. For an instance, a nerdy Chemical Engineer would love to have an info-rich conversation with someone who’d have knowledge in that particular field. This is quite tricky if you’re not a nerd and nowhere close to understanding the science behind thermodynamics and energy balance. But hey! There’s other tips you can focus on…
2. Don’t take time for granted
Nerds are not always so grumpy and serious like Big Bang portrayed Sheldon. There are quite a lot of cool fellows who really want to have fun. Nerds may interpret fun differently than to us. While fun to us means forgetting about work and deadlines, for a nerd, it could mean learning something different to their usual scope. It could either be fictional or entertainment – if there’s knowledge to be grasped, a nerd wouldn’t hesitate. Time means a lot to them, so if you’re befriending a nerd make sure the fun topics you bring to the table are informative at the same time.
3. Be a bit reserve
This could work both ways. A needy nerd would like a super extrovert to make life interesting, but most nerds keep themselves occupied and love the solitude. Socializing for them is kryptonite. So until you figure out which type of nerd you’re trying to befriend, try to act reserved at first. It’s like approaching a deer. Too much flair might scare them off. So be tactical and give them the space to feel comfortable around you. Baby steps are much required when associating a nerd.
4. Build a fondness for board games
Video games are quite the trend now, but a nerd finds true entertainment in intellectual board games and competitive opponents. If you’re already good at it, then kudos! But if you’re not, take some time to learn board games. By board games, we not only mean chess. It could be Dungeons & Dragons for all we know, nerds do have similarly different likings. They might not like Monopoly, but if they’re up for some fun, you could probably get them to play this intensifying business game.
5. Show how quirky you are
If you’re a jock, nerds would hate you. It’s nothing personal nor grudges. Many just dislike the idea of mingling with overly famous and perfect peeps. Even if you’re an average person your confidence and friendliness may put them off a little bit. You don’t have to be perfect nor pretend to be, neither are them. Show your quirky side and they’ll accept you for who you are. That’s pretty much the first step in clicking in to a nerd gang.
6. Don’t smart-shame them
One thing nerds hate about regular people is that their intelligence is always brought up in conversations as mockery. They’re already quirky and anxious, why make them more tensed by putting them in the spotlight for their strength? They know they’re smart, so smart-shaming is seen as an offense to mock their intellect. This is the wrong foot to begin a friendship in. Try to be equal as them, even if you’re not, don’t worry, they’ll make you over time.
7. Level up your humour
A great way to bond with a nerd is either through knowledge or humour. Although they are bad at cracking quality jokes. They thoroughly enjoy being in the company of those who do. Avoid dry jokes and dirty jokes (to a certain extent), many nerds don’t find them thrilling. Especially if you’re of the opposite sex, you may have to hold back some of those visually disturbing jokes. Come up with a witty sense of humour. Sarcasm would work well as long as you don’t mock their interests and intelligence.
8. Attend a Comic-con
Comic-cons are sprawling with geeks who love fiction, but nerds can also be spotted. Here’s a tip on how you can scan through properly to differentiate the nerds from the crowds of geeks. Cos-play is mostly a geek’s activity, however some nerds do wear costumes too but they aren’t concerned of grabbing the spotlight like the geeks do. If you see groups of friends either in costumes or not, keeping to themselves, that’s a nerd bunch worth your attention.
9. Take their advice
This tip is not just a way of befriending a nerd, but rather a benefit of it. Nerds are quite intelligent. Although they rarely speak out loud of their opinions, their advices are quite bright. You just need to dig deep into mine those golden thoughts. A great way to build a friendship with a nerd, is by admiring them for their unique thinking method. Ask for life advices from them, they’d be more than happy to assist you, and by far, nerd advices haven’t lead any of us anywhere near danger.
Conclusion
So there you go! Making a nerd friend is not so difficult after all. Just be super slow with the approach and make your presence comfortable for them to be around. Once you make a nerd friend, that’s a friend for life. Good luck!