Falling in love can be a wonderful thing, but it can also be challenging when the person you like seems to send mixed signals. Are they interested or not? Sometimes it can be hard to tell, and this confusion and uncertainty can be frustrating and exhausting. However, once you know how to identify these tendencies in your crushes, you’ll find that interjecting your own flirtatious signals back at them is incredibly empowering.
What are Mixed Signals?
Have you ever had the experience of being attracted to someone, but then confusing that attraction with them possibly being into you? If you think this other person has some interest in you, only to see that they are also flirting with others at other times, it’s a classic example of mixed signals.
The bottom line is that there really is no such thing as mixed feelings. A person can have two or more feelings at any given point in time, so notions of mixed feelings are most often the result of miscommunication. If your attention is being split among multiple parties, it might be a good idea to clarify things and talk about how each party feels before things get even more complicated!
How to Read Mixed Signals?
When people find themselves in a relationship with someone who never seems to clearly show their true feelings and emotions towards them, they sometimes get the jitters and the anxiety that swells up within them is not good for anyone’s health either. When things begin to feel like they might go one way or another but not give certain person an answer because it’s like flirting with someone who doesn’t know your intentions.
But there would be other outcomes such as not wanting to take risks because you don’t want to get rejected. So, we suggest if this is how you feel then you must bid for time and take the game slowly towards its end.
Mixed signals can lead people to draw false conclusions about the kind of people they meet. Here are tips for understanding mixed signals so that you don’t end up falling for someone with an indifference issue which is common among narcissists and sociopaths who know how to manipulate others by drawing people into their web called lack of emotional intelligence.
1. Play Along
This is the first step in trying to end mixed signals in your favor. Do you feel like someone’s been throwing an eye at you every now and then, but avoid outright staring at you some other time? Is the one looking to date you totally smitten with you sometimes and treats you like a friend the next morning? Don’t pull your hair out thinking about it. Relax. You know something’s going on. Just enjoy this dating game and look for moments where another opportunity presents itself when flirting again becomes appropriate!
2. Challenge the Game Now and Then
So, you’ve been flirting and glancing at the will of your crush until now. Don’t try too hard to take control because people will pick up on it right away. This person may be interested in you, but they may not necessarily aware of the way they feel – so if you try too hard to gain their attention – even if it’s by playing hard to get – they might think you’re trying to possessive and demanding and not see you as an equal partner.
Play the game of indecisiveness with this person for a little while longer but be sure to remain more active than passive around them – eventually this person is going to want to send the ball back over your court and then you won’t be stuck pining after them anymore.
3. Do Not Burst Out
As frustrating as mixed signals can be, don’t ever confront the one you like or make any demands for answers. They may be sending mixed signals, but what if they were simply having fun flirting and didn’t mean anything by it? Each and every person is different and not everyone is looking for a long-term relationship – having fun and enjoying the attention of someone new might just be the kind of relationship that suits someone who doesn’t want commitment just yet!
4. Are Your Misreading the Signals?
When it comes to reading the signs, what you see may not always be what you get. Many people act differently in public than they act when they’re alone. That means that if something seems like a mixed message, there is a chance that it might not be. The advice we’d give you then is to be careful with how much weight you put into any given situation.
Let’s say for example your friend A smiles at your crush B in front of you in front of you in an effort to lure him/her over, it could turn out that he or she is just trying to help but if they think it’s working and don’t tell you about why they did what they did then it can easily lead your crush to assume that someone else has an interest when really it was nothing more than A being friendly!
5. Do Not Fall for The Person Just Yet
You may like this person already, but don’t get mad after him or her just yet. This could be a case of “love at first sight”, where the two of you are on the same page about your desire for one another, but there are too many mixed signals to make any solid assumptions. You don’t know if he or she actually likes you back. Have patience and play along while having fun until you find out for sure what is going on.
You may already like this person, but don’t make any assumptions yet. There might be a few mixed signals going back and forth or he or she might still be figuring out what they really want from you. Patience will get you the answers you need, while staying playful helps both of you have fun along the way.
6. Mixed Signals are Mostly Sexual
As a resource that’s focused on dating and relationships, we know all too well the confusion that can be created with mixed signals from the object of your affection. One way you can set yourself up for success is by creating several different memories to give off this impression. You never know what kind of memory will strike their fancy.
Try anything from touching them as you make some sort of movement past each other, to seemingly minimal actions like getting closer to them physically or even doing something together as a group. Do anything as long as you project the impression of someone who’s making an effort with this person
7. Learn from the Mixed Signals
People behave this way because, as human beings, we have a sense of uncertainty, and it leaves us feeling out of control. We’re often afraid that whatever action we take will result in failure or rejection. We want to feel safe in our relationships – so when that safety isn’t there, we panic! Giving mixed signals is how people process these feelings of not knowing whether they’re doing things right or wrong.
When you find yourself in situations like these with someone – the best thing to do is simply reassure your partner by letting them know exactly how important they are to you. If you can show them through your words and actions how much you adore them, the roller coaster ride of their mood swings will be far, far less messy than it would otherwise be.
8. Do Not Tell Anyone Else About It
Mixed signals are like detective and spy games. You shouldn’t be telling anyone else about it, least of all, you common friends or their best friend. If anyone else talks about your mixed signal flirting game, you’ll end up bringing the secret out into the open. And when that happens, the person you like must decide at once whether they want to date you or not. And when someone is sending mixed signals, they’re probably going to just walk away from you because there are too many possibilities on their mind right now. They may be related to what their emotions are trying to tell them or if this person is ready for a committed relationship yet.
Be it with your specific personality type/attributes e.g., whether your personality meshed well together or if your personalities clash based on some conflicting core characteristics where one might hate how the other person overindulges occasionally over something highly important to them i.e., food/family/outsides activities etc.
9. Take a Stand
If you’re going to conjure up a romance with someone, hope for the best! Try to figure out what type of signals they’re giving you about their interest in you. Or if the signals aren’t very clear, maybe just have some fun or let it go. You might be misinterpreting this person either way and there could be any number of reasons why they may not be showing deep interest when you attract them towards yourself.
If you know you’re not interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with someone else, it’s easy to let someone know by refusing to play their little game. That said, if there happens to be an uncanny difference between how they act and what they say, and how they say it and really feel, chances are the other person is just playing around – even though you might be interested – and if that’s the case then just forget about them completely.
That way once you stop “giving off signals” as well as stop thinking about them, they may become interested in your attention again. But beware…sometimes people can lead others on because there could be emotional issues going on inside of their own head which needs to be dealt with instead of giving mixed signals to those around them.
10. The Final Confrontation
It’s so difficult to decipher mixed signals. At first you might think that it’s the most beautiful thing in the world then they could just want to be friends, or they are giving you subliminal hints which are hard to catch. If you’re comfortable with this person, go ahead with your feelings but if it’s an uncomfortable situation, avoid them! And if they’re openly playing games for too long between the two of you, confront them!
If you’re confronted by someone who’s been giving you mixed signals, it’s important not to make assumptions. Just ask them what they mean and let the person know that the mixed signals are making you feel like their intentions aren’t clear. Let them know if their behavior is affecting your mental state and why you’re feeling this way.
A senior colleague or subordinate can both be mixed signals givers; nevertheless, if this person has been ambiguous with you and takes no action on getting straightened out, then stop wasting your effort and focus on other things that will help accomplish your task or mission for some closure. If more than one person is giving me mixed signals at work, I will ignore those people because I don’t have time to deal with such people as it doesn’t do any good anyway!
Reading mixed signals is something many of us have encountered before, but it’s important to remember not to rush into things. The first thing one should do if they are suspicious that the person, they are interested in is actually playing games with their emotions is to be patient. Once you think you’re overreacting rather than waiting on an answer, gauge how they’ve been acting around you lately and if need be, test what they want with your actions by subtly asking them out occasionally so as not to come off desperate! But whatever you do – don’t stalk the person!!
