How to get Attention from Multitudes

A mathie's way to gather glances at you

It is a problem everyone encounters at one time or another — no one lavishes attention on you. No one recognizes you and you are all alone in the corridor. You try every method in the book and everyone else still gives you the cold shoulder. After trying out these methods ourselves, we conlcuded that the following methods will get you the attention you deserve.

• Wander around the corridors
  You may be thinking that only weird people walk around without any purpose or apparent destination. Those people are actually some of the best at gathering people's attention. People will pay attention to them and think to themselves, "What are these weirdos doing?" Even though the attention you get may not be positive, you are bound to garner glances from people you pass by.
• Hang out in a place where there is a heavy flow of people
  When you go to a place where there is a lot of people, someone is bound to notice you. At worst, you are earning glances in your direction. At best, someone may think that you are alone and invite you to join their group. Be careful of who you crash into, though, as you could run into the wrong group. For best results, use this method along with the next.
• Join the conversation
  This method is best used when you actually know what the people are talking about — you will get yourselves pinned into a corner if you don't. Also be sure that the people you want to talk to are (or at least look) non-threatening. Always leave an escape route as you can talk yourself into trouble. If you talk yourself out of a jam or your comments are thought-provoking/witty/consoling (depending on the situation), you can gain much more than the attention of the people you are talking to.
• Join a prominent group
  If you join a prominent group, you will get the attention you always crave for. You will get to meet a lot of interesting people in and outside the group. For best outcomes, you should join a group where you can meet people from outside the group. Who knows? If you are willing to pull your weight you may get the attention of the people you want to be close to. MathSoc is one of these places, but go around to see what fits you best.
• Write for a popular publication
  Many shy people write to garner people's attention without getting their faces red. One can use a spot on a publication to get into the spotlight. Y_m is full of people from the above group (well, not really. Most of us are pretty outgoing). The point is, when you write for a magazine, a newspaper, or a newsletter, you get to tell the world what is on your mind and for a brief moment, you will have the attention of your readers. If everything goes well, you will get the attention of many, and isn't that what you want?

(Warning: Some of the above advice may not give you the desired results. Be wary in using these methods — you may garner the attention of the wrong group).

Jason Lau and Mark McDermot
Special to Y_m