Ignoring someone can be difficult, especially if you keep running into the person you're trying to avoid, or if the person keeps trying to talk to you and doesn't understand you're avoiding them. But if you really want to avoid someone, you have to look busy, change your habits and stop all contact with that person. If you want to know how to avoid someone, just follow these steps.
Step
Method 1 of 4: Use Body Language
Step 1. Don't make eye contact
Not making eye contact is the best way to avoid someone. Once you make eye contact, you acknowledge that you know the person exists and expose your pretense. If the person is nearby, avoid their eyes at all costs by making sure you make eye contact with everyone except them, look straight ahead, or even look at the floor.
- If the person is shorter than you, then just look ahead past his head. If the person is taller than you, make sure you are not looking up.
- If the person is the same height as you and is standing next to you, try blurring your vision so you have a blank look in your eyes if you accidentally meet.
Step 2. Walk briskly
Another way to ignore someone is to walk as fast as you can. This will show that you are a busy person with lots of places to go, and you have no intention of making small talk with people you ignore. Walk with your arms by your side, as if you were looking at your next destination, even if you weren't headed for a particular place.
- If you see the person approaching from a distance, make sure there is a distance between you so you don't touch the person.
- Don't walk away from that person. If you walk in the opposite direction or walk down the aisle, it will make you look too concerned. But if you see the person from a distance and you're sure he's not looking at you, then you should really try walking the other way.
Step 3. Look closed
If you accidentally get close to that person, fold your arms over your chest, cross your legs, bend down and do whatever you need to do to look totally unapproachable. Your body should say, “Don't talk to me, man,” and hopefully that person will understand.
- Also don't smile. Keep a straight face, or even frown on your face so that you don't look like you want to talk to anyone.
- You can also try that horrible blank stare on your face – it will scare people away from talking to you.
- If you have long hair, bangs or a hat, try covering part of your face to scare the person away from making eye contact.
Step 4. Keep yourself busy
As another way of looking closed off, you can also look really busy as if you can't possibly talk to the person because you're busy and you don't have a second to talk to them.
- If you're with your friends, look at them and go wild by moving your body so you can't talk to the person you're ignoring, or even see.
- If you're alone, try to appear glued to a book, magazine or textbook. You can even read the words slowly, as if you were trying to memorize them.
- Keep your hands busy. While walking or sitting, hold your cell phone, textbook or heavy potted plant. This will prevent the person from trying to talk to you.
Method 2 of 4: Using Technology
Step 1. Use your phone
Using your cell phone will also help you ignore almost anyone. There are several things you can do to ignore people with your cell phone. First, you just use your phone to look busy whenever you see that person. Talk to other people on the phone, laugh out loud, or seem focused on a fun text message with someone you really want to chat with.
- Change your phone number so that person can't call or text you.
- Block the person's number from your phone so you can't receive messages from them.
- Set an alarm on your phone to sound when you know you're close to that person, so you can pick it up and pretend you're talking to someone else.
Step 2. Play some music
Buy headphones, and always wear them when you're alone, even when you're not listening to music. When you see that person, turn up the volume of your music to deafening levels and shake your head to the beat, so that you seem completely immersed in the beat, and don't have time to spend with the person you wish to ignore.
If you want to be really annoying, you can even close your eyes and sing along to the music, leaving the person you want to ignore the opportunity to talk to you
Step 3. Ignore someone online
Ignoring people online is even easier than ignoring them in person because you don't have to physically avoid them. To avoid someone online, just be sure to ignore email, Facebook messages, Twitter or other attempts to contact you online.
- Block that person from all your social networks. Make sure he has no way of contacting you online.
- Change your email address and username if necessary. That person will have no way of contacting you online.
Method 3 of 4: Changing Your Habits
Step 1. Find a new walking path
If you want to ignore someone by changing your habits, the easiest way is to change your walking path so that you no longer run into that person. If you always run into that person during class breaks, find the longer path to your next class so you don't have to see the person. If you always run into that person at work, start going down a different aisle or toilet to minimize contact.
- If you always see that person when you walk everywhere you go, start using a car.
- If the person seems to change their walking path to suit you, keep changing your path until the person gives up.
Step 2. Avoid his favorite hangout
It is very easy. If you know that person's favorite bar, restaurant and park, don't go there again. Going to that place won't do you any good, unless you want to spend all your time there actively ignoring the person.
- You can also study the days the person went out. If he only goes to his favorite restaurant on the weekends, and you really want to go there, you can come on weekdays.
- If the person only comes to the bar during promotional hours, come there in the evening.
Step 3. Go where the person has never been
If the person is a meat lover, start looking for vegetarian restaurants near you. If that person hates jazz, check out the latest jazz concert in your neighborhood. If he or she is the arch-enemy of one of your friends, then a party your friend is throwing is a great place to avoid that person.
By actively going to places the other person would never go, you're not only ignoring them, you're also finding new places to hang out that don't involve that person
Method 4 of 4: Ignoring Someone Under Any Circumstances
Step 1. Ignoring someone at school
Ignoring someone at school can be tricky, especially if you're in the same class as that person, but you can still find ways to ignore someone at school without being too obvious. Here's how to do it:
- If you usually sit next to that person in class, switch seats. If your seat has been assigned by the teacher, talk to your teacher and ask if you can change seats.
- If you see that person in the cafeteria, see if you can sit in a new place.
- If you run into that person in the hallway, look straight ahead, as if you were so focused on the next class that you didn't see him.
- If the person asks you in class, turn around and pretend it didn't happen.
Step 2. Ignore people at work
Ignoring people at work can be difficult, as you may be sitting next to them or even working on the same project as them. However, there are things you can do to minimize contact with them.
- Avoid the break room or kitchen while the person is there. Study the times the person goes to the kitchen for lunch or coffee, and make sure you maintain a different eating and coffee schedule.
- If you're sitting next to that person at work, stay focused on your computer, and leave a pile of papers on your desk so you can always look glued to the paper and not looking at the person.
- Don't risk your professional life. If you absolutely have to talk to the person to get some work done, do it. The person will be more annoyed if you talk to them at work and ignore them afterwards.
Step 3. Ignoring someone socially
Ignoring someone socially is easy if you know how. You just need to lean on your friends and try to stay away from that person as much as possible if you're in the same room:
- Keep busy with your friends. Chat with your friends and laugh as if you were in the funniest conversation in history.
- Dance. If the person approaches you and there's music playing, drag a friend to the dance floor and start dancing. If the person is still approaching you, close your eyes as if you were listening to the music.
- If the person is standing around you, be more fixated on the other person near you. When the person is talking, scratch your ear and check your phone -- act like nothing happened.
Tips
- When the person tries to talk to you, take out your phone and pretend to answer the phone or chat.
- Use an MP3 player to distract yourself from people who annoy you.
- Learn how to see people out of the corner of your eye. Then you can still pretend you didn't see them.
- Make sure you have a valid reason to ignore the person. (For example, if they're trying to apologize for his mistake, it might be best to give him a chance.)
- If you're in the office, close your door or pretend you're on the phone.
- If anyone you're trying to avoid keeps calling your name or trying to get your attention, you can still avoid them quickly because if you seem busy, say "Oh hi" and move on as if you have urgent business.
- If you know you're likely to run into him somewhere (ex: a supermarket), check to see if his car is parked outside before you enter.
- If you don't like the person, avoiding them will be easier.
- Consider talking to the person if there is a workable reason/problem regarding your avoidance.
- If the person who made you angry is truly sorry, maybe you should forgive them or talk about it before you lose that person. Give him a chance – most likely it was just a misunderstanding.
