For Them, Not You

A friend reminds me not to express love to people in the way I like to receive it. 

Go against your natural tendencies here.

It must be how they want to be loved and not how I want to loved. 

We discuss how extroverted people (like me) often approach others with overwhelming enthusiasm, curiosity-driven questions, and wide-open doors for deep bonding. 

This is all happening in the first five minutes of an encounter.

You can't do this with shy or introverted people. They don't experience this barrage as a loving act.

I'm advised to wait, speak less (or not at all), and just be generally nearby in case a person happens to want to connect. 

"That's more loving," she insists.

Now, I think about how the other person would like to be loved and cared for and not just project how I would want love expressed.

Simple advice. Profound advice.