It's your first day of college. Imagine you are sitting in a hall filled with strangers and you look at the unknown faces around you, waiting for familiar eyes to meet yours. However, it is their first day too, so you are nervous about numerous things. After a series of failed attempts, you leave the hall to get some air and as you exit the door, you see people playing your favourite sport. So you get closer to the ground and the players while you silently watch them play.
You witness a familiar pattern, i.e. the style of playing because you have followed the sport for a long time. You want to join the players but suddenly it strikes you that they are strangers. But then one of the players asks you with a warm smile, 'Want to join us? We're a player short!' and there you find yourself enjoying yourself with a teammate but more importantly, the stranger no longer seems to be one. Sports made it possible for you to find a friend in an unfamiliar territory.
Finding A Common Ground
There are many reasons why sports has proven to be a very effective icebreaker for new friends. A prevalent factor is, you and your team are all working together and playing by the same set of rules. Along with this, any sport you play requires you to trust each other which tends to be an important aspect in a bond.
In the meantime, sports allows you to get to know one another as you find out about the strengths and weaknesses of your teammate, which is crucial while you look to build new relationships.
Sports: A Social Assistant
Cambridge Dictionary defines a friend as, "a person who you know well and who you like a lot, but who is usually not a member of your family." Friendship is the first bond you build with a person who is not your family. And there is nothing better than a friend whom you not only share similar interests with but also knows about you through a common ground (pun intended).
On the other hand, you never have to worry about making a small talk with these friends because the play you're involved in will help you do that. Also, you never tend to share long awkward silences since you'll always have more to talk about after the games and practices.
Even if you are somebody who struggles with social bonding, sports tends to teach you a lot about interacting with other people, listening, and letting someone else have center stage.
But most importantly, sports shows you how to learn to take the spotlight without arrogance when you win like a champ, and handle losses with humility which is crucial when it comes to maintaining friendships.
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