When someone comes across as neither obviously friendly nor overly hostile, most people will find it difficult to read them accurately.

That means many neutral encounters end up being perceived as negative ones. People who are sensitive to rejection may assume other people...

Put yourself in the context of the whole world. Imagine spending a week interacting with all 7 billion people on the planet. Then consider what percentage of those people would say that you're generally a likeable person.

For example, thinking that around 70 percent of people would lik...

Many people go through life desiring everyone to like them - not just a boss or a co-worker but strangers - the customer-service reps, cab drivers, or people in the grocery store.

Just telling yourself, it doesn't matter if the others like you is bad advice. You know it doesn't affect your...

We all have some problematic thought patterns that we are unaware of.

• One is mind-reading, where you wrongly assume that whoever you're with is thinking negative thoughts about you.
• Another is personalising, making something about you when...