bee33 wrote:
When making eye contact is deliberate rather than natural, it can be very hard to gauge how much eye contact is appropriate, even if one is not actually staring. I find myself trying to remember to glance at someone's eyes when they are talking, and it actually distracts me from what they are saying rather than enhancing my understanding of their emotional state. (And I can never look at someone's eyes while I'm talking, because I have to think about what I'm saying.)
Yes, exactly! The only time I find myself able to look at people when I'm meant to is if they are speaking for an extended period of time and I'm supposed to listen. Then, you can just stare at them hardly and it's not entirely inappropriate because they are speaking for quite a while. The rest of the time I tend to look to the side. When I speak, I try to make it look natural when I look away so as to avoid causing offense. Looking out the window, turning to look towards any sudden noises, looking at my watch, all to give off the impression that I am not deliberately avoiding looking at them.
Works for me, though, sometimes.