Today is World Hello Day: Say Hello to Someone

Today is World Hello Day - in which people are encouraged to great people with a friendly "Hello".
However, social media overload is making more and more people want to avoid interacting with friends and acquaintances, according to research I was sent in a press release by a confectionery maker.

Apparently the average person in the UK avoids people 284 times every year. The research revealed the extent to which we have embraced our inner hermit, with the most of us regularly crossing the road to avoid neighbours and friends - and frequently ignoring phone calls, texts and emails.

Pretending to lose signal mid-call and saying your battery is dying were among a list of excuses regularly wheeled out to avoid talking to someone.

The research also revealed three in ten of us have even resorted to hiding in the house when there is a knock at the door and 13 percent of us admit to sloping off at parties without saying goodbye.

And over a third (35 percent) of people living in Britain opt for a quick ‘smile, nod and keep walking’ approach rather than stopping to pass the time of day with acquaintances.

The poll of 1,574 adults by confectioner Mentos found three quarters of adults admit to avoiding social interaction, with just over half (52 percent) describing themselves as a bit of a hermit.

The average Brit brazenly lies about not receiving texts, emails or instant messages twice a month. And typically ignores their landline or mobile ringing FIVE times a week.

Most blamed 'social overload' - the constant bombardment of texts, WhatsApp messages, Facebook updates and photographs - for their need to slip under the radar from time to time.

So much so, that four in ten are tempted to delete their social media accounts in a bid to get escape the constant interaction.

A spokesperson for Mentos said: “Because of social media we live in a world where most of us can be contacted very easily by anyone in the world at any time of day and it is easy to see how we may want down time.

“Many of us are guilty of ignoring a phone call every now and then, but there is a fine line between not bothering to chat and being rude if friends and neighbours spot us avoiding them.

“It takes no time at all to just say hello or call out good morning to a neighbour across the road – we should all make an extra effort to be friendly and sociable. Being too busy is a poor excuse, we want to encourage more people to make new connections.”