 Hey psyched goers and welcome back to our channel. Thank you so much for all the love that you've given us. Your ongoing support has helped us make psychology and mental health more accessible to everyone. So, thank you. Now, let's begin. So, you like someone? Sometimes you can like someone and admire them from afar. And though you want to approach them romantically, you may have struck up a friendship with them first instead. Or perhaps you've had a long time friend and suddenly you start to develop feelings towards them and now you see them in a new light. With a heart full of hope and a head full of fantasy, you start to flirt and hint at wanting a romantic relationship with your friend. You edge towards asking them out on a date just to end up landing face first in the friend zone. Or are you? How can you be sure? Don't worry, my friend. To help you figure that out, here are eight signs you're in the friend zone. Number one, you show off your attractive qualities. Them, not so much. When you like someone romantically, you want your crush to get to know you better. You want to show them why you would be a great partner for them. So, when Fiona says to her crush, Daphne, I do a bit of cooking myself. I like to think I was a suit chef in another life and Daphne just responds with a simple shrug. She may be friend zoning Fiona, or she's not really that into cooking. A sign of friend zoning can be when they don't respond much to you showing off your attractive qualities. They don't reciprocate them and act uninterested. Number two, they mention other people whom they find attractive. Sure, everyone talks about their celebrity crush from time to time. That's a given, but it's never a good sign when your crush mentions someone they like and it's not you. If it's in the early stages of getting to know someone and they're pointing out how cute this other person is in your class, they most likely only think of you as a friend and want to keep it that way. Number three, they don't flirt back with you, nor do they seem romantically inclined towards you. Romance, it's in the flowers, it's in the clouds, it's in the air. Oh, what? That's just for breeze and air pollution. Sometimes we can mistake certain interactions as being romantic. Those texts that you receive from your friend turned crush may sound flirting in your head, but if you take a second look at them, are they really flirting with you, or are they just answering your text in a charismatic or excitable manner? Due to the fact that you really like this person, you might read into their tone a little too much and see it as flirty when they're really just being friendly. Maybe they like to hug their friends and are physically comfortable with everybody, or maybe your friend is very open and honest with you and you think that they're thinking of you romantically now when truthfully, they just want a deeper friendship. If you feel confused or conflicted about this, it might be a good idea to state your feelings and romantic intentions clearly to your crush at the right time and circumstances, of course. Number four, you didn't happen to hint that you were attracted to them from the beginning. Did you strictly offer friendship when you first interacted with your crush? Did you shy away from implying that you saw them in a romantic light? If your crush only views you as a friend first and foremost, they'll have a harder time accepting any romantic proposals from you. When you meet someone you're attracted to, you should try hinting that you like them early on. That way your crush can get the picture quicker. According to humanistic psychology, Scott Barry Kaufman, if I become too close to that person in a friend way too soon, we start caring about them in a way that isn't associated with sexual interest. If this emotional connection forms before at least a modicum of sexual attraction has, then that person may enter the friend zone. Number five, they don't initiate touch. Do they squeeze in next to you just to be close to you? Do they accidentally graze your arm or your back? Do they brush your hand from time to time? If the answer is no, then this most likely is a sign that you're in the friend zone. If your friend doesn't seem to have the desire to touch you, be physically close to you, or want to be touched by you, then they don't want physical affection from you. Intimacy is an essential part of any relationship. Dr. Stan Tatkin, assistant professor at UCLA School of Family Medicine and author of Wired for Love, says that with intimacy, both males and females experience increased doses of pleasurable, bonding hormones, and these neurochemicals foster an increased sense of closeness. Number six, you're always the one doing them favors. So Daphne, upon boasting about her culinary skills, finally says to her crush, Fiona, I can cook for you some time if you'd like. And that sounds like fun to Fiona, so she agrees. But then Daphne begins to feel like she's always the one going above and beyond to make Fiona happy. She's doing favors for her and holds on to hope while their relationship sticks to the basics of friendship. If you know that you're being more than accommodating for them and driving them to work or cooking them their favorite meals, without any of that same willingness on their part, then you're most likely being friend zoned. Number seven, they always have a third wheel. It's important to notice that if your crush doesn't make an attempt to be alone with you, they're probably not interested in you romantically. If they like you like you, they'll want to have some alone time with you and not bring along their friends to come hang out with you. So when Fiona shows up with her friend Derek to her little romantic cookout dinner date, Daphne better set the table for three because she's just been friend zoned. And number eight, their attitude and language are strictly friendly. When someone likes you, they will usually flirt with you a little bit and find little ways to explicitly compliment you. Their language changes from casual to friendly to flirty and romantic. If someone is making it a point to call you friend or buddy, they're trying to let you know that, well, you're their friend or their buddy. This friendly moniker is usually accompanied by a good old pat on the back or a playful nudge on the elbow. Take it from Daphne, that night at dinner, Fiona called her her best gal pal and the only time Fiona did feel the urge to touch Daphne was when she gave her a good old friendly nudge and laughingly remarked, isn't Derek just the cutest? Ouch. So do you think you're in the friend zone? If you're not sure, do you consider letting your crush know about how you truly feel? Let us know in the comments below. Please like and share this video if it helped you and you think it could help someone else too. The studies and references used are listed in the description below. Don't forget to hit the subscribe button and notification bell icon for more Psych2Go videos. Thanks for watching and we'll see you next time.