Getting no response from someone can seem like you’ve failed in your communication. That you need to press more for the other person to finally respond.
But getting no response is a powerful response in itself.
And it may have nothing to do with your communication skills but the fact that the other person thought it best to reply with no response.
So is no response a response really? What does it mean? How do you deal with it? Get answers to all your “no response is a response” questions to know how best to respond in such a situation.
Let’s dive right into it.
1. No Response Is a Response Psychology – What Does It Mean?
The statement no response is a response means that when someone doesn’t say or act anything in response to you, the lack of response is a response in itself. In this case, silence speaks volumes.
No response as a response examples
- For instance, one may be walking on a street and a street interviewer is calling directly at them but they pretend they don’t see the interviewer. Their no response would probably mean they’re not interested in talking with the interviewer and not responding is their way of putting that point across.
- Another circumstance where no response is a response is when you send a message to someone about a children’s home charity cause and you can see they read the message but never respond. You send a follow up message and the same happens. In such a case, silence means this person isn’t interested in participating in the cause, and pushing them further would do no good.
No response as a response happens in many kinds of relationships but often, you’d encounter it in romantic relationships. Therefore, I’m going to mostly focus on the romantic dealings of this response. But the advice included here can work with other relationships as well.
- So an example of no response as a response in a romantic relationship can be when you’re asking someone whether their partner abuses them. If they don’t respond, the silence means it’s true their partner abuses them otherwise they’d defend them or simply say no.
2. Reasons Behind a No Response is a Response Situation
To help you spot what could be going on, check out the reasons behind no response in any situation.
2. They’re busy
No response could simply mean someone is too busy to respond to you.
While the best way to respond when someone is busy is by letting you know they’re busy and that they’re willing to talk to you later, some people may just assume, “I’ll finish this up and get back to them,” only to forget getting back to you altogether.
This is the case if you sent a message without following up whatsoever. However, if you did follow up on them a couple of times and they don’t respond, the next reason could be the case.
3. They’re afraid to say “No”
When someone says no to you, it can be tough. Well, this could be what someone is avoiding – making you feel bad. Whether they’re a coward and don’t want to face their fear of rejecting you or don’t want to hurt your feelings in any way, they could go for a no response.
Many people walk around avoiding saying no so they would not hurt people’s feelings. If you’re dealing with such a person, persuading them to say what they truly feel may or may not result in a response.
4. They’re preparing a good reply
Whether it’s a tough question or not, someone not responding to you may mean they’re thinking deeply about their answer before responding. They might as well say, “I’m thinking about it,” but find it unwise or unnecessary to say so.
Either way, you can follow up on this person to understand whether this is the reason or not. Something like, “Are you taking time to think about it?” could help you know whether this is the intention of this person.
5. They lack interest in you
This can happen when dealing with friends, family, job relationships, and even more common, romantic relationships.
When one lacks interest in you, it simply means you don’t fit in that person’s life plans. It has nothing to do with you (so don’t take it personally) but something to do with them not seeing whether you provide something that’ll truly fit in their plans. You can go back above to the video on The Terror of “No” to understand what this means.
So if for instance, someone you’re interested in chooses to remain silent to most or even all your flirting messages or any of your tactics to woe them, they probably aren’t interested in you. They might not be brave enough to tell you that they aren’t interested but a no response, in this case, is a clear response.
Related: The Infinite Power Of Silence After A Breakup
6. They don’t want to talk to you
People rarely text, “I don’t want to talk to you,” but silence tells you so. In such cases, not responding may be combined with rude or indifferent responses whenever they have to talk to you.
If you assess your particular situation more carefully, you might realize that this person isn’t interested in talking to you for whatever reason known or unknown to you. Whether you upset or disinterest them or simply they don’t like you, silence tells you they’re ignoring you because they don’t want to talk to you.
7. They don’t know what to say
Have you ever been caught in a situation where you genuinely don’t know what to say? This could be what the other person is experiencing.
When one doesn’t have anything to say, that’s what they’ll do. They’ll say nothing. Your questions or remarks could be met with a blank stare when face to face, a silent moment in phone calls, or “no-reply” in the case of texting.
Whatever the case, to know whether someone doesn’t respond because they don’t know what to say, you can change the topic and postpone your current concerns to another time. If they engage in another topic or question, then this might be the reason they didn’t respond earlier.
8. They don’t want to talk about the topic
They say silence speaks louder than words. “I don’t want to talk about this,” may sometimes be communicated by no response.
When someone doesn’t want to comment on anything or that they consider a particular topic difficult to engage in, they might choose to stay silent to maintain their peace of mind.
Perhaps you’re talking to a victim about their abuse story. Or you’re engaging someone in a conversation regarding a long-distance relationship they find to be too intimate. Or perhaps someone doesn’t want to be vulnerable in your presence.
Whatever the case, you’ll know the other person doesn’t want to speak about a particular topic if they feel comfortable engaging in another topic with ease. If you manage to get that person’s attention on something else, you can bring the other conversation later in a nicer way to know the real reason behind them not responding earlier.
9. The person thinks the conversation is over
How many times do we think a conversation is over only to realize the other party isn’t done with us? This could be the same thing happening here.
Perhaps the remark you’ve put across doesn’t look like something to comment on according to the other party.
You’ll easily know if someone thinks the conversation is done when you ask them a straightforward question and they answer. So before making other conclusions, talk to that person about something they can’t escape answering.
10. How Do You Deal With No Response?
I trust you’ve learned how you can respond to the above real life scenarios of no response as a response. But what if your situation is different? What if your situation is a mixture of such scenarios. To figure out the best cause of action in a no response is a response situation, check out the following tactics.
But before you do, learn about Response Vs Reaction – Important Differences for more wisdom in applying these tactics.
10. Wait on the reply
Have you really waited long enough?
Since we’re used to the fast-paced nature of this era, sometimes we become too impatient and can’t wait for even simple things like responses. If you just texted for instance and someone hasn’t replied, try waiting for a day, maybe two.
Practice waiting for responses in patience instead of appearing desperate at all times. If you follow up too soon, the other person might be put off and ditch responding altogether.
Wait on a response enough to make getting a response your right.
Related: Ways How To Stop Your Reactive Anger
11. Change the topic
Some topics are difficult to deal with at different times. Therefore, we have to be kind and sometimes avoid or postpone a topic that proves too difficult for someone to deal with.
Perhaps you want to talk about trauma or other hurtful things. Or you wish to talk about someone’s weaknesses. Other times, it may be about a matter mutual to both of you yet the other party isn’t ready to talk about it.
Whatever the reason., if the topic makes someone too uncomfortable to participate in, change it if you wish to continue engaging. You can reengage at another convenient time.
12. Be direct
If they don’t understand you they can’t respond to you. To eliminate ambiguity, it’s best to be direct in your conversations and actions.
Ensure you ask questions that elicit quick responses or that one can’t avoid responding.
They could be stuff like, “Can we talk soon?” “What do you like about X?” “Can we go out for dinner this week?” “Does this conversation make you uncomfortable? We can change the topic” “Are you interested in me?”
These questions would get you answers unless someone didn’t see your texts. So depending on your situation, find direct questions to elicit direct answers from the other person.
13. Spice up the communication style
Messages failed to get her attention? Visit her instead.
Not all communication is favorable to all people. While texting to a young tiktoker may be the best communication style, it might be a struggle for your 38-year-old crush. Not that you should look into statistics to know what someone prefers but consider whether their preferences are elsewhere than what you know.
Therefore, if one type of communication isn’t getting one’s attention, reach out in another way to determine if you’d get a response.
14. Follow up smartly
If you sent one message and are wondering why you’re getting no response, then you need to apply this tactic ASAP.
Whether looking to make a work connection or are woeing your romantic interest, following up is a crucial part of the process. Therefore, if you texted once, text once more next time to check whether they’d respond.
Following up smartly is done by making sure there’s a direct way to answer you. You can send text messages with something like, “Hi, I hope you’re doing well. I texted you earlier but never got a response. When would it be best for us to talk?” or “Can we schedule a meeting this week?”
Something to elicit a direct answer without appearing desperate or pushy.
15. Move on
You reached twice, thrice, a couple of times even. But you got nothing back.
In such a situation, it’s best to accept the no response and move on. For your dignity and your peace of mind.
If somebody doesn’t respond to you after reaching out to them more than two times, they probably don’t want to talk to you for some reason they’re not disclosing. So until you get their response, quit pushing them, accept you got no response, and choose to move on.
Related: Getting Over A Breakup Is A Chance – Get Over Your Ex Fast
16. Is No Response a Powerful Response? Is No Response Is the Best Response
No response is indeed a powerful response especially when responding would invite unnecessary trouble. When they don’t respond, they show you how they view you and the situation even without saying a single word. Silence carries so much weight.
But is it the finest response? Absolutely not. While not responding would save you peace of mind when dealing with bullies and trolls, it doesn’t help when someone genuinely needs a response for constructive conversation.
Related: Change Your View on Hyperstress and Hypostress
Concluding No Response Is a Response
No response is a response in many ways. It’s a powerful message having various reasons behind it. Whatever the case, now you know how to deal with a no-response situation constructively.
What kind of no response situation are you dealing with? How are you going to respond? If you have any questions or comments, let’s talk in the comments below!
Thanks for stopping by!
