Reflection
Before stepping into company, take a brief inventory of how you feel: energy level, curiosity, and tolerance for chatter. Notice physical clues — shoulder tension, breath, or a low hum of eagerness — and treat them as useful information rather than judgment.
Calibrate with low-stakes experiments you can run alone: arrive earlier or later, set a short exit window, or bring a small object that grounds you. Try different pacing and observe which adjustments preserve attention without closing you off.
Afterward, give yourself a short debrief: name one thing that restored you, one thing that cost you energy, and a single tweak to try next time. Schedule a deliberate recovery — even ten quiet minutes — and let that feedback refine your next social calibration.