The secret to being the most interesting person is all about being genuinely interested in others.
It’s a simple yet powerful law of human interaction. If you want to connect with people, you must show them that you truly care about what’s happening in their lives. It’s not about talking about yourself, but rather listening and asking questions.
Proving my point
I remember a friend asked me some years ago about how I managed to be popular among friends. Even strangers who never met me before could remember my name. He asked me a lot of questions about how he could make himself entertaining, whether there were interesting jokes he could remember, and so forth…
“DO you really want to know the Secret? It will just change the way you talk and think!” I asked rather mischievously.
He nodded his head and I started to explain…
“Here’s the Secret: Most people in the world really want to talk about themselves. Sometimes all we need to have a great conversation is to ask questions! Get them to talk about themselves. The Secret to being the most interesting person is to be the MOST INTERESTED! Practice Active Listening and show your interest by asking questions.”
I shared with him a real-life example with another one of my friends called D (name with-held to protect his identity). I met up with D to have dinner and the whole night I did nothing but ask questions. This is how our conversation went:
“So… how’s life with you now?” (D shared)
“How’s your job now?” (D shared some more)
“Oh… really… what happened.. tell me more?” (D talked about a particular incident)
“How did you feel about the whole thing?” (D talked again)
We went on like this for one and a half hours. All I did was ask a ton of questions. All I needed is to be really interested in what D did. By the end of our conversation, D mentioned that it was the best conversation he had ever had. It proved that by being sincerely interested in someone, you can truly connect with them.
I smiled after that.
Human connection
Just imagine the impact of practicing active listening and showing genuine interest. It can help you persuade and move people, improve your relationships, and build empathy towards others. It’s a powerful tool that can transform the way you manage people and build your team.
So remember, the secret to being the most interesting person is to be the most interested!
Photo by fauxels-pexels.
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