Week 4- Show a genuine interest in other people

I didn’t notice any direct results for this principal last week, so I waited until this week to post about it. It is hard to find things about other people that you are genuinely interested in that you don’t already talk to them about, but when you can find something to talk about with, especially if you want something from them, it will really pay off. For example, I know more than average about old music than most teens-that’s what I am used to listening to in the car with my parents- so when my math teacher asked if anyone knew who was singing the song on his mostly Beatles playlist, I told him I did and proceeded to talk about the Beatles for another minute or so. The next day when I hadn’t completed my homework, he seemed not to care as much as he normally would.

People like to talk about things they enjoy, so if you are willing to talk about those things with them, they’ll like you better. People with similar interests are friends. The opposite is true as well, you generally don’t see athletes and gamers hanging out as they have little in common and therefore nothing to talk about, but as soon as you can find something to talk with someone about, even if just for a short while, they will want to be your friend, and given the choice, wouldn’t you rather help out a friend than a stranger?