I love it! Thank you so much for sharing this with all of us.

Due to being in law school, we learned that when talking with a client, we have to put our own stuff on the side and just listen to the person. I have carried that over in all my interactions and it sure has made a difference.

Whenever someone talks to me, I am just present and listen to whatever they have to say without judgment. Some days this can be hard but with time, it has become a whole lot easier.

People give themselves away when they talk and when we truly listen, we have a better idea of who they are and we come to see that pretty much everyone struggles with the same things on some level.

Hope all is awesome!

I also agree totally about smiling. It is amazing how when you smile and are friendly, how much more responsive people are.

Thanks for sharing Sid’s great tips with us. Much appreciate:~)

What a super important topic for work happiness. Body language is SO important in any situation, but especially at work.

How we smile, or if we smile, the expressions we use, our posture, all that adds so much to the quality of any interaction.

This is great Karl – thanks!

Hi Eduard, Non-verbal cues are so important. The more aware we are of these signals the better we can communicate.

Hi Nathan, Time to treat yourself to a good chair at home too.

Hi Tess, Knowing your intention is very important.

Hi suzen, Good point. Our tone of voice comes from your facial expression and body posture.

Hi Jason, Giving someone a chance to talk about themselves is a much underused social tool.

Hi Stacey, It’s good you recognize this and adjusted.

Thanks for the intro to Sid…I will check him out!

Also, jumping on your idea about giving, here’s a scenario I bet a lot of people can relate to: you’re at some sort of party or networking event and you meet someone you don’t know. You ask the standard, “So what do you do?” Their response may as well be Martian, because you have NO CLUE what they’re talking about. You’ve never heard of that job before. EVER. Now instead of asking more about it, many people nod their head in agreement, as if they know exactly what the other person is talking about. (Then try to exit the conversation as quickly as possible before the jig is up!)

This sort of thing is common because no one wants to be perceived as an idiot. However, I have found that simply saying something like, “You know what? I’ve never heard of that before, but it sounds interesting. Tell me more about it? What does your typical day look like?”

Now if you’re sincere, that person won’t think you’re an idiot, but will actually feel empowered. The fact that you’ve shown true interest will make them think you’re pretty cool. Like you said, people love the attention.

I guess this is a long-winded example of “giving” to someone in a way that isn’t often considered. Giving them a chance to talk about themselves is a great gift.

I think #5 can be applied in a lot of cases. Good stuff.