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Meeting strangers | Life's Gifts

What is it that makes people afraid to talk to strangers? I think one obstacle may that people don't now how to 'disengage' if they don't want to talk further. I have found a polite, 'gotta go now...good talking to you' works just fine! After all, it IS OK to disengage. I think just knowing that makes it easier.

Also, it seems that people are suspicious...as in, 'what do you want from me.' I often talk to new people...at work, while at Starbucks and pretty much anywhere. The conversations always start with what's going on around me, and I make a point not to ask what someone does when I meet them, as it takes us from the 'human element' to 'work mode' far too quickly. I don't talk to people because I want anything at all from them, rather just because we are all human after all...we're not rocks!

Just this past week, I have met amazing people. Just a quick glimpse into a few should illustrate how easy and interesting it is to open oneself up to meeting new people. What you’ll notice is that there are all these amazing people in the world, and unless you stop and find out a little about what’s going on inside of them, you will miss out on some very rich and rewarding experiences.

WHERE: A pub at London, Heathrow Airport
WHO: A gentleman from Florida on his way to Bangkok. He’s 60 years old, been retired for 10 years and loves to write, kayak and live life fully. He doesn’t want to live without passion, and had some wonderful stories to share. He’s going threw a divorce right now, so it’s a tough time, but he’ll be just fine. I’m going to help him get his stories online and figure out how to use the web in a easily managed, graceful fashion for his goals.
WHAT I LEARNED: We are all getting older every day, and just because we’re getting older…don’t mean we have to get old. I also learned that no matter how old we are, we feel the same things at 60 as we do at 30.
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Customs Line (London, Heathrow Airport)
WHO: VP of Business Development for a company that translates movies from English to any other language.
WHAT I LEARNED: What amazing opportunities for new business relationships surround us each day just by being polite and talking to our neighbor.
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Executive Lounge at London, Heathrow Airport
WHO: Irish gentleman who owns the rights to the Irish-Apprentice television show, father of three and world traveler.
WHAT I LEARNED: When negotiating a business deal, leave enough money for the other fella to make a buck. Don’t be greedy and remember…it truly is all about people!
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Executive Lounge at London, Heathrow Airport
WHO: English gentleman who is the Chairman of a large milk distributorship, and makes arguable the world’s finest Bloody Mary! I would know because he made me two, and taught me how to make it!
WHAT I LEARNED: No matter how successful in life one becomes (Chairman), it is refreshing to share the little things and show some kindness. He described his job as, ‘I sell milk.’
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Cologne, Germany
WHO: Founder of a cool worldwide German company
WHAT I LEARNED: What you start out with isn’t always what you end up doing…and the key to it all is being willing to be flexible and change your strategy mid-stream. I also learned that it doesn’t matter whether you are the CEO or work in the mail room, as everyone appreciates when another person reaches out to them to make them feel at ease.
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Cologne, Germany
WHO: A baseball player I played against when I was 17 y/o
WHAT I LEARNED: Sometimes it’s really good to reconnect to your past.
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes

WHERE: Cologne, Germany
WHO: VP Software Development
WHAT I LEARNED: Connecting on any level is about shared interests, or the willingness to be exposed to new interests. We started talking about cars, and ended up racing around the Nurburgring Race Track at nearly 200 kph. If you are interested, you can check out a link here of what an amazing experience it was: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/157915/bmw_m6/R/WFD_101
CONTACT INFO EXCHANGED: Yes
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