Throughout life, there will always be opportunities to meet new people but sometimes we only get one chance to make a good first impression. Making a solid good first impression can lead to developing a relationship with that person later on. Building that relationship from that first meeting starts with taking time to learn about the other person.
Whenever you meet someone new, it is easy to want to provide your own verbal autobiography or talk a lot about yourself. While this may interest the other person a bit, doing it too much may also be a turn off. The key to getting to know the other person is to ask questions about them and learn about his or her interests and passions.
When asking someone to talk about him or herself, the goal is not to make it a game of 20 questions; it's to slowly learn about that person without getting too personal or making the other person feel like he or she is being interrogated. Take it slow, find small tidbits about hobbies, interests or small pieces of information and go from there.
During certain events in which you meet new people such as networking events, it's not always easy to know who is going to be there beforehand. The key to these situations is listen to what the person says and ask about a couple of specific points.
For example, if someone says he or she does volunteer work on the side, you can ask if they volunteer with an organization, what they enjoy about it and how he or she started volunteering. That way, it develops a conversation, gets the other person to talk about his or her interests and gives you the opportunity to learn about someone else. It's an opportunity to learn about someone else's passion and provides them a reason to keep talking to you.
Even though it sounds easy, it does take a little practice but there are different ways you can practice. If you are a college student, you can try having a small conversation with the people who work in the local coffee shop, the people who take care of you at the bookstore, the library, etc. When you are at the checkout line, take a few minutes to ask the person at the counter how his or her day is going and you might be surprised as to what you can find out. It might not be often that someone takes a few minutes to get to know these people and will help you stand out.
Building relationships in life is key and the first step is to take time to know the other person. Take time to listen, understand his or her interests and learn about them so you can build trust and that relationship.
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