Another is what I call noticing.
This is usually giving a compliment.
I'm a big fan of noticing people's shoes.
I'm actually not wearing fabulous shoes right now, but shoes are fabulous in general.
And they're pretty neutral as far as giving compliments goes.
People always want to tell you things about their awesome shoes.
You may have already experienced the dogs and babies principle.
It can be awkward to talk to someone on the street; you don't know how they're going to respond.
But you can always talk to their dog or their baby.
The dog or the baby is a social conduit to the person,
and you can tell by how they respond whether they're open to talking more.
The last one I want to challenge you to is disclosure.
This is a very vulnerable thing to do, and it can be very rewarding.
So next time you're talking to a stranger and you feel comfortable,
tell them something true about yourself, something really personal.
You might have that experience I talked about of feeling understood.
Sometimes in conversation, it comes up, people ask me,
"What does your dad do?" or, "Where does he live?"
And sometimes I tell them the whole truth, which is that he died when I was a kid.
Always in those moments, they share their own experiences of loss.
We tend to meet disclosure with disclosure, even with strangers.