I want you to imagine you are with a group of people and some you have not met yet. Away to the side is a person that seems a bit lonely, not part of any conversation. You want to do your best to get them involved. You walk over to the person and say ‘I noticed that you are on your own and I wondered if you were ok?’ The person looks at you quizzically and says ‘Fine thanks. I’m just observing what’s going on’.
The lesson here is not to assume we know how people are just by the way they look. We have to ask great questions to find things out. A better question would have been simply ‘Hello, I’m interested to know, what brings you here this morning’. Ask about a person’s interests and you will find out so much more. Try not to judge people too quickly.