We tend to mention that being with friends and family is important. But how true is this statement? You can either be with friend or actually be present with your friends. Meeting up with friends that you haven’t spoken in ages it becomes a bit easier to give them your full attention.
However where it really matters is your presence week after week meeting with your best friends. Just keeping yourself present shows your connection with them and allows them to completely trust you. Consequently when your friends need someone to talk to they will likely be coming to you.
There is a difference between listening and waiting for your turn to speak. – Simon Sinek
When you meet up with new people how much do you listen to them and how often are you just waiting for your time to talk? If you really want to build up a great relationship with strangers start by listening to them instead of trying to think about what the next thing will be that you want to say. Pick up on what they say and ask about what they mentioned. Everyone notices that you pay attention to them and you put them as your top priority of the moment.
Listening to people have so many benefits, especially considering a lot of people rather talk so you can be the odd person out. By listening to people you are capable of learning a lot of new things on subjects that you are not familiar with. Take any conversation as a moment of learning. Asking questions helps you to better understand and in the future you can bring in interesting information about the specific subject.