The Art of Meeting People

As many of you know, I love meeting people (and dogs). I want to share some of my thoughts with you about meeting people and how dogs can help.

"Guys with dogs get girls" is a line we all laugh about, but I've found it to be pretty true. A better way of phrasing that is probably "people with dogs get more love from strangers." If only we treated everyone as if they had a chunky little 6-week-old puppy! 

I accredit this funny truth to people's love for dogs, our need for an "ice breaker" to talk to new people, and how dogs make people more approachable. Maybe it's just me, being such a dog person and all, but I don't think I'm the only one! I'll stop and talk to anyone with a dog. Especially in the recent months being the Dogs of CH blogger, I seem to notice people with dogs right away. I'll smile and look at the dog and if the person looks like they have time, I'll ask what his name is and how old he is. However, the conversation doesn't usually go past talking about the dog. Funny how that happens. I guess that's the icebreaker aspect of it all. However, if I were actually looking to take the conversation further, I'm sure that'd be more possible after talking and learning about the person's best friend. One thing is, people LOVE to talk about their dogs, so that's a great conversation starter anyway. The second thing is, most people aren't annoyed by people who like their dog- it makes the person feel loved too!

So why not ask questions and meet new people along the way? People are interesting! Many times, it's the strangers you really learn things from. The ones who you stop and talk to on your walk. The ones who you give a compliment to in the dressing room ("Wow, that looks beautiful on you. You should definitely buy that.") The ones who see you in Trader Joe's pondering over whether or not to get the salted dark chocolate almonds and tell you to go for it because you deserve it today. These aren't necessarily the people you'll pick out of a crowd in 20 years, but you'll remember the compliment or the conversation because it made some mark on you and on your life in some way. All in all, it comes down to making people feel good. That's what I've decided. So it's true, people with dogs get more love from strangers. They are more approachable because the dog is an instant conversation starter! By asking about the person's dog, you're asking about something he/she really cares about... so why wouldn't that start a meaningful conversation? 

Be bold and meet new people. Make people feel good. Dogs make meeting people simple, but striking up a conversation with another kind of compliment is probably just as effective. Spread kindness and be nice to people. Being nice can go a loooong way. You don't know what to expect from people, but it's probably worth the conversation anyway. So talk to strangers every once in a while. You don't need a dog there to break the ice. They help, but are not necessary! Even if you don't get anything out of the interaction, something you say might change the other person's life. You never know if that guy at the bar with the cute dog might be the one, right? That's the art of meeting people. 

Until next time,

Lily