Read Talk to Strangers: How Everyday, Random Encounters Can Expand Your Business, Career, Income, and Life for Free Online Page B

forth even more information. Yet you still don’t know each other’s names.
     
    Then comes a time to actually “meet.” The hand goes out for shaking, along with “My name is. . .” In that moment the conversation shifts to another plane. By this point you have already shared information in both directions and established trust, and the possibilities for the relationship begin to come into view.
     
    From here, with the foundation in place, you can take the conversation to the next level, exploring and discovering what is possible between you. So much for believing that people won’t share information with strangers!
     
    Chapter at a Glance
     
     
 
People are more likely to share information about themselves when they are anonymous.
     
     
You can gain a lot of insight about someone before you even introduce yourself.
     
     
Once the information is shared, you have a solid foundation for expanding the relationship.
     
     

Chapter 9
     
    We’re All Connected
     
    Whatever it is that you want—a new client, a better job or career, a business of your own, more money, a wider social circle—you can’t get it alone. No one can. We need each other to achieve our goals and dreams. Howard Schultz didn’t make Starbucks into a global coffee company all by himself. Jack Welch didn’t make GE one of the most valuable companies in the history of American business sitting alone in his office. Oprah Winfrey didn’t become “Oprah” single-handedly. They all needed others to make it happen. They may get all the glory (and take all the credit), but their list of acknowledgments is no doubt deep and long.
     
    That’s why random networking works. It always has been, and always will be, through others that we achieve our objectives and realize our hopes. That’s the power of synchronicity. You need something, and presto, it shows up in the person sitting next to you. There’s something someone else needs, and poof, there you are for him or her.
     
    Synchronicity is the reason this book is in your hands right now. About a year ago I was sitting next to someone on a flight, a complete stranger who was deeply immersed in a spiral-bound notebook. He was reading intensely and making notes, occasionally staring up in thought, and then adding sentences and commentary to the pages. What is he working on? I wondered. A business plan? A brochure? A presentation? I didn’t want to interrupt his concentration, so I knew I would have to wait for the right moment to initiate conversation. So when he took a break from his intense focus, I seized the moment. “Wow, that looks like a pretty intense project you’re working on,” I said in an empathetic and respectful way, to show that I know what it’s like to be immersed in an intensely creative project.
     
    Well, indeed it was. This man turned out to be an author with two cookbooks to his credit who was planning a strategy for his newest restaurant. Nothing could have been more relevant—and no one could have been more valuable—to me in that moment than an author who had connections with book publishers. I had been looking for a literary expert to represent and advise me on my book, and I wasn’t sure how to proceed.
     
    “You could call my agent,” he said. “And tell her I suggested you get in touch. She’s one of the best—and delightful to work with,” he added. I did call her as soon as I got home, and indeed she guided, coached, and represented me.
     
    Synchronicity emerged again months later. I was at a copy shop in midtown Manhattan and struck up a conversation with a woman who was printing what appeared to be a manuscript. “Looks like you might be writing a book,” I remarked.
     
    “Sure am, in between waitressing and recording music,” she said.
     
    “How exciting!” I replied. “What’s the topic, and how’s it going?” I asked.
     
    “Well, it’s for young adults, and it’s going fine, except I just need to find an agent to help me get