“Don’t talk to strangers”  <– what a terrible thing to say to a child! It’s a great way to destroy their future.  What better way is there to make them shy, anxious, jealous, and miserable.  The one who has the most friends is often happiest, and most successful (give or take some points for actually being a good person too).  I’m violating a lot of those parental rules by staying with strangers, meeting strangers, accepting candy from strangers, etc..  And I’m (literally) having the time of my life doing it.  So when I pulled into Plano (near Dallas), people on twitter saw that, and one invited to treat me to breakfast the next day.  Free meal!  Hooray!  Actually, I can afford food   The concept of meeting someone new is always fun, so I accepted. Here’s what happened:

I had a 10 hour drive (it actually turned into a 27 hour drive, but… I didn’t know that at the time) after breakfast, so had figured that a meal (even with talking) would take about 30-60 minutes.. MAYBE 90.  So… 3 hours later, it’s 1pm, and we both have to get going, but could both have stayed for another 9 hours, and chit-chatted.  This guy was so cool!  His stories (don’t believe him when he tells you that he’s a terrible story teller, ’cause I was captivated) were incredible.  He’s traveled the world, seen, heard, and experienced what many people never will, is well read, smart, funny, and now my good new friend.  I can’t tell you all the stories we exchanged, so that neither one of us gets incriminated…. but it would’ve been enough to make you stop what you’re doing, and pay attention.

So, despite that I was already hungry for lunch as soon as I left breakfast, and despite that I now would be arriving in Kentucky at 3am, instead of 11pm (so I ended up just driving to Virginia instead), it was totally worth it!  You can not place a price on good people… they’re so rare.  Or.. perhaps it’s not that they’re rare, but rather that American society has made it easy for us to distrust people, not be open, and… as I said in the opening sentence… not talk to strangers!  So, do yourself a favor… say something nice to a stranger while you’re waiting in line:  I like your shirt!  You have really cool nails!  You smell nice (try not to sniff them, and be creepy about it)!  You just did such an awesome job ringing up my groceries, and your smile made my day- you should get a raise!  You can make people’s day.  But… be sincere.  That should get you warmed up with talking to strangers.  Then get on twitter.com or meetup.com and go find people that are likeminded, and live near you, and go hang out… get to know them.  Ask questions.  Listen, don’t just talk… but don’t be shy either.  You take this advice, and you will lead a happier life… you’ll have more friends, more feedback on business ideas, your life, etc..  you’ll have more opportunities (not just business), and your life will be fuller, as you’ll be subjected to more viewpoints, activities, etc…

If you want to get started- get on twitter, and talk to my new friend:  @texaszman

Here’s a quick interview I did as I was leaving: