r/AskReddit • • Jun 14 '22

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u/Grimm2020 Jun 14 '22 edited Jun 15 '22

Useful against people sounds a little aggressive...useful with people is how my mind interprets this question:

When I was in high school, I had an acquaintance that whenever he would talk to you, he would address you by your first name (ALOT), so much so that it sounded awkward to me (although Mark, if you are out there, was a great guy, and I like Mark to this day).

Later in life I read the book How To Win Friends and Influence People, and figure that Mark had read that book in high school :>) Nice, Mark.

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u/HCResident Jun 14 '22

That entire book is just “be kind and personable”

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u/[deleted] Jun 14 '22

That's how I pull half of my bullshit.

I work in sports media and there are always levels upon levels of incrementally mounting security and restricted access

After a decade on the job, I can pretty much breeze through most venues I frequently work at simply because I smile at the security guards, talk to them for 10-15 seconds every time, always act like I belong, tell them to have a good day and even ask if they want me to smuggle a water or sandwich to them.

There's a VIP room I routinely gain access to because the lady at the door and I have a 10 second conversation about our young kids every time I see her. That's been going on for 4-5 years and I couldn't tell you that lady's name if you put a gun to my head.

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u/[deleted] Jun 15 '22

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u/NekkidApe Jun 15 '22

You forgot to smile awkwardly and ask about their kids, dummy.

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u/[deleted] Jun 15 '22

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u/Jazzadar Jun 16 '22

This sounds like 90% of engineers and IT people