I told WP, a friend of mine last week that there are two things I am good at doing with regards to conversations. I am good at starting them with strangers, and second, while doing so, I often inadvertently cause the other person to reveal their relationship status.
Last Thursday, I managed to do this with someone at a fast food restaurant after an event. This person was at the same event I and WP were at.
Here are the lines I used (edited to remove specifics). WJQ refers to the person I talked to.
Me (A): “So, you here for a quick feed after all the walking around and talking to marketers?”
WJQ (B): “Yes, I am. Did you just come from there too?”
A: “Yep, I did.”
[Further conversation leads to a friendly 15 minute chat while three of us finish our food]
A: “So where are you off to now?”
B: “Oh, my boyfriend is picking me up from [place].”
A: “I see. We’re turning here. Lovely to meet you. Good bye and good luck.”
Success!
I like this next part of the story.
As WP and I were making our way out of the City, WP said to me, “It’s very easy to ‘stalk’ someone now. All you need is their email address.”
Well, some of the time that’s true. WP also mentioned the plethora of information on social networks. Motivated by a comment WP made about WJQ (“I feel sorry for her boyfriend”), I searched WJQ’s name on Facebook, and lo and behold, within the first ten results, there they were. Scanning through the ‘About’ section, the information there was the same as what we heard from the restaurant.
Hmm. WJQ seems smart. They’ve got talent.
The pictures that are visible (mainly profile pics and cover photos) can say so much about a person.
WJQ loves their selfies! WJQ also seems very ‘arty’ and loves their ‘inspirational slogans’.
I absolutely love how small details, like photos, small bits of information, and brief conversations can be used to construct a personality profile of someone. Sure, it may not be always correct. But do it enough times, and get to know people, and you see the patterns emerge. The larger the sample, the easier it is to make inferences about people.
This is what I love about data and statistics. Spot the patterns and paint a picture of a person.
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