Quotes About Engagement

How's the battle?

Nine times out of ten, talking is a way of avoiding doing things.

People disconnect from us the moment they begin to define us. They begin to connect with us when they define themselves to us or ask us about ourselves. That's how we get to know them and how they get to know us. It doesn't work the other way around.

If nobody talks about books, if they are not discussed or somehow contended with, literature ceases to be a conversation, ceases to be dynamic. Most of all, it ceases to be intimate. It degenerates into a monologue or a mutter. An unreviewed book is a struck bell that gives no resonance. Without reviews, literature would be oddly mute in spite of all those words on all those pages of all those books. Reviewing makes of reading a participant sport, not a spectator sport.

Adults are the same way — we often need a little time to adjust to the invitation. But too frequently we give adults only one shot. We think, "Well, I made the invitation and he didn't take it. I tried. It's his choice and I'm done." Instead we need to give them time to respond in their own way. Gracious Space encourages us to make multiple invitations over time.

For example, many times by the end of a meeting, a group finally arrives at the discussion that matters most, but they are out of time to adequately address it. We need to anticipate the time needed to warm up a group to be ready for the important discussions, and then to provide a sufficient space for the conversation to occur.

You can't read all the time.

Be part of the answer, not part of the mess.

Dating's all about giving you chances to bump and brush and touch and, occasionally, talk.

The practice of improvisation (in contrast, say, to that of writing or painting) teaches something that we are hungry to understand: how to be in harmony with one another and how to have fun. We practice improvisation not only to "express ourselves" but to connect with others in a more immediate way.

I kind of felt like he carried his whole self around with him. When he was with me, he was really with me.

what size and complexity do … is to multiply the opportunities for citizen involvement and action.

I'm a hopeless conversationalist. I'd always rather listen.

The idea of imagination implies deep participation and the harnessing of real desires in order to effect self-transformation

The more specific your questions the better. If you feel that you can't really continue the conversation without asking questions, you need to ask specific questions.

The 1:1:1 method can be summed up as starting a story as close to the end as possible. Most stories end before they get to the end, in terms of impact on the listener, their attention span, and the energy that you have to tell it.

Instead of walling off a conversation and saying you'd rather talk about something else, you bring in a deeper and more comprehensive level of analysis. This highlights your intelligence, but it also highlights your emotional engagement.

People don't enter conversations, work or social, with the same intentions. You must understand and cater to that.

Asking people for their advice or opinion is one of the best ways you can build instant rapport and become likeable in the eyes of many people.

One of the most important social skills you need to learn is the ability to connect with people instantly.

When you position yourself as likeable, bondable, and relatable, it makes people want to deal with you.

A lot of people talk, but they really are not talking to or hearing each other. They're talking to what that person represents. They just talk and wait for their turn to speak while pretending to listen, not bothering to truly hone in and listen to the other person. In other words, it's all about you. As

By keeping an eye out for hints that people leave for the reactions they want, you can increase the likelihood that your conversations will be longer, more emotionally engaging, and lead to where you want them to go.

Eye contact is a gateway to interpersonal intimacy.