Vent: A guy at The Daily Grind in Seattle taught me to stop asking 'how's it going' as a real opener.

He looked up from his laptop, said 'Actually, my dog died yesterday,' and that raw honesty in a place full of polite small talk made me ditch the script and just listen.

3 comments

3 Comments

josephmartin14d ago

Wow, his dog died yesterday?

wesley_adams14d ago

Actually makes you wonder how the guy's doing. That dog was probably his main reason to get up some days. Seen it before. The quiet house after is the worst part. No clicking nails on the floor, no one to greet you. That loss hits different than people.

jasonf1714d ago

I read a study a few years back that said most people ask "how are you" as a greeting, not a real question. We expect a "fine, thanks" and move on. That guy in the coffee shop broke the script completely. It forces you to actually see the person, not just the role they're playing as another customer. His honesty was a gift, even if it was born from a really sad place. More of us should be brave enough to drop the polite auto-pilot sometimes.