This past Friday, February 12, my wife and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary. Although we didn’t have the budget to do anything extravagant, we still wanted to do something different and fresh. She came up with the idea of staying at a bed and breakfast and found Etta’s Place in downtown Fort Worth and I immediately fell in love with the idea. I worked in downtown Fort Worth for a little over a year and loved the environment, so it was almost a bit of a homecoming for me. We had a great time at Etta’s and I recommend it to anyone who’s interested in that kind of getaway, but that isn’t what this post is about.
Saturday morning, while having breakfast, I initiated a conversation with the manager. I started by asking her if the business was ever busy. She replied by telling me about the two times of the year that it was not busy. Later in the conversation, I made a comment about people our age (I’m 25, my wife is 22) likely not staying at a bed and breakfast, and the manager told me that I’d be surprised how many people our age patron their establishment.
By having this brief conversation with the manager, I learned that two of my assumptions were wrong. And all it took was willingness to act on my curiosity.
I like talking about people’s jobs and business, even if it has no relation to my current or desired profession. One of my best friends works for an advertising agency in Dallas. He gives me little insights about his day-to-day, and although I’m by no means now an expert of the advertising business, I do feel that I have a better understanding of what goes on.
One of my friends for high school now works in the gaming (gambling) business. His company supplies slot machines to casinos and maintains the machines after the sale. Again, this has nothing to do with anything I’ve ever done, and although I am not an expert in his industry, maybe I can learn something that I can use in my future business adventures.
Some of us read business books and read business blogs to further educate ourselves. But do we asks questions to the people in front of us enough? I’ve discovered that although some people can be difficult to interact with, most people are willing to help and share advice. Besides, people also like talking about themselves and their jobs. And if that brings a little joy to their day, is there any reason you can’t take the chance of learning something new by simply asking questions?
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