Human nature is an interesting subject. When you study human nature and learn what makes people tick, you can begin to understand how to influence people in a positive way. Aside from that however, is the business of observing people in their environment and how they interact with others. I like to sit back and listen as other people engage in conversation. I am of the opinion that if you want to have a conversation with someone you don't know, you should bring up a topic of conversation that is appealling to everyone present. Unfortunately, that usually doesn't happen and the person initiating the conversation begins to talk about themselves. Which is where the fun of observing comes in. You can learn alot about someone by the way they talk about themselves. I happened to be in Lowell, AR recently and was listening to this one individual discussing weapons. And how many he had. And how good he was at using them. He let everyone know that he was in the process of building a particular weapon, so he and his buddy could go prairie dog hunting. Now there's some lively game. Not a lion or a bear. Nope. A vicious prairie dog. Anyway, the jist is that he thought very highly of himself and his marksmanship abilities. In my 37 years on this planet I have come to the conclusion that those who can....do. Those who can't....talk about it. If you can do it, why tell everyone? Why not take satisfaction in the task? Because there are those in this world who think that other people are impressed with "stories". Stories of machismo and bravado. And they use these stories to try and be the center of attention. What they don't realize is that other people aren't impressed with tales, they are impressed with actions. You have all heard that actions speak louder than words. Well guess what, it's true. So the next time you're sitting around a group of people and someone starts to tell you what a badass they were at such and such a time, take it with a grain of salt. Because the truth is probably far less appealing.
