After reading How to Win Friends and Influence People, I realized how much I needed to show interest in others. I’ve been making a conscious effort over the past few years to ask lots of questions and prod people to talk about what they like. However, I have discovered a fatal flaw in this idea. If I’m not interesting enough to other people, they will rarely reciprocate this interest. I spent lots of time learning their names, while they quickly forget mine and ignore me in the hallways. I may talk to them briefly, but I rarely develop any meaningful relationships with them. I realize that I need to engage myself in activities and thoughts that attract people to me.