"What do you think?"

The most chronically underused phrase in modern conversation, and one of the most powerful. Most interactions are structured around transmission — someone has a view, a product, a story, a recommendation, and they're sharing it. The expectation of the person receiving it is rarely genuine curiosity. When you actually stop, ask, and then stay quiet long enough for the other person to truly take the floor, you become someone they remember. The key is the silence after. Asking and then jumping back in three seconds later doesn't count. The question has to be followed by actual waiting — a comfortable, unhurried pause that signals you're not performing interest but actually feeling it. People can tell the difference. When genuine curiosity is directed at someone who expects to be talked at, the contrast is striking. They feel seen in a way they rarely feel seen. That feeling attaches to you.