Rant: Everyone talks about 10,000 hours for skill but I hit 500 small talk conversations at work today

I work at a grocery store deli counter and I counted every single 'how are you' and 'what's good today' chat for the last 3 months. Hit exactly 500 customer interactions this morning with a lady who asked if the roast beef was fresh. Most people focus on the big milestones like sales numbers or years on the job. But 500 tiny exchanges taught me more about reading people than any training video ever did. It's not about the fancy stats, it's about just showing up and talking to folks over and over. Has anyone else tracked a weird milestone that actually mattered more than the obvious ones?

3 comments

3 Comments

christopherwilson10d ago

That's honestly pretty cool though.

shane_fisher379d ago

Agree with @viola_ward on that one.

viola_ward10d ago

Wait, you actually tracked every single one of those chats for three months? That is some serious dedication and I really respect that. It makes total sense that a bunch of small talks would teach you more than any training video could. Those little moments where someone asks about the roast beef or just says hi, those are real human moments. You probably picked up on a ton of little things like how people's moods shift or what makes them open up. That kind of stuff is way more valuable than any big number on a spreadsheet. Good for you for noticing what really matters.

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