Why the most valuable skill at work might be talking to strangers

A new book reviewed by Michael Lee Stallard for SmartBrief argues that we could be missing valuable connections. Beyond career advancement, Sandstrom presents evidence for something even more profound: that speaking with people outside our immediate circle fundamentally changes how we think.

When we talk only with the people we already know — our team, our department, our usual lunch group — we tend to reinforce what we already believe. Our thinking becomes narrow and self-confirming. But when we engage with strangers, we encounter different experiences, different frames of reference and different ways of seeing the same problem. The result opens up the possibility of what researchers call convergent thinking, which is the ability to draw connections across seemingly unrelated domains and synthesize them into something new. 

I think of this as “mosaic thinking.” Picture a mosaic, a piece of art composed of small fragments such as colored glass, stone or ceramic tiles. Mosaics dating back to ancient times can still be found in houses of worship in Italy, vibrant and whimsical mosaics created in the 20th century by the Spanish architect and designer Antoni Gaudí adorn buildings and park benches in Barcelona, and you’ll find mosaics on the walls of subway stations in Manhattan and the renovated LaGuardia Airport. Individually, the fragments seem unrelated, but when assembled, they form an image none of the individual pieces could have produced alone. This is precisely what happens in the mind of someone who is genuinely curious about the people they meet. 

Every conversation with a stranger, therefore, has the potential to produce a “tile” — a small piece of new knowledge or perspective that, over time, accumulates into a richer, more creative, more innovative way of thinking. There may also be times when a seemingly innocuous comment someone else makes is the “aha moment” for you, and you recognize why a certain tile won’t fit, or you finally see how the tiles can come together.

In an era when organizations are desperate for creativity and innovation, this is not a soft benefit. It is a competitive advantage — and it starts with being willing to say hello.

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog,Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.