One of the things I try to do when approached by someone who is homeless (or I think is homeless) is not to treat it like some kind of transaction where they ne

One of the things I try to do when approached by someone who is homeless (or I think is homeless) is not to treat it like some kind of transaction where they need something and I may or may not give it to them even though that is usually how the interaction starts. The first thing I try to do is introduce myself and get their name to make it less like "ok what do I need to do to get you to leave me alone?". I used to find it really stressful to get asked for change or food or whatever but by talking to people you realize they are often not that different although I haven't dealt with many people with severe untreated mental illness. The unfortunate side effect (and maybe this is why we don't do this more as a culture) is that you'll feel worse about their predicament. When you find out that the person used to be an electrician and had a decent life but money troubles and maybe addiction took that from them, its a little harder to look forward to the restaurant or show you were on your way to as much as you did before.