* Don’t state the obvious. In this case obvious is anything that is already known to your audience. People frequently do this in an attempt to be clever or appe

* Don’t state the obvious. In this case obvious is anything that is already known to your audience. People frequently do this in an attempt to be clever or appear intelligent, but it’s neither. * Don’t be clever. Clever is the attempt to short-circuit logic to arrive at a conclusion in seemingly fewer steps. This tends to backfire with either incorrect conclusions or logical fallacies that don’t make sense. * Don’t self promote. If you want to be likable never talk about yourself except for moments of private self disclosure. * Don’t interject into a conversation unless you have an exceptionally important reason for doing so. * Have empathy, the non cognitive ability to anticipate the pains and pleasures of others. Don’t guess at this. Read people, read the room, and then qualify your assessments with pointed questions. You have to naturally and innately want to do this. * Be direct. This means starting with a conclusion, but be prepared to progressively step through the logic only if asked. * Be honest. You cannot achieve trust without honesty. Many people find directness and honesty challenging. * Be available. This means an eagerness to exit your current focus and redirect yourself to the needs of someone else instantly without prior notice. When this is not possible respond with why and when you will be available. * Be helpful, which means an eagerness to spend time and effort to solve a problem with someone else, a problem that do not own and will not be awarded for. * If you wish to be humorous amplify logical directness with a play on words or through gross amplification, particularly when that directness comes at the expense of somebody else. If in practice this will require any kind of explanation then don’t do it. Notice I never mentioned kindness or sympathy. That is intentional.