Many of you have heard me speak about Velcro Communication™, the concept being that the more hooks and loops you have in common with another person, the stronger the bond.

What’s a hook or loop?  Anything outside the business domain that might be of mutual interest to a colleague, prospect, client, or customer such as a hobby, passion, family element or life experience.

Even when the actual items don’t align identically, the fact that you are open to sharing a particular hook or loop leads to greater trust—provided you aren’t waxing poetic about something that is of ZERO interest to the other party.

Recently, my colleague Ford Saeks as telling me about a Facebook post he made in which he included a photo from his bike computer.

While most of his posts had been business related, he said this one got more comments than any before—on and offline. In a sea of blue, suddenly a bright yellow flag. Or rather, in a world of smooth material, suddenly, a hook and a loop. This is the power of Velcro Communication™.

So, think of one hook or loop of your own—a specific hobby, interest, personal element—and include it in an upcoming presentation, email, or business meeting in some innocuous fashion—as an analogy, a story, an example, or a point of comparison. All you need to do is mention it for 10-30 seconds. Show a photo, bring in that prop (the actual item), tell a brief anecdote.

Then witness what happens.

And email me the results.