Listen for what people keep avoiding. That’s usually the actual topic.

People steer around the thing that matters most, often without knowing they are doing it. The conversation circles, changes subject smoothly, gets suddenly practical whenever it gets near one particular area. That swerve is a signal, not an accident. What is not being said is usually shaping everything that is.

Listen for the gap next time someone tells you a long story about something else. Notice which name never comes up, or which week gets skipped. You do not have to point it out, but you can ask one gentle question and then leave plenty of room for the answer.