Watch how a captain talks to the kid who never plays. That’s the whole scouting report.

How somebody treats a person who can do nothing for them is the most reliable thing you will ever learn about them. With the stars there is a reason to be warm. With the player at the end of the bench there is no return, so whatever shows up is the genuine setting underneath.

Run that test on the people around you, then run it on yourself. Over the next week, notice who you greet automatically and who you walk straight past. Starting a conversation with the person nobody is competing for costs about thirty seconds.