Everywhere I go, I make a concerted effort to act as ambassador, representing whatever label might be attached to me in a given place. For example, when I travel abroad, I act as an ambassador to my country. When I interact with people of different ethnicities, I see myself as an ambassador to my race. When I communicate with women, I am an ambassador of men. When people visit from elsewhere, I am an ambassador to our home town. I even go as far as to act as an ambassador to my university alma mater, engaging happily with opposing fans on those lucky occasions I am able to return to campus for a football game.

This is a simple thing to do, and the value far exceeds the effort it takes to do it. Make connections, greet people warmly, say hello and ask them how they are doing. When possible, engage in conversation, even if it goes no further than a brief exchange of pleasantries. When the interaction concludes, wish them well. These gestures, while subtle and seemingly insignificant, generate good-will between people, they lift people’s spirits, and thus, carry far more value than one may realize.