This is an aside from Seth following a question about why people don't value free advice.  Back when we had parking meters in New York, there were also a lot of panhandlers in New York. And the smartest panhandler I ever met in my whole life came up to me and he said: "Do you have a dollar for four quarters?" Now in New York four quarters are worth a lot more than a dollar. So he's got four quarters in his hand - I can see it - and he says: "I'll give you these four quarters if you give me a dollar". "All right." (There's a meter there.) So I do the transaction, and he says: "Got a quarter?" And it was perfect! Because first he knew I had a quarter, second I owed him, and third - most important - we had transacted with cash. Since a cash transaction had occurred, we had a totally different relationship than if he'd just walked up and said: "Got a quarter?" I thought that was great. Seth Godin speaking at Pick Yourself, NYC, 16th May 2012 | 
