Face-to-Face interactions are something that has seemingly gone missing in today’s tech involved world. Rob Lawless wants to change that. Norristown, PA native and Penn State alum, Rob, describes his favorite hobby as meeting new people and he has turned his life into achieving that goal.
Three years ago, Rob was thrust out of his comfort zone at Penn State and thrown into the big city life in Philadelphia and working as an analyst at Deloitte and then a sales rep at RJMetrics . Going from walking around the small town of State College and seeing people he knew every day to walking into a city with a population of over 1.5 million people, was a shock to say the least. The sense of community of a tight knit environment like Penn State was something he missed.
Rob was inspired by the idea of “sonder,” or the idea that each random stranger you pass on the street has a life as complex as your own. He was piqued by the interest of knowing the people around you and Admiral McRaven’s theory that you will meet 10,000 people in a lifetime, but he wanted to take it into his own hands.
“My ability to meet people is what will take me to where I want to be,” a note on Rob’s phone reads, something that inspired him to take on this project.
Starting on November 11, 2015 Rob started his project by meeting with CEO of BillyPenn.com, Jim Brady after reaching out to him through email. After their lunch on that November day, the project had officially begun.
Through his social media pages, Rob is working his way to his goal of meeting 10,000 people and talking with them for a full hour. These conversations range from anything about food, politics, sports and anything and everything in between.
Temple students, alumni and professors have been influenced by this project and have taken it upon themselves to meet with Rob. As you scroll through his Instagram you are sure to see familiar people and places that relate to Temple.
As Rob and I met in the Student Center on November 16th, I went in not knowing what to expect. Every experience I had heard from friends and classmates was unlike the other. We sat in the Student Center for an hour and the conversation just flowed.
Rob is very much a people person, there is never a lull in conversation. We shared experiences from Penn State, his being a student and mine being a visitor, and discussed spots to hit in Center City. He asked about my major and what I wanted to do with it after graduating, as well as my twin brother and I’s 21st Birthday. As the hour goes on Rob is very attentive and pays close attention to detail, always repeating facts and asking for more details on the subject.
The conversation comes to a close, and it does not feel as if a full hour as passed. It feels as if talking to Rob is like talking to a friend you have had for years. The way Rob approaches each conversation is heavily personal, relatable and he makes you feel comfortable in sharing anecdotes and information about yourself.
To conclude each meeting with each new person he meets, Rob takes a quick story or quote from the person and then puts it as the caption on an Instagram picture he takes and posts. On his page there are over 500 posts with paragraph long stories and information about each new person he meets. This project has the goal of ending around 4 years, Rob believes. But, he is always eager to meet new people.
“Connecting Philly people with each other and the world,” states the header on Rob’s blog, and it seems he is doing just that.
To find out more information contact Rob by email: robs10kfriends@gmail.com, Instagram @Robs10kfriends and explore his blog at http://www.robs10kfriends.com/
Photos courtesy of @Robs10kfriends