Trying to connect with people can feel like trying to put a USB stick into a port: there’s a 90% chance you’ll get it wrong three times, even though there are only two possible ways it can go in.

But relationships matter. Like, life-and-death matter. As I wrote about in my second book: the size and quality of your relationships either equals or exceeds almost all the other factors in determining your mortality.

So, yes, to live longer, you must endure all the joys of small talk, awkward hugs, ...