A conversational technique I learned recently (not that I think about all the things I say with such intention) is to tell people something they don’t already know.
We’re much hungrier for new information (even mistruths) than we are for truths that we already understand. Take for example the fake news headlines that seem to circulate on social media; we’ll often choose to read and share something we suspect is probably only partly true over something that we think is true but widely known.
I suppose telling your audience something new is just one tenet of good storytelling, which all humans are drawn to. The experience we have of reading an immersive novel or a fascinating biography for the first time we can never have again, even if we experience if differently on reads two and three.
When talking about oneself, it’s also more impressive to tell others something new. For example, friends and family will be far more interested and impressed when you tell them about the skydive you did, rather than the one you’re thinking about doing.