Convention is that older people have wisdom to impart to younger people. Thanks to the former staff of the former foundation, Girl's Best Friend, I learned a lot about approaching conversations with younger people with a mindset that's not exactly common: an assumption that I'll learn from them.
Should be a no brainer, because don't we mostly remember how smart and insightful and opinionated we were before we were older, smart, insightful, and opinionated?
I'm not talking about faux mutuality, in which we pretend that experience doesn't count or that youth know it all. I'm talking about beginning with a mindset of openness and curiosity on both sides.