"Imagine, instead, that you are a grad student at a philosophy conference, and you suddenly find yourself sitting next to Aristotle. You might want to gush. You might try to impress him so much that he’ll stay in touch and someday write you a recommendation. You may even fantasize that he’ll pick you as his new protégé and guide you to academic stardom. Or you may feel scared, intimidated, or even angry, and want to snub him before he can snub you.
Resist all of those impulses.
Instead, say something simple and sincere: "Hi, I’m [full name]. I’m a doctoral student in philosophy at X University, and your work has helped me think about metaphysics." Say that only if it’s true. If your work engages extensively with his, you can elaborate without getting effusive...
Well, he might take the lead and ask about your research, in which case you should speak briefly, neither yammering nor pressuring yourself to say something brilliant. Tell Aristotle a little about your evidence, your working hypotheses, the questions that most excite you. Conversation might just flow from there.
But in case that doesn’t happen, here’s a cheat sheet with five time-tested approaches."
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