Here are my rough plans for applying my studies of various elements of social engineering into real life.

Definition: "Social engineering is the art or better yet, science, of skillfully maneuvering human beings to take action in some aspect of their lives." - www.social-engineer.org

1. Body language reading - understanding the other person, using mirroring of postures and some verbal patterns (words/idioms) to gain comfort from other person. Clean appearance, adapting to the situation. 

2. NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) - explore this more, read Turtles All the Way Down: Prerequisites to Personal Genius or Frogs into Princes .. contact the local NLP chapter to figure this all out. Separate the BS from the quality/applicable stuff and apply it in meeting suppliers/contacts on upcoming trip.

3. When needed, ethically getting the background information I need on a person or company

Update: Spoke with a retired private investigator from San Jose, CA. Biggest takeaway: success in his field usually came from REALLY understanding his subject. And He could charge a much higher hourly rate because of this. 

e.g: Many P.I's worked the standard 8-5 hours and would not deviate from them. If someone was faking workers compensation for on the job injuries, they would make sure NOT to exercise during these hours. 

A photo of them playing tennis would violate there workers comp. This P.I. understood that and would work after hours to catch them. 

Once again, small improvements made a big difference.