When I meet someone I think I might like to know better, mysecret is to share something about myself that is both personal and maybe a little embarrassing or self-deprecating (I often tell people that I am divorced.) That tends to spark their curiosity and open them up.
Whilst I believe that principle from the bottom of my heart, I have to admit I still harboured for many years a secret disdain for awards (and the self-congratulatory hubris that surrounds them).