How to shoot effective candids?

I've been posed such questions before by several people...my simple answer is don't forget to compose your shots properly before you decide to shoot an effective image...what do i mean?Well what I'm trying to say is that you must make sure that you always capture the essence of the story you are trying to tell ..ie if you are shooting a coal minor's portrait make sure you try as best you can to include elements or cues that may give clues to what he does for a living..it wouldn't make much sense just shooting real tightly on the subject without taking advantage of elements that make his story unique...alright then thats just roughtly my two cents...that been said I hope you get the picture....happy snapping..