Rather than "How are you?" I like to use "How goes it?"

Not only is it more culturally universal;
French; cava
Spanish: como estas
German: wie geht's

It also relates to movement rather than stagnation. "How are you?" feels like asking what is your immediate state of mind. It's often responded to with "Alright" or something of the like because the immediate thought is "I don't know". "How's it going?" refers to the whole movement of emotion and sparks conversation.

So, how's it going for you today?