Making small talk Small talk is friendly conversation

Making small talk Small talk is friendly conversation

How do I make small talk? You need to get the other person chatting. Ask open-ended questions that the other person can expand on, allowing you to ask more questions about it later on. [Open-ended question: A question with no correct answer/ A question that can have detailed answers. A closed question: Questions with only Yes/No; True/False as an answer. ) Use active listening. (Active listening= responding to what the speaker is saying to show you are paying attention. ) It shows you are interested and allows you to remember what the other person is saying! “Tell me more. ”/ “Interesting. ”/ “Mm-hmm”/ “Ah, yes!”/ “No way, really? ? ”/ “I can’t believe that!”/ “That’s amazing, wow!” Be enthusiastic, not nervous- if you are interesting to talk to, and show you are interested, the other person is more likely to develop their answers. Think of follow-up questions about the topic, what they plan to do or are excited about. Try to keep the conversation positive!

What should I talk about? Most people like talking about themselves and getting to know other people. Encourage dynamic, engaging conversations that both of you are interested in. Find a common ground! (Common ground= something you both have in common. ) There a wide variety of topics you can talk about, but it also does depend on the situation. E. g. if you are at a party, you can talk about the food. “I love these snacks, they’re very tasty! Don’t you think so? / Which is your favourite? ”, or you can talk about the host (in a nice way!) “How do you know [host’s name]? ”/ “So, how did you meet [host’s name]? ” If you are at a business party, you can talk about the company itself. “Which department are you from? ”/ “What’s the most exciting product you’ve worked on? ”/ “I’m curious to know about your company. What are the highlights? ” Talking about people’s clothes is also a good conversation starter. “Those shoes are lovely, where did you get them? ”/ “I love your bag, what brand is it? ”

Topic 1: Your surroundings The weather. British people are famous for talking about the weather. We often use a lot of sarcasm relating to the weather, but it can also be used for very interesting conversations. “What do you like to do when it’s sunny/rainy? ”/ “Do you spend a lot of time outdoors? Where do you go? Any recommendations? ”/ “What’s it like over there? I hear it’s going to be 34 degrees next week!” “What’s your favourite type of climate? ”/ “Is where you live now different to where you were before? ” / “What is your hometown like? ”/ “Where would you choose to live and why? ”/ “What’s your favourite season/ time of the year? ” The venue you are in. Is it a beautiful park? A fancy hotel? A mansion? A famous town? Is there a cool/ entertaining place nearby? You can talk about your experience in the place. “Did you know that this place has a spa? I went there yesterday, it’s very relaxing. ” “Have you been to XXX yet? It’s on the other side of town. ” “This place is beautiful, isn’t it? ”… “Have you come here before? ” “What are the similarities between here and Japan? ”/ “If I go to Japan, what should I absolutely not miss? ” Mansion: a very big, stately house that rich people live in

Entertainment Hobbies! Talking about things you like doing may surprise you- other people may do the same thing too. Talk about TV shows, your favourite author or book, a film you watched recently that you recommend. You can talk about Netflix or cinemas, podcasts, songs and also plays. “What do you like to do in your spare time? ”/ “If you could have a holiday, where would you go and why? ”/ “How do you like to spend your time off? ”/ “What sort of hobbies are you interested in? ” “Have you heard about the new film “A day in Tokyo”? I went to see it recently in the cinema, it was really good. Have you seen it yet? ”… “So what’s your favourite genre of film? ”/ “Do you have a favourite film? ”/ “What sort of recommendations do you have? ” / “Do you think I should see/ read this then? ” / “Have you heard of this author before? ” You can ask people if they’ve visited museums lately, where they would like to visit, what exhibitions/ art they enjoy and if they recommend any places to go. You can also ask how their interest developed in a particular area. “So you like Monet? I’m interested to hear your thoughts on abstract art. What do you think? ”

Entertainment 2 Sports! British people love football and rugby. If you know that there have been big matches lately, look up who won/lost and ask questions based on that. However, make sure everyone in the conversation is interested in sports! “Do you follow any sports (news)? ”/ “Are you interested in any sports? ”/ “Who do you support? ”/ “Did you see the big game last week? Messi played so well!” News events. To a lesser extent, news topics are also interesting to talk about. However, political opinions and topics are considered very personal, so it is not wise to talk about these immediately to someone you’ve just met. If it’s an event (music festival/ protest etc. ) you can talk about these. British people are very reluctant to talk about very personal topics to people we do not know. This can also include jobs.

Travel Local favourite places and recommendations for the local area. Is the other person interested in travelling anywhere? On the weekend? Summer vacations? Bucket list travel locations? Do they have any favourite places in the world? Try to get them talking about their memories and exciting adventures (past and planned). Food is also related to this- you can ask about what they are excited to eat/ try, and what they enjoy eating usually. “Would you recommend that [food/drink they are holding]? ”/ “What are you most excited to try when you go to Japan? ”/ “When you were in England, what was the best thing you ate? ”/ “What food did you like in Italy? Was the food good there? ”

Ending a conversation “It’s been lovely to talk to you, thank you for telling me about XYZ. [Do you have a business card? ]” “I can’t wait to hear how your project/travel goes! Let’s catch up next time. ” “I’m going to check out the food. It was great to meet you! Let’s hope we can meet again soon. ” Offer to exchange contact information if you would like. It’s polite. Politely excuse yourself. “Excuse me…”/ “I’m sorry but I’ve just seen my colleague and should go and say hi. It was lovely getting to know you!”/ “The next session is starting soon, so I should go and find my room. It was nice meeting you!” “If there’s anything I can help you with, just come and find me!”

If someone speaks too quickly and you don’t understand: “Sorry, I didn’t catch that! Can you please repeat it? ” “Excuse me, but I didn’t understand. Could you please explain it (again)? ” “I’m really sorry but you are speaking too quickly and I didn’t catch what you were saying. Do you mind repeating it for me? ” “I apologise, I still don’t understand. ” “Sorry, I am not sure what that word means/ I don’t understand the meaning. Please could you explain it to me? ”

To water the flowers/plants I water my flowers every day. My flowers are watered every day. I give water to my flowers every day. The breed of cat (what type of cat is it? ) If you take care of lots of cats and breed them, you are a breeder. You can ask what area of the UK you are from. (Where are you from? Which country/area are you from in the UK? )

Conversations to take care of (be wary of) Political conversations (beliefs/ opinions) Jobs Very personal things (family situations/ friendship issue) Don’t talk about relationship status