(今天huaren又是海龟vs海不归大潮。A也好B也好犹豫不好。借此文给在这里工作的huarener加油鼓劲） Among many things you could talk about, here are five safe, interesting and easy options.
Movie: new movies are usually a delightful entry point for small talk because one movie will generate a good number of follow up questions. Keep an open eye on new things showing and remember to give a “spoiler alert” before you say things like “I never would have guessed xxx is the murderer”. You don’t want to spoil somebody’s date night.
Kids: Spend two seconds to note down their kid’s name and age and gender and hobby if any. It’s important. As a new mom, I can tell you it makes the relationship much more personal if somebody comes up to me and asks “how’s xxx doing?” Also, you could probably do some reasonable guess on what a 10 year old boy like, ask about their summer plans.
Geography mobility: “so what brought you here?” It’s such a simple question, but a really effective one especially when you first meet someone. High mobility people like ourselves usually have a good story to tell. Again, ask people to talk about their stories and their lives. Most people like it. And be prepared to answer “how about you?”
Travel: one of the my favorite topics, exciting to talk about, works from first timers to old acquaintance. It could also be a natural leading question if showing off your international experience is something you would like to achieve that day.
Food: most people, if not all, have some craving for delicious food. Share vigorously if you identified a good restaurant. Even better if you love making your own.
As you probably have already noticed, you need to be an interesting and caring person first. And as many people say, fake it until you can make it.
When I say fake it, I meant your confidence, not your attitude. You still need to be genuine. Ask questions that you really want the answers to (or interested to certain extent) and say things you really mean. Human kinds are very good at sensing whether the other side is really listening and you don’t want to be caught.
Be prepared. You need to get your homework done. Think of one or two things you like about your last trip destination, and check out the English name of your favorite seasoning for homemade beef stew.
Be relaxed. Enjoy the process of knowing somebody a bit more. It’s a beautiful thing and there’s something to learn from anybody. Don’t overthink about what you get out of 20min of small talk. It takes time to build a relationship and research shows on average you need 2.5 years before a relationship can generate fruitful results.
Among many things you could talk about, here are five safe, interesting and easy options.
Movie: new movies are usually a delightful entry point for small talk because one movie will generate a good number of follow up questions. Keep an open eye on new things showing and remember to give a “spoiler alert” before you say things like “I never would have guessed xxx is the murderer”. You don’t want to spoil somebody’s date night.
Kids: Spend two seconds to note down their kid’s name and age and gender and hobby if any. It’s important. As a new mom, I can tell you it makes the relationship much more personal if somebody comes up to me and asks “how’s xxx doing?” Also, you could probably do some reasonable guess on what a 10 year old boy like, ask about their summer plans.
Geography mobility: “so what brought you here?” It’s such a simple question, but a really effective one especially when you first meet someone. High mobility people like ourselves usually have a good story to tell. Again, ask people to talk about their stories and their lives. Most people like it. And be prepared to answer “how about you?”
Travel: one of the my favorite topics, exciting to talk about, works from first timers to old acquaintance. It could also be a natural leading question if showing off your international experience is something you would like to achieve that day.
Food: most people, if not all, have some craving for delicious food. Share vigorously if you identified a good restaurant. Even better if you love making your own.
As you probably have already noticed, you need to be an interesting and caring person first. And as many people say, fake it until you can make it.
When I say fake it, I meant your confidence, not your attitude. You still need to be genuine. Ask questions that you really want the answers to (or interested to certain extent) and say things you really mean. Human kinds are very good at sensing whether the other side is really listening and you don’t want to be caught.
Be prepared. You need to get your homework done. Think of one or two things you like about your last trip destination, and check out the English name of your favorite seasoning for homemade beef stew.
Be relaxed. Enjoy the process of knowing somebody a bit more. It’s a beautiful thing and there’s something to learn from anybody. Don’t overthink about what you get out of 20min of small talk. It takes time to build a relationship and research shows on average you need 2.5 years before a relationship can generate fruitful results.