What’s the Best Way to Elevate Small Talk to Medium Talk?

Good conversation is like good improv, and possibly just as rare to find. The principles are the same: be present, listen, and don’t shoot anything down. Ask questions — open ended ones, about what they are thinking or feeling. Don’t be planning your next pithy rejoinder, and even if you don’t agree with something they said, don’t shut it down immediately. The conversation shouldn’t be completely one sided — you’re neither an interviewer nor a lecturer — but it’s best to err on the side of asking too many questions than it is coming off like a bore.

Photo: Thomas Szynkiewicz

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Small Talk