Ditch the Small Talk!
Do you hate small talk as much as I do? We are approaching the holiday season and ’tis the season for small talk.
Family gatherings, work parties, school parties, neighborhood parties, it’s all around us. We tend to interact a lot more with strangers during the holiday season.
And I don’t know about you, but the idea of small talk is just not on the top of my favorite list at all.
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I want to share with you a book that I recently read and loved. We Should Get Together by Kat Vellos.
Kat talks about research which shows that loneliness is an epidemic in our country, but when people have deep conversations, it correlates with greater happiness.
She moved to a new city and did an experiment to meet new people. She formed a group called “better than small talk” and invited people from the community to come and ditch the small talk and have authentic conversations.
I love this concept! Kat had people, complete strangers, come to the group with the intention of not having small talk, but having authentic conversations. She says, “it’s what’s missing in our lives and in our community.” Her gatherings were a huge success!
We’re so accustomed to small talk. “How are you doing?” “Where do you work?” “Oh, the weather has been great lately, hasn’t it?”
We’re accustomed to all of these artificial conversations and comments, but, if we put in a little bit more effort, we could start having authentic conversations and really enjoy getting to know the people that we meet. In this holiday season, I want to encourage you to ditch the small talk and make three small changes to help you have those authentic conversations.
Change your mindset from small talk to authentic conversation
Be very intentional when you are going into a setting where you know you’re going to meet and talk to new people. Set your mindset that you are going to strive to have an authentic conversation and really get into a conversation with the other person.
Listen and take a genuine interest in the person that you are talking to
What do they like? What are their hobbies? How can you really get to know that person better? That could lead to an authentic conversation. Don’t just ask about their job or what they think about the weather. But go deeper into a conversation and find out more about them. Ask questions and then listen to what they have to say.
Want to Create more Meaningful Connections in your life?
The Real Connection Starter Guide will give you:
* Personalized Prayers for Positive Change
* Roadmap to Real Connections
* Mind Full Eating
Best of all, it’s completely FREE –simply opt in below!
Make it fun – turn it into a game
How soon can you find something that you have in common with the person that you’re talking to? Everybody has likes and dislikes… I’m sure that if you put in the effort you can find something that the two of you have in common. Research says that each of these things can contribute to our happiness and help us move into those authentic conversations.
