Matt Abrahams

Anybody who does a sport, anybody who exercises, you know that warming up is important. You need to warm up your voice. We have this idea that we can go from silence to brilliance easily, and that's not the case.

Yeah, so again, I think it starts with being interested, not interesting. I think we should give ourselves a goal for small talk. Am I here just to pass the time? Am I here to learn something new? Am I here to make some connections in the short term or the long term? So making small talk purposeful is a way to make it more enjoyable and to help you focus your way through it.

Yeah, so again, I think it starts with being interested, not interesting. I think we should give ourselves a goal for small talk. Am I here just to pass the time? Am I here to learn something new? Am I here to make some connections in the short term or the long term? So making small talk purposeful is a way to make it more enjoyable and to help you focus your way through it.

Yeah, so again, I think it starts with being interested, not interesting. I think we should give ourselves a goal for small talk. Am I here just to pass the time? Am I here to learn something new? Am I here to make some connections in the short term or the long term? So making small talk purposeful is a way to make it more enjoyable and to help you focus your way through it.

Now, I'm not saying that small talk becomes strategic communication and we're trying to manipulate people towards our point of view, but many of us don't like it because of its ambiguity and you can give it some purpose and some meaning. And two of the big things that cause people concern is how do I start it and how do I end it?

Now, I'm not saying that small talk becomes strategic communication and we're trying to manipulate people towards our point of view, but many of us don't like it because of its ambiguity and you can give it some purpose and some meaning. And two of the big things that cause people concern is how do I start it and how do I end it?

Now, I'm not saying that small talk becomes strategic communication and we're trying to manipulate people towards our point of view, but many of us don't like it because of its ambiguity and you can give it some purpose and some meaning. And two of the big things that cause people concern is how do I start it and how do I end it?

We talked about ways to start through observation, through questions. A great way to end, again, coming from this Rachel Greenwald woman, was this notion, she calls it waving the white flag, not for surrender, but at the end of an auto race, they'll wave the white flag to signal the last lap.

We talked about ways to start through observation, through questions. A great way to end, again, coming from this Rachel Greenwald woman, was this notion, she calls it waving the white flag, not for surrender, but at the end of an auto race, they'll wave the white flag to signal the last lap.

We talked about ways to start through observation, through questions. A great way to end, again, coming from this Rachel Greenwald woman, was this notion, she calls it waving the white flag, not for surrender, but at the end of an auto race, they'll wave the white flag to signal the last lap.

So when I want to get out of a small talk situation, rather than rely on biology, which is what most of us do, oh, I'm hungry, I'm thirsty, I have to go to the bathroom. Instead, you say something like, I've really enjoyed this conversation. In a few minutes, I'm going to go talk to folks over there. But before I leave, and then you ask one more question or dive into one more topic.

So when I want to get out of a small talk situation, rather than rely on biology, which is what most of us do, oh, I'm hungry, I'm thirsty, I have to go to the bathroom. Instead, you say something like, I've really enjoyed this conversation. In a few minutes, I'm going to go talk to folks over there. But before I leave, and then you ask one more question or dive into one more topic.

So when I want to get out of a small talk situation, rather than rely on biology, which is what most of us do, oh, I'm hungry, I'm thirsty, I have to go to the bathroom. Instead, you say something like, I've really enjoyed this conversation. In a few minutes, I'm going to go talk to folks over there. But before I leave, and then you ask one more question or dive into one more topic.

So you're signaling the conversation is coming to an end. So everybody knows it. and then you have a little bit more of engagement, and then you separate. So everybody's prepared, nobody's surprised, everybody can figure out what they're going to do next.

So you're signaling the conversation is coming to an end. So everybody knows it. and then you have a little bit more of engagement, and then you separate. So everybody's prepared, nobody's surprised, everybody can figure out what they're going to do next.

So you're signaling the conversation is coming to an end. So everybody knows it. and then you have a little bit more of engagement, and then you separate. So everybody's prepared, nobody's surprised, everybody can figure out what they're going to do next.

So if you know how to get into it, if you have a purpose for doing it, and you know how to get out of it, all of a sudden, small talk becomes a place where big things can happen. And it can help us to feel good about it and enjoy it.

So if you know how to get into it, if you have a purpose for doing it, and you know how to get out of it, all of a sudden, small talk becomes a place where big things can happen. And it can help us to feel good about it and enjoy it.

So if you know how to get into it, if you have a purpose for doing it, and you know how to get out of it, all of a sudden, small talk becomes a place where big things can happen. And it can help us to feel good about it and enjoy it.

First is acknowledgement. You have to acknowledge what was done. You have to demonstrate, I get it. I overspoke when you were speaking or I inserted myself too quickly into the conversation. So acknowledge it. then express that you have an appreciation for the feeling that the other person might have said. So we don't apologize for how we made someone feel. We apologize for what we did.