Do you need to improve your small talk skills?

Billions of people do it every day. In fact, you could say it makes the world go round. Some of the people who are doing it are very young. Some are very old.

And billions of hours are spent every day.

What is this activity that is so common that almost everyone does it every day? It is participating in a conversation! Making small talk! Talking. Yakking. making small talk Shooting the breeze!

This type of conversation is not very deep and is not about anything important. In fact, it could be said that, on the surface, most conversations between two people are usually very trivial. Because these conversations seem so trivial, you may think they’re not important, but they actually play a big role in how we get to know other people and how they get to know us in return.

You can chat with someone you have known for years. Or with someone you just lined up at the bank. You may want to share the latest gossip or talk about sports. Your conversation partner might ask how you like the weather or what you do for a living.

This type of idle conversation can last five minutes or it can last half an hour. In many cases, small talk leads nowhere. It just disappears without leaving much of a trace.

Are all those billions of hours that people spend every day chatting just a waste of time? Not necessarily.

Although small talk can be a huge waste of time, it also helps pass the time. Help people get to know each other better. Small talk can be a lot of fun and extremely enjoyable.

And while most small talk may not be about anything important, some can lead to deeper friendships with some of the people you chat with. But these conversations can lead to new job opportunities.

Small talk actually has a purpose. The purpose of small talk is to help you meet other people in a fairly safe and predictable way.

And having good speaking skills is really important. Lack of conversation skills can lead to problems in creating new relationships. Poor conversation skills can even hold you back in your career.

The purpose of small talk is to let other people know a little about you, while at the same time learning a little about them.

During the course of making introductory small talk, you may discover that you have some interests in common. Or you may find that you don’t have much to talk about!

The next time you meet someone you’ve chatted with before, you’ll both know a little more about each other. The more you talk, the more you’ll find you have in common.

Not everyone is good at conversing with people they don’t know very well. Some people find making small talk very difficult, even distressing.

People who are very shy and people who have low self-esteem often have a hard time starting these conversations and keeping them going.

Sometimes the very intelligent people are the ones who have the hardest time carrying on an idle conversation with others.

People who aren’t good at small talk will find that they don’t make as many friends as people who are easy to make small talk with. Lack of conversation skills can make you seem socially awkward.

People who are not good at conversation can end up feeling very lonely.

If you are having trouble holding small talk and other forms of conversation, what should you do?

First, you need to ask yourself if improving your conversation skills is something you really want to do. Ask yourself why improving your conversation skills might be important to you.

Would your life be better if you could easily converse with other people?

If the answer is yes, the good news is that you can really improve your conversation skills. It will take practice and commitment to improve your conversations, but when your conversation skills improve, it can open up a whole new world of social opportunities for you.