How to get over the “Small Talk” hurdle

I meet people everywhere. I'm OK with conversation starters and getting into a social situation. Some people are not. Which is absolutely fine. THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH YOU! All you need is a conversation starter. A good couple of questions can get that silent table of strangers to be a talkative group of friends. I'll give you a few, print them out and keep them fresh on your mind.

1. What do you have to do with this event?
This question will get the people in your new group talking about the people that they know there and what their roll was, if any, in getting the event off the idea table. As you know, any contacts you can make with any event can be useful in the future!

2. What do you do when your not attending events like this or at work?
This will open people up to talk about themselves and what they are into. Personal likes and dislikes. peole love sharing what they are passionate about.

3.What are you doing this summer?
You'll get vacation stories out of this question. Including family stories, people love to talk about their families, kids and the great things they do together. If they like to scoot around the world taking in the sights, you'll have a great conversation started that will continue into some ideas for your next vacation.

4. Do you work with any charities?
This will start a deeper connection conversation becuase charity work is free. you have to love the cause to work for free. Most people do not mind sharing there deepest charitable passions with you especially if you share those passions.

5. How did you get into the career that you in now?
I get this question most frequently. Usually it provides a great topic to talk about because some peoples journey to where they are at in their career was quite a journey. It's interesting to see the strange paths people have to take to success.

Have fun at your next social gathering!