Conversation Starters

Do you ever find yourself at a loss for words? Are you nervous in large crowds? Do you fumble for what to say when speaking to new people?

If you said yes to any of these questions, you are certainly not alone. Striking up conversations with new people can be extremely difficult.

However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Keep in mind that the other person is probably feeling just as akward as you. Most of us are.

Research has shown that developing good communication skills is far more important than getting good grades in school.

In this article, I’m going to give you a few tips that will help you strike up a conversation with any person in any setting. It doesn’t matter whether you’re trying to make new friends, conversing with co-workers, or talking to the boss, the principles are the same.

When meeting someone for the first time, you must show yourself as having an inviting personality. The best way to do this is to always carry a smile when meeting new people. By introducing yourself with a smile, you put the other person at ease.

In almost all cases, you will receive a smile in return. Not to mention, you have just made an incredible first impression. A smile can say a thousand words without ever speaking a word.

Think about the impression you are giving others when in a social setting. Do you have your arms crossed? Are you looking at the floor?

You can’t expect someone to be happy to see you if you don’t look happy to see them. Your body language must show that you are approachable.

Now that you have the right body language (smile, baby , you must initiate a conversation. Okay, now stop squirming, this isn’t nearly as hard as you might think.

Most people go about this all wrong. They think they need to say something interesting or witty. However, that’s not the case at all.

The key to being a good conversationalist is to take a sincere interest in others.

Questions can be great conversation starters. . .

What do you do for a living?

How many kids do you have?

Have you seen (insert movie here)?

What interesting things did you do this week?

Focus on questions that begin with Who, What, Where, When, and How. These are open-ended questions that prompt further conversation, whereas yes or no questions bring the conversation to an abrupt halt.

These questions open up further conversation. You’ll know what to say next by being a good listener. Once you ask some questions, you can inquire further about their job, family, or hobbies.

You can also spark a conversation by giving a compliment.

Women in particular love to be complimented. If you are in a group of women and want to start a conversation, simply compliment them on their purse, their outfit, their jewelry, etc.

A compliment almost always brings a smile to the other person’s face. In addition, you’ll probably also get a story in return about where the purse came from or how they got a great bargain on that outfit.

The key is to engage the other person in talking about themselves. Everyone is interested in themselves.

Dale Carnegie once said,

“We can make more friends in 2 months becoming interested in other people than we can in 2 years by trying to get people interested in us.”