Weekly Business Insights from Top Ten Business Magazines | Week 297 | Leading & Managing | 2

Extractive summaries of and key takeaways from the articles curated from TOP TEN BUSINESS MAGAZINES to promote informed business decision-making | Week 297 | May 19-25, 2023.

People Don’t Know What to Talk About at Work. Here Are 50 Conversation Starters to Help

By Jessica Stilman | Inc Magazine | May 24, 2023

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Psychological research suggests years of isolation and stress had lasting impacts on our personalities, nudging us to become less open and trusting. Meanwhile, managers are reporting that younger employees are struggling to read in-person body language cues after spending much of the past three years on Zoom. Add to this somewhat gloomy picture of our post-pandemic social skills the new data on Google search trends recently reported by Insider. A growing number of those people are turning to the internet for advice on how to break the ice with colleagues and avoid awkward silences in the break room. On Google, there has been a significant uptick in queries for the phrase, ‘What to talk about at work’ in the past two years, according to search data  Here are a select number of conversation starters (out of 50 in the article) to help you out the next time you can’t think of a thing to say: 

What’s the worst prediction you ever made? What would you be most likely to volunteer for?  What are you looking forward to in the next few weeks?  Do you like to cook? What’s the last thing you cooked?  

If you didn’t live here, where else would you choose?  How do you center yourself when you’re stressed out?  What kind of music do you listen to when you need to amp yourself up and get things done? How about when you want to mellow out?  What excites you these days?  When was the last time you laughed really hard? What were you laughing at — or whom were you laughing with?  If you were to give a TED Talk this year, what would the title be?  When was the last time you amazed yourself?  What are three words your friends would use to describe you?  If you weren’t doing your current job, what would your dream job be? What question do you wish people would ask you? What is your earliest memory? Tell me something about yourself that I could never tell from looking at you. What would constitute a perfect day for you?  Where is somewhere you’ve visited that you felt really had an impact on who you are today?  

What’s the best thing that’s happened to you this morning (besides coffee)?  If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future, or anything else, what would you want to know?  For what in your life do you feel most grateful?  Is there something you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven’t you done it?  What is one of your most meaningful memories? Why is it meaningful for you?  If you could undo one mistake you have made in your life, what would it be and why would you undo it?  

What do you love most about your line of work?  Who are some of your favorite experts or authors?  

How did you get into the industry?  What was the best piece of advice you got early on in your career?  What’s the absolute worst business advice you’ve ever received?  I love your bag/shoes/hat. Where’d you get it? What gets you fired up? What do you say more often in life: yes or no?  What would you tell your teenage self if you could go back in time? What do you wish was different about modern parenting?  What have you created that you are most proud of?   What chance encounter changed your life forever?   What is one thing you’re glad you tried but would never do again?  What question do you always want to ask people but don’t have the courage to ask? 

2 key takeaways from the article

1. On Google, there has been a significant uptick in queries for the phrase, ‘What to talk about at work’ in the past two years, according to search data.
2. Here are a select number of conversation starters (out of 50 in the article) to help you out the next time you can’t think of a thing to say:  What’s the worst prediction you ever made? What would you be most likely to volunteer for?  Do you like to cook? What’s the last thing you cooked?  How do you center yourself when you’re stressed out?  What kind of music do you listen to when you need to amp yourself up and get things done? What excites you these days?  When was the last time you laughed really hard?  When was the last time you amazed yourself?  What are three words your friends would use to describe you? 

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Topics:  Communication,  Emotional Intelligence