In addition to asking open-ended questions and avoiding boomerasking, the right way to small talk is to reframe it. Stop ...

“I heard it’s supposed to rain this weekend.” “How about those Cubs?” “Did you hear about Ed, the escaped zebra from Tennessee?” If you groan at the thought of small talk, you’re not alone. More than ...

I had been waiting all week to talk to a coworker about something urgent, so when we finally planned to meet at the coffee shop, I was relieved. I walked in, eager to share, but before I could tell ...

Some people live for chitchat. Others hate it. Service workers have two seconds to figure out which camp a customer is in. “Maybe it’s just a midwestern thing, but can we please stop having the ...

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