Skip to contentConversation
13 posts
ConversationHow to Compliment a Stranger Without Making It Weird
A good compliment can warm up a conversation with a stranger in seconds. A clumsy one can end it. The difference is usually what you choose to notice. · 3 min readConversationHow to Sound Warm When Your Camera Is Off
Voice-only conversations lose the nods, smiles and small facial cues that keep a chat alive. Here is how to put that warmth back in with words alone. · 3 min readConversationWhen a Stranger Tells You Something Heavy
Sometimes a light chat turns serious fast. Here's how to respond when someone you just met shares something painful, without panicking or trying to fix it. · 4 min readConversationHow to Dodge a Question Without Ending the Conversation
Someone asks your age, your street, your salary, or something you just don't feel like discussing. Here's how to decline the question without killing the chat. · 4 min readConversationAsk About the Second Thing They Said
Most answers contain a headline and an aside. The aside is usually the more interesting one, and almost nobody asks about it. · 4 min readConversationWhere Are You From Is a Harder Question Than It Looks
It's the most common opening question between strangers online, and one of the least informative. Here's what people mean by it, why the answer is often complicated, and how to handle it well on both sides. · 3 min readConversationHow to Tell a Story to a Stranger Without Losing Them
Anecdotes carry a conversation further than facts do, but only if they are built for a listener who does not know you. Here is how to shape one on the spot. · 4 min readConversationHow to Disagree With a Stranger and Keep Talking
Disagreement is usually where a conversation gets interesting — if you handle it well. Here's how to say "I see it differently" without ending the call. · 3 min readConversationSay Something About Yourself Before You Ask the Next Question
Conversations with strangers stall when one person only asks and the other only answers. The fix is small: offer a piece of yourself before reaching for the next question. · 4 min readConversationWhat to Do With Silence When You're Talking to a Stranger
A pause in a conversation with someone you've just met can feel like failure. Here's how to read silence, sort the useful kind from the stuck kind, and sit with it. · 3 min readConversationWhen a Stranger Loves Something You Know Nothing About
Someone mentions competitive dog agility, or Tamil cinema, or freight trains. You have no idea what they mean. That gap is the best conversational material you'll get. · 4 min readConversationWhat to do when a stranger gives you one-word answers
Short replies usually aren't rejection. Here's how to read them, and the small changes that turn "yeah" and "not much" into an actual conversation. · 3 min readConversationHow to end a conversation with a stranger without being rude
Most advice covers how to start talking to strangers. Almost none covers how to stop. Here is how to close a one-to-one chat cleanly, kindly and without guilt. · 4 min read