7 ideas for starting a conversation

Practicing the art of starting a conversation is likely to be worth the effort. However awkward it might seem at first, these conversation openers will feel easy and intuitive with practice. It comes down to seeing the opportunity and choosing to engage. Here are seven things you can try:

• Pay them a compliment
• Ask them their opinion
• Invite them to help you with something
• If it appears they need help, offer it
• Look for something you have in common
• Ask them to expand on something they say — “Tell me more about…”
• Ask them about their connection to whatever your shared context is — how do you know the host of the party we’re at? When did you move to the neighborhood?  How long have you been working at our company? Do you take the train often?

Source: 7ESL