this post was submitted on 24 Mar 2026
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Don't give me 'get off of social media'. I want practical tips that can be used when talking to random people in public places.

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[โ€“] quediuspayu@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

That is super important and hard to master, at least for me. I'm usually happy to hear whatever they're telling me and I will probably remember it for a very long time but if I have to ask... it is like a blank page paralysis.

It helps having a list of predefined general questions memorized. Like: What are your hobbies? What do you like about them? Why?

You can skip the first few questions if you already know the answers. Like going straight to: "What is your favorite thing about football? Why? You have to train a bit to continue from there. To continue comming up with questions. Like: "Do you just like to watch football or do you also play it?"

But the hardest part is actually to start and ask first few questions.

How you start is not that important. Just that you do. For example you can start with: "Who is your favourite super hero? Why? What super powers would you chose for yourself? Why? Why not the...?"

Do not forget abot "why" follow up. Or they will often close conversation with a short answer.

Conversation can then continue in any direction. Do not force it in a direction you want it to go.