Conversation Expert Reacts to Awkward Conversation Starters | MasterClass

Someone comes up to you and says, "So, hey, what do you do?" The best way to handle that is how you handle any small talk topic, and that's to move past it >> I'm Alison Wood Brooks. I'm a behavioral scientist, and I study conversation at Harvard

Business School. Awkward conversations aren't random, they're predictable. I'm going to take you behind the scenes on Masterclass to give you my two cents on how to handle these awkward moments.

You can take the question sincerely and share what you love about your job, what you're excited about recently. The key there is not to get into the sort of technical nitty-gritty, but maybe just share one quick thing that you're excited about that they might find exciting, too.

Or you can try and dodge it, right? Any question that somebody asks, you can dodge and take in a different direction. If someone asks me, "What do I do for a living?" >> I'd probably say, "I love to paint.

I sing in a pop folk band. I spend a lot of time with my kids. I coach youth basketball." So, clearly dodging the like, "What do you do for work?" technically question, but giving them lots of options of like more fun directions to go.

The best way to handle that is how you handle any small talk topic, >> and that's to move past it quickly. You're like, "Yeah, dude, it's hot. I freaking love when it's hot.

Do you?" Right? Make it personal, say something a little bit silly, try and move past small talk topics to make it more personalized, more exciting, a little bit deeper, more relevant for your partner.

>> What if you're talking to somebody you don't really know, and you're not really catching on to their humor, or they're not really catching on to yours? Keep in mind that everybody has a unique humor style. Some people tell jokes that are really warm and affiliative,

others that are really sort of self-serving and a little bit sharp. Some people are very expressive, right? Loud and out there. Some people are very subtle and quiet.

All humor types are good in different ways, but sometimes they don't quite land with our conversation partners. That's natural, it's normal, and you got to let it slide. Here are three ways to end it.

One, give them a compliment. Say, "Hey, this has been amazing. I can't wait for the next time." Two, always look forward. Think about when you're going to see them next and

what you might look forward to in the future. Three, use a callback. Did you talk about their guitar lessons? End on the note of enjoy your guitar lesson. These moments aren't random.

There are patterns behind what works and what doesn't. The more you practice those small shifts, the easier good conversation becomes. This is just a glimpse into what we go much deeper on in my class on MasterClass.

Yeah. So, how about the weather? I'll be here all night.