How To Do The Hardest Thing When Doing Small Talk In English
(Photo credit: Alex Pertz)
How To Do The Hardest Thing When Doing Small Talk In English
The Hardest Thing When Doing Small Talk In English is starting a conversation. And that’s also true for a lot of native English speakers too. In English for starting a conversation with someone we don’t know we use the expression, “breaking the ice”.
During our Business English courses we always ask professionals about their Business English challenges. And for Small Talk we ask “what is your main challenge when doing Small Talk in English?”
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Here are some of our students’ responses:
“The hardest thing is to start a conversation. After you start, you always find a way to make yourself understood.” (J. Marcos – Financial Controller).
“Before, I didn’t have confidence because to start a conversation in English was hard. Now with your course I speak with more confidence, because I have vocabulary and strategies for starting good conversations in English.” (M. Pérez – Risk Manager).
The Hardest Thing When Doing Small Talk In English is starting a conversation – “breaking the ice”.
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Here are 10 quick ways to start a conversation in English for work:
In a restaurant with a colleague or client:
“Have you been here before?” “What do you recommend that’s good?”
At work, with colleagues you know:
“Do you have any plans for the weekend?”
At work, with a colleague you don’t know:
“I don’t think we’ve met. I’m (first name). Nice to meet you. I’m an Operations Manager, what do you do?”
Before a meeting:
“What’s on the agenda today, do you know?”
(the agenda =the program of the meeting)
At an event:
-“It’s been an interesting event so far. What do you think of the event?”
-“Which talks/presentations have you enjoyed most?”
At an event:
“How did you hear about this event?”
At an event:
“What a beautiful venue. Have you been here before?”
Coffee Break:
“The coffee smells good! My name is Thomas and I work in Operations. So what do you do?”
At an event:
“These networking events can be busy. Mind if I join you over here where it’s a little quieter?”
At an event:
“Traffic and parking seem to be getting more difficult in Madrid (your city). How did you get here?”
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For more of our help try (FREE) Small Talk in English – 150 phrases in English
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I hope this helps you in your professional career! Christopher Wright
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The English Training Company – helping companies and professionals to become Advanced Business English Speakers.
