How To Make Small Talk Feel Big
How To! with Mike Pesca
Peach Fish Projects
4.3 • 2K Ratings
🗓️ 16 January 2024
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Small talk has a bad reputation. It's boring, shallow, and awkward. Who really wants to talk about the weather, again? But, when done right, it can be a cornerstone of connection. In this episode, Carvell Wallace is joined by Susan McPherson, the author of The Lost Art of Connecting. Susan is going to help our listener, Bee, navigate the uncomfortable small talk that she endures everyday at school pickup. Along the way, we'll learn what questions to have in our back pocket, how to turn small talk into big talk, and even how to extract ourselves from conversations that are going on too long.
If you liked this episode, check out: How To Talk to Strangers and How To Make Humor Your Superpower
Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.
How To's executive producer is Derek John. Joel Meyer is our senior editor/producer and our producer is Rosemary Belson.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi everyone, I'm Susie Weiss, and I've noticed there's just simply not enough podcasts in the world. So I'm launching my own. Let's go. Let's go, baby. Second Thought is a weekly show about pop culture. The stuff everyone's been binging, arguing about, obsessing over. Here's the thing about heated rivalry. I mean, even the most devoted swifties, I think we can agree, not our best work. We'll be hosting thoughtful conversations with culture's most important figures. Talk about genius. |
| 0:22.6 | Talk about generational talent. |
| 0:23.7 | Coming to headphones near you on can agree not our best work. We'll be hosting thoughtful conversations with culture's most important figures. |
| 0:21.6 | Talk about genius. |
| 0:22.6 | Talk about generational talent. |
| 0:23.6 | Coming to headphones near you on April 17th with a first guest you won't want to miss, |
| 0:27.6 | available wherever you get your podcasts. |
| 0:29.6 | When I walk in a room, no one can see me. |
| 0:32.6 | I mean, my license says I'm five foot, but we'll just leave it at that. |
| 0:36.6 | So, and I just because I'm so foot, but we'll just leave it at that. And I just, because I'm so |
| 0:39.5 | tiny, I feel very insecure. But what I've learned over the years is everyone is insecure. |
| 0:46.7 | And if we go with that attitude and you walk up, chances are people are going to be relieved |
| 0:52.4 | because they're not going to be alone. And as long as you don't |
| 0:56.8 | talk about the weather, which will get you nowhere, you can actually have some, you know, |
| 1:02.1 | interesting, meaningful conversations with people. Welcome to how to. I'm Carvel Wallace. |
| 1:09.9 | When's the last time you had to make small talk? |
| 1:13.4 | I mean, if you're anything like me, then you probably are cringing at the memory right now. |
| 1:17.9 | I mean, I don't know what makes it so hard for me to do this, but I truly hate small talk. |
| 1:23.0 | It's like I either don't want to talk to the person at all or else I only want to talk about immediately |
| 1:28.4 | heavy topics like death, heartbreak, childhood trauma. |
| 1:32.4 | But as it turns out, small talk is actually |
| 1:34.6 | kind of an important part of connecting with other people. |
... |
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