The art of small talk

Try this experiment.

Pop out those white iPod buds the next time you are on the subway, at Starbucks, or even when you're sitting in your cubicle. Listen to the conversations around you. Don't participate if at all possible; just observe and note. Ideally, do this sometime between 9 AM and noon.

Anything seem strange to you?

What you may notice - if you haven't already - is that people talk an incredible amount about the weather. It's not just, "Oh, isn't it beautiful / miserable outside!" No, not all. Typically, it's an extensive conversation about how the weather will affect their commute, how unseasonable it is (no matter what season it is), and why they should just pick up and move to California / Florida / the Bahamas.

And, as luck would have it, you'll probably hear the same conversation from them... tomorrow.

It's true that especially in a politically correct era, there are few topics as universal and inoffensive as the weather. Everyone is affected by it, and generally, that effect is not shaped by gender, sexual orientation, or race. What is easier to talk about than the weather?

Precisely for that reason, the weather seems to dominate small talk wherever groups of unrelated people gather. Unfortunately, it is just about the most uninteresting and least memorable subject of conversation.

So if you meet someone new and want this person to like you, remember you, or even just not be mind-numbingly bored by you, what can you do to avoid talking about the weather?

It's true that topics like politics are probably good to steer clear of. However, there are plenty of other things two unfamiliar people can talk about. Sports, television shows, current events, emerging technology, this day in history, favorite flavor of coffee, a crazy advertisement they just saw... this partial list is only the beginning. If you want to be considered someone worth talking to, just being spontaneous and different will increase the likelihood of you achieving your goal.

And, if you get really good at the art of small talk, you might even make yourself memorable. But that's a topic for another day.