Holiday Small Talk Tips for Introverts

It’s that time of year for holiday parties and small talk can be an anxiety-inducing situation for some introverts.

It doesn’t have to be though! Here are a few tips to make the experience less stressful and more easygoing:

1️⃣Asking open-ended questions allows the other person to give you answers that let you get to know them better. You get a better sense of who they are, which is what introverts like – meaningful conversations. Plus, their answers will often lead to other interesting questions you can ask them.

2️⃣ Embellishing your answers doesn’t mean lying. This means not giving a simple yes or no response. If you’re asked “Did you grow up here?”, don’t just say “no, I didn’t.” Add on to that by saying “I’m actually from Chicago, and yes – it’s as cold as they say! I moved here in…” Give a more full answer to allow them to learn juicy tidbits about you!

3️⃣ Be mindful about your body language. People like to approach and engage in conversation with people who look friendly. Does your face look relaxed and pleasant? Are your arms crossed? Did you turn to face the person (with your whole body) when they spoke to you? Your body is always speaking.

4️⃣ Giving a compliment is an easy way to break the ice with someone, but make sure it’s a genuine compliment. Everyone loves to hear something nice about them that you noticed!

5️⃣ Be kind to yourself! Don’t pressure yourself to be the perfect conversationalist. Remember, small talk is an entryway to potential deeper conversations and it’s how you begin to get to know someone. Pat yourself on the back for pushing yourself to speak to someone you don’t know. That’s a win!

Many people disregard small talk as meaningless and that’s just not true. Think of it as Level 1 of social interaction 😌.

What else would you add?