Start a conversation, keep it going, create a bond

About ten years ago, Thomas Harrell, a professor of applied psychology at Stanford University Graduate School of Business, set out to identify the traits of its most successful alumni. Studying a group of MBAs a decade after their graduation, he found that grade-point average had no bearing on success. The one trait hat was common among the class’s most accomplished graduates was “verbal fluency.” Those that had built businesses and climbed the corporate ladder with amazing speed were those who could confidently make conversation with anyone in any situation. Investors, customers, and bosses posed no more of a threat than colleagues, secretaries, and friends. In front of an audience, at a dinner, or in a cab, these people knew how to talk.

As Harrell’s study confirmed, the more successfully you use language, the faster you can get ahead in life.

So what should your objective be in making small talk? Good question. The goal is simple: Start a conversation, keep it going, create a bond,and leave with the other person thinking,“I dig that person,”or whatever other generational variation of that phrase you want to use.