I thought that I’d jot down the topics that people are perfectly happy to talk about when you first meet them. Whether it’s in the shops or on a date.

When you meet someone on the street, in the shops or at a party they are happy to chat about five things…

• what they are doing at that moment
• why they are there
• whereabouts they live
• holidays and interests
• what’s going on around you (the weather, crowds etc)

When you’re on a date they will also talk about…

• what they do for work
• the area in which they live and their home
• their taste in music, films, food, etc
• their views on what’s going on in the world
• their dreams and aspirations

You also need to phrase the questions so they’re easy for them to answer. Things like…

• what sort of things do you like doing on holiday?
• what was the last CD or download that you bought?
• what was the last film that you went to see?
• if you rent a DVD which section do you look in?
• what did you do last weekend?

Conversation can be quite hard with people that you don’t know very well. But it can also be fun. The way to learn and improve is to practice. So try and develop a habit of chatting to everyone you meet – shop assistants, waiters, people behind you in the bus/train queue, and so on.