Ways to have a good conversation

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Often times, we complain about boring conversations. However, leaving the job of starting and carrying on a conversation should not be the job of one person alone. Ask yourself this question. If they are not doing it right, are you? Striking and maintaining a conversation can be difficult, but it should not be. Conversation is communication, communication is life. When getting to know someone, here are a few tips to ensure that your conversations are never boring:

1. No interrogation, share
   When you only ask questions and don’t share, it feels like an interrogation. This should not be, especially when trying to get to know someone. Whenever others feel sceptical about engaging in a conversation with you, sharing your own experiences while asking questions to know their opinion is a good way to break the ice.
2. No oversharing
   As much as it is important to share, do not take over the conversation and go on and on about yourself. You will keep the other person excluded from the conversation they should be a part of. It will help also you to avoid disconcerting yourself or the other person with uncomfortable words you would have known of if you were not dominating the conversation.
3. Ask open-ended questions
   These are the kind of questions that maintain a conversation. They are capable of allowing conversations to flow from one topic to another. This way, it struggle is less and the conversation is more.
4. Stay current on happenings
   You want a good conversation, stay updated. Asides from keeping yourself informed, it aids while conversing. This is not saying that there are no things to talk about asides current happenings, this is saying that it helps.
5. Common ground
   Thinking about the other person’s interest is required for having a good conversation. “Wow, you love Brymo, I love him too. Did you see his Banuso music video it was ………” It gets easier from there on.
6. S.O.F.T.E.N technique
   This is one important technique to know when having face-to-face conversations. It’s a good thing to know when networking or meeting new people.
   Smile genuinely: This tells the other person that your interest is sincere, thereby making them comfortable.
   Open up your posture: A relaxed posture gives the impression of interest and readiness to converse.
   Forward lean: This paints the picture of focus, in what the other person has to say.
   Touch: This is dependent on the kind of relationship you have with the person.
   Eye contact: Maintaining eye contact is very important.
   Nod: This shows that you are really listening to the person.