Small Talk, Big Deal Part II

On October 27th, I attended a workshop, sponsored by the STARR Career Development Center. It was a workshop on how to make small talk. The workshop was led Wendy Hayman. She explained to us what small talk is and why it is important. Small talk is a way to “connect with people for fun and business.” It is important because it is an ice breaker and helps to establish a level of comfort. It is important to be relaxed and to look “authentic”, so that you can be approachable. Ms. Hayman explained that even shy people can become masters of small talk, all they need is a little bit of practice. Then, Ms. Hayman explained that small talk helps people to network and it helps people to find opportunities in all aspects of life, for example, work, love and school. The rest of the workshop she gave us tips on how to schmooze and how to conduct small talk at interviews and other social gatherings. I found the last part of the workshop to be very helpful, how to conduct small talk at interviews. It was good to know how to conduct myself at an interview. The rest of the workshop was fine, and to help us with practicing, Ms. Hayman had everyone at the workshop go around and introduce themselves to at least three other people they haven’t met before.  We also got into groups to answer questions on how to make small talk in different situations. It was a nice way to meet everyone present at the workshop.