UNIT WALKTHROUGH
All levels include material from Harvard Business Review, except for Starter. This content appears within a double-page Vocational Skills lesson, giving students meaningful real-world context.
Vocational Skills
A Work in pairs. Discuss the questions. • What is small talk?
• How often do you make small talk?
• What can be difficult about small talk?
HOW TO MAKE SMALL TALK WITH ANYONE FROM ANYWHERE by Melissa Hahn and Andy Molinsky © 2024 Harvard Business Review Imagine that you’re attending your first international conference. You are all set to meet new global colleagues in your industry, but you realize that there’s just one problem: You aren’t sure how to strike up a conversation with a stranger from a different culture. In this article, we’ll present a mindset for how to think about small talk and a series of behaviors for how to do small talk. Mindset: How to think about small talk 1. Your country’s norms aren’t universal—but neither are anyone else’s. Our interviews revealed a broad spectrum of norms around who could make small talk with whom, which topics are considered appropriate to discuss, and how long a conversation should last. 2. Aim for a human connection. Remember that you aren’t networking with countries, you’re networking with people. As a result, the person you’re interacting with may turn out to be exactly what you expected, or the complete opposite. Behaviors: How to Do Small Talk 1. Commonalities are like the bricks that build a bridge toward another person. For example, in our opening story, you have something very specific in common with everyone else: You are all at the conference. Given this basic commonality, you might break the ice with a stranger by asking them questions
about the conference: What brought them to the event, what sessions they are interested in attending, do they plan to listen to the keynote later? 2. A closed-ended question would be: “Do you like the conference?” The person could elaborate, but they could also simply say yes or no, and while that’s not terrible, you haven’t made progress. In contrast, imagine asking them: “What do you think of the conference so far?” This change in phrasing opens up a wide range of potential answers. 3. When you share semi-personal information, you allow them to feel like they’re getting to know you. (Remember, they’re trying to figure out how to talk to you, too.) Reveal some “likes” or “dislikes,” or sprinkle in biographical details (like that you’re originally from Jamaica)—this can bring the conversation to life and encourage reciprocation, where the other person can feel comfortable sharing something as well. 4. While the above approaches suggest ways to initiate a conversation, a final tool is to simply say hello, especially if you find small talk hard to navigate. LOST FOR WORDS? break the ice (phr) make people who have not met before feel relaxed commonalities (n) things you have in common elaborate (v) to add extra information mindset (n) the way someone thinks network (v) to meet people, especially professional contacts reciprocation (n) giving somebody something because they gave you something
Speaking activities designed to build student confidence.
Communication
B Read the article Match the headings below to paragraphs 1–4 in the text. a Just say “hello.” b Use commonalities and your environment. c Ask open-ended questions. d Share something about yourself.
C Read the article again. Choose Do or Don’t for the advice. 1 Do / Don’t expect the same norms in every country.
2 Do / Don’t think of people as countries. 3 Do / Don’t ask open-ended questions. 4 Do / Don’t reveal biographical details.
The original article by Harvard Business Review excerpted by Macmillan Education under license. All rights reserved.
D Read the dialogue between Karla and Luis at a career event. Check ( ) which topics they discuss. The weather The event they’re at What they study The time
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Karla: Hey, do you know what time the lunch break is? Luis: Hi. I think it’s at one thirty, so in ten minutes. Karla: Oh thanks! I’m so hungry. Luis: Me too! I’m Luis, by the way. Are you enjoying the event so far? Karla: I’m Karla. Nice to meet you. Yes, It’s really interesting. How about you? Did you see the presentation about choosing your career? Luis: Yes, I did. I’m graduating from college soon, so it was really useful for me. Karla: Ah! So am I! Do you go to college near here? Luis: Yes, I do. I’m studying Marketing at ….
E Read the questions and decide if they would be appropriate ( ) or inappropriate ( ) for small talk. Compare your answers. Do you live near here? Do you know any good restaurants near here? How much did your shoes cost? How much do you weigh?
USEFUL LANGUAGE
Finding commonalities: Me too!
Neither do I! Yes, I agree!
So do/am I!
Ending the small talk. Anyway, it was lovely to meet you. Hope to see you again. I’ve got to go now, but it was great to talk.
Is it going to rain this afternoon? Is this your first time at this event? What are your political beliefs? What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
F You go to a conference and meet these people. With a partner, decide which questions from Exercise E you could ask each of them to make small talk. What other questions could you ask?
Someone you used to go to school with
The organizer of the event
A famous journalist
The CEO of a major company
G Work with a partner. Imagine you are at the conference. Choose one of the people in Exercise F and take turns making small talk with your partner.
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