6 Ways To Hold a Conversation and Keep the Attention on You

Ahh, meeting new people and holding a converstion with them is really a tough task. You might think you are a good conversationalist, but are you really?

You can’t really go through life without knowing how to hold a conversation. For basically everything you do, talking to people is essential. Getting a new job? You have to hold a conversation. Trying to meet someone new to date? You have to be able to talk in an engaging way.

No matter your reason for wanting to learn how to hold a conversation, the work will be the same. Depending on where you start, you’ll have to work a while in order to get it right. Here are our best tips for holding a conversation.

# Introduce yourself well

If you’re being introduced to someone or a group of people, introduce yourself warmly and look around and make eye contact with each individual person. And then, you could just use a witty ice breaker if they’re all looking at you expectantly to say someone. Or you could just wait for someone else to say something. There’s no hurry to take centerstage immediately.

# Approaching someone yourself?

Instead of walking up to someone and just telling them who you are, lead with a topic. You have to start with a conversation before you can hold it.

Otherwise, that person might look at you and question why you’re trying to talk to them in the first place. Just starting with your name isn’t valuable to them. You have to start with something that’ll engage them right off the bat.

# Make it an interesting topic

Just like what was said above, this topic really has to draw them in. If they don’t really think it’s worth a discussion, they’ll get bored and eventually not want to talk. It makes holding a conversation a lot more difficult to start off with a great topic right away.

# Connect the dots

There are a few things that connect all of us, and help us to get talking. Use them, and everything just gets easier from there. Remember these 5 basic conversation starters that work every single time!

a. The weather

b. The place you’re in right that moment

c. What do you do for work?

d. A mutual interest

e. Something interesting that’s happening around you

There are many other ways you can use to initiate and hold a conversation with someone. But if you can use any of these five starters, you’d be able to build a connection with the other person instantly. It’s current, they’re all relatable even if you have nothing in common with each other, and it’s light and easy to talk about.

# Pick what catches their eye and talk about it

Once you connect with someone by asking any of the topics above, keep an eye on what makes them respond to you with enthusiasm. And then, talk about that connection.

People naturally want to talk to people they have a connection with. So you have to draw a connection between the two of you. It can be about anything, really. Make sure they know you have something in common and it’ll be easier to hold the conversation because they’ll be putting in the effort too.

# Smile warmly and pay attention

The first thing to know about holding a conversation is to behave like you’re actually happy to be in the company of the other person. When you smile warmly and focus on them like there’s nothing more important to you than talking to them at that moment, it makes others feel happy to spend time with you.