The holidays are full of work parties, family parties, and New Year’s parties. It’s pretty much inevitable that at some point you’re going to find yourself making small talk with a total stranger. So how can you tell if the other person is genuinely interested in what you’re saying, or if they’re bored out of their gourd? A few ways to tell:
BORED – Generic, repetitive responses, like “wow,” “that’s interesting,” and “oh really?” mean the person probably isn’t very engaged.
NOT BORED – Interruptions, rude or not. When someone blurts out a question or statement in the middle of a conversation it means they’re interested in what you’re saying and can’t help but want to contribute.
BORED – Abrupt subject changes. It could be a conscious effort on their part to move on to something more interesting, or it could be that they’ve totally tuned out and are making conversation on autopilot.
BORED – Imbalanced talking time. If you’re doing a lot more talking than the other person, it could be a sign that they aren’t that interested. Or you’re absolutely mesmerizing.
NOT BORED – Requests for explanation. Someone who’s listening and interested will ask for explanations by saying things like, “what do you mean by that?” and “then what happened?”
BORED – Takes one to know one. Are you bored? Then the other person probably is too!
Remember, it can also be helpful to keep these tips in mind for when you are the bored one. If you want to come off as interested, even when you’re not (like when your boss is blathering on at the company Christmas party), you can make a point to give off all the right signals.
(Photo courtesy of matchstick on stock.xchng)
