These "reductive" questions can instantly make a conversation feel heavy, etiquette expert Alison Cheperdak says.

Charles Duhigg, author of "The Power of Habit," argues that small talk isn't an innate skill, but rather a learned behavior that can be studied and crafted to perfectly suit any situation — whether ...

Get inspired by a weekly roundup on living well, made simple. Sign up for CNN’s Life, But Better newsletter for information and tools designed to improve your well-being. You’re standing in line at ...

"Skip the Small Talk" events offer speed-friending to the shy and the bold. A room filled with people talking and sharing their thoughts can be either an extrovert's dream or an introvert's nightmare.

ATLANTA — You're standing in line at the supermarket or drugstore when a stranger speaks up. "Hello, how are you?" the stranger greets you. "Good, and you?" might be your response. Your conversation ...

Creating conversations is how we create relationships, so where would our conversations at work, networking events, or elsewhere be without small talk? Would we have found our best friend, special ...

Small talk has been a pain point for me for years, but it sank to new lows at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. I was at the playground one day, sweating in a K-95 while pushing my maskless ...

When Gillian Sandstrom was a graduate student in Toronto more than a decade ago, she encountered a stranger on the subway who was carrying a scrumptious-looking cupcake. Sandstrom had long considered ...

While small talk sometimes gets a bad rap, people who genuinely enjoy it know it serves a much deeper purpose than just filling awkward silences. Whether it’s chatting with a stranger at the coffee ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Dr. Cheryl Robinson covers areas of leadership, pivoting and careers. How do you prevent small talk during meetings so it doesn’t ...