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December 2024 F.I.R.S.T. Newsletter 2 – Move Beyond The Small Talk This Festive Season

Happy December!

To support you in being F.I.R.S.T. (Future-Ready. Innovative. Relevant. Strategic. Trusted.), here’s 1 tip and 1 quote.

December 2024 F.I.R.S.T. Newsletter 2 - Move Beyond The Small Talk This Festive Season

The F.I.R.S.T. Tip

The festive season is a time for gathering with loved ones. This year, why not make the most of these get-togethers by having more meaningful conversations?

Too often, we stick to small talk with strangers our of fear that deeper conversations will be awkward. In reality, the opposite is true.

In experiments conducted by the American Psychological Association, volunteers were asked to start conversations with strangers with weightier questions such as “What are you most grateful for in your life?”, “Can you describe a time you cried in front of another person?”, or “If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself or anything else, what would you want to know?”

Participants found these conversations less awkward than they had predicted and reported feeling happier and closer to the person they were talking to. These results were consistent across various demographics, including both women and men, introverts and extroverts, and in both in-person and online conversations.

So this holiday season, ditch the chit-chat about the weather and try these tips to foster richer connections:

  • Ask Thought-Provoking Questions: Move beyond “How have you been?” and invite people to share more about themselves. Try questions like “What’s something you’ve learned recently that’s made a big impact?” or “What’s one of your favorite memories from this year?”
  • Express Gratitude: Take a moment to genuinely appreciate something about the person you’re talking to, whether it’s their sense of humor or their kindness. Acknowledging their positive traits can strengthen your bond.
  • Be Present: Put away your phone and focus fully on the conversation. This demonstrates that you care about the relationship.

This festive season, embrace the opportunity to build deeper, more meaningful connections with the relationships that are valuable to you.

The F.I.R.S.T. Quote

The F.I.R.S.T. Quote

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