If you don’t know how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, then you’ll have a tough time interacting with people.
Today, I want to share with you the exact same process that I’ve used to figure out how to be more talkative with anybody.
What You'll Learn In This Post
1. Volunteer Information About Yourself
From what I’ve noticed, those who struggle socially have a bad habit of only responding with a few words when people ask them questions.
For example, let’s say you’re a software engineer and someone’s wondering what you do for work.
Don’t just give them a short response.
This makes it hard for anybody to keep talking to you because they don’t have a lot to work with.
The person you’re interacting with has to keep asking more questions which can make things awkward.
If you’re wondering how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, make an effort to volunteer information about yourself.
Check out this video if you want to know how to be talkative and confident.
The next time someone inquires about your career, talk about what got you into it and what you like about it.
Also, avoid using technical terms that only your co-workers would understand.
If you do, that’s just going to go over people’s heads.
Instead, make an effort to use simple words to talk about anything that may seem complicated.
By doing so, it’ll be easier for anybody to figure out how to keep a conversation going with you.
As a result, you’ll be able to build rapport with others much faster.
2. Prepare Your Stories Ahead Of Time
Most individuals who struggle socially lack awareness and experience interacting with people.
They literally just don’t know any better.
If you want to know how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, make sure you prepare ahead of time.
That way, you’ll have a good idea of what to say in different social situations.
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If you think about it, most people talk about similar topics over and over again anyway.
That being said, make sure you prepare some stories regarding your work, your upbringing, places you’ve been to, events you’ve attended, and your interests.
I know doing this sounds like a lot of work.
But if you’re serious about learning how to improve your conversation skills, really take the time to write these stories out.
That way, you’ll be able to bring up different topics much faster the next time you interact with someone.
Once you have your stories written out, practice telling them whenever the opportunity presents itself.
If you’re willing to, I highly recommend that you record yourself as well.
That way, you can observe your delivery and hear how you sound when you talk to people.
3. Learn New Things
Remember, a boring life leads to boring conversations.
You can only discuss the same topics over and over again for so long.
If your typical week consists of going to work, going home, and playing video games, then something needs to change.
If you want to learn how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, you need to know a little bit about a lot of things.
Check out this video if you want to know how to be talkative and not be boring to talk to.
Personally, I recommend you pay attention to trending topics, popular shows, and current events.
Also, make an effort to read interesting books and try novel activities as well.
The more knowledge and experiences you acquire, the more you’ll have to talk about.
You’ll expand your perspective which will help you figure out how to relate to people much faster.
Not only will you come across as someone interesting, you’ll also be a lot more fun to be around.
When you know you have something valuable to share, you’ll feel confident interacting with anybody.
4. Avoid Asking Closed-Ended Questions
Have you ever been in a situation where your conversation felt like an interview?
You’re going through your questions back-to-back and you’re only getting short responses?
If so, there’s a good chance you were using closed-ended questions which can be answered with one word.
To improve the quality of your interactions, ask more open-ended questions instead.
For example, instead of asking “Do you like reading books?” you can ask “What do you like to do for fun?”
Do you see the difference?
The first question can be answered with a “yes” or “no” while the second one requires more of an explanation.
By asking more open-ended questions, you encourage the person you’re chatting with to keep sharing.
And if you think about it, the more they talk, the more information you have to work with, right?
As a result, that could trigger other topics that both of you can potentially discuss.
Again, if you want to know how to avoid awkward silences, try to ask more open-ended questions during your interactions.
5. Be A Good Listener
Most people who are shy and introverted tend to ruminate a lot.
They’re so in their heads trying to come up with the perfect thing to say that they’re not even listening to the person they’re talking to.
Keep in mind that people can tell if you’re not fully paying attention to them.
And there’s nothing worst than being in a conversation with someone who doesn’t seem all that engaged.
If you want to figure out how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, you have to be a good listener.
Once you’ve taken the time to come up with things to talk about, you just have to let things go after that.
The next time you talk to someone, give the person you’re with your undivided attention.
Put your phone away and be present.
Lean forward to show interest and really try to understand what they’re saying.
When you do, you’ll make whoever you talk to feel special.
You’ll also be able to come up with relatable stories to share because you were paying attention.
Remember, there’s a reason why you have two ears and one mouth.
Your ability to listen well is just as important as coming up with things to talk about.
6. Be More Relatable
Remember, familiarity builds comfort very quickly.
That’s why we like people who are similar to us.
If you want to know how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, explore as many mutual interests as you can.
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For example, let’s say you and the person you’re talking to are from the same hometown.
Then, by all means, keep talking about that.
Unfortunately, exploring mutual interests isn’t always that easy.
If a topic that you don’t know much about comes up, try to relate emotionally.
You can do this by asking about their motivation for doing what they do.
You can also ask them how certain things make them feel.
From then on, you can bring up a story where you’ve experienced something similar in the past.
The better you are at relating to others, the more likeable you’ll come across.
People will have a positive impression of you and they’ll look forward to seeing you again.
7. Bring Up Earlier Topics
Most people who struggle socially approach their interactions in a very linear way.
If you’re wondering how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, you need to be able to pivot.
If you feel like you’ve reached the end of a particular subject, go back to something that was mentioned earlier.
For example, let’s say the person you’re chatting with said they just got back from a vacation.
If that’s the case, feel free to bring that up again and go deeper into that topic.
Like I said earlier, make sure you ask open-ended questions so the person you’re talking to has to explain themselves more.
You can also ask follow-up questions as well.
You can say things like “Tell me more about that?” or “What’s that like?”
By doing this, you remove the pressure on yourself to always come up with something to talk about.
By being able to pivot, you’ll prevent yourself from hitting a dead end when you talk to anybody.
Your interactions will feel effortless and you’ll be able to connect with others much faster.
8. Learn To Tell Good Stories
If you want to know how to bond with others, you need to be able to convey your ideas effectively.
That’s why you have to be able to tell good stories.
The next time you share something, make sure you structure it properly.
Set it up well by giving some background information and creating contrast if it applies.
You’ll also want to use descriptive words in order to engage the senses.
Leave out irrelevant details and emphasize how things make you feel instead.
And then, release the tension you’ve built up when you talk about the resolution.
If you’re not used to talking in this manner, make sure you practice.
The more you do, the more engaging you’ll come across when you interact with people.
But if you want to get results much faster, consider working with a social skills coach.
That way, there will be no more guesswork because you’ll have a proven plan to follow.
You’ll have someone give you feedback and keep you accountable as well.
You’ll make fewer mistakes and get results much faster.
You’ll be able to finally get this part of your life handled and you never have to worry about it ever again.
9. Be Genuinely Interested In Others
Those who don’t know how to relax around people think that all eyes are on them.
They feel too self-conscious because they’re overly concerned about what others think.
As a result, they stifle their personality and try way too hard to fit in.
But if you want to learn how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, you have to be able to take the focus away from yourself.
Get out of your head and be interested in others instead.
Check out this podcast interview with Ben Altman, Co-Founder of Charisma On Command, where he talks about how to improve your personality.
The truth is we’re all inherently selfish.
If you want to appear more interesting, you have to be interested in other people first.
The next time you interact with someone, view yourself as a student and see what you can learn from them.
By doing this you’ll make anybody you talk to feel more seen, heard, and understood.
If you want to know how to be memorable in social settings, this is one of the best ways to do it.
10. Avoid Being Judgemental
Remember, everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
And just because both of you don’t agree on something doesn’t make the other person wrong.
If you want to know how to avoid awkward silences in a conversation, you have to be empathetic.
Make an effort to see where other people are coming from.
The thing is, you don’t even need to agree with them.
So stop trying to change their mind and convince them that you’re right.
You just have to put yourself in their situation and see things from their point of view.
That’s why whatever you do, avoid getting into an argument with someone.
Also, stay away from sensitive topics like religion, politics, sex, and race.
A lot of people feel very strongly about those topics.
You might trigger them unknowingly if you bring it up too soon.
To succeed socially, always be light-hearted, respect your differences and focus on finding commonalities instead.
Conclusion
If you’re wondering how to avoid awkward silences, I just shared with you my best tips.
Feel free to go through them again and implement them as much as you can.
And now, let’s turn it to you.
Which one of these tips are you going to implement first?
Are you going to work on speaking with certainty or paying attention to your surroundings?
Send me a message on Instagram and let me know.