How to Make Small Talk

• 00:04 So you walk into the interview, you're sitting down,
• 00:07 the person who is interviewing you is about to sit down behind his or her desk.
• 00:11 What happens right now?
• 00:13 Sometimes there's an awkward silence.
• 00:15 It might be awkward for the person interviewing you.
• 00:17 They might be nervous.
• 00:19 This is the perfect time to make small talk.
• 00:22 Now, people like to pride themselves and say, I'm not good at small talk,
• 00:26 I'm all about substance.
• 00:28 That's the wrong attitude to have.
• 00:31 Don't look at it as small or unimportant, just look at it as something that you have
• 00:35 to do, that you need to do, to express your humanity.
• 00:38 And to show this person interviewing you that you are, in fact, a human being.
• 00:43 Now I'm not suggesting lie, or ingratiate yourself, or pander.
• 00:48 But if you're looking at the wall, and the person has various photos holding
• 00:53 up big fish, and you like to fish, say, wow, what is that, a ten-pound bass?
• 00:59 I've never caught one that big, and I've tried many, many times.
• 01:03 If you see them surfing, and you're a surfing fan,
• 01:06 comment on something that you have of commonality.
• 01:11 Again, hiring someone for a job isn't simply about GPA,
• 01:15 numbers on a box, certification.
• 01:19 If someone's hiring you, they're essentially bringing you into their life.
• 01:25 Many people spend more waking hours, have more conversations with colleagues
• 01:29 they work with then they do their own spouse or children.
• 01:33 So they might not tell you this, but
• 01:36 they only want to hire people they actually like.
• 01:39 No, it doesn't mean you have to be best friends.
• 01:43 But the idea of hiring someone where you know you can never have
• 01:47 a conversation with them about any aspect of commonality in the lunchroom or
• 01:53 over coffee isn't something most people find appealing.
• 01:57 So if you can find something that you have in common with a person that you can
• 02:03 gather from a picture, or maybe they have a toy sailboat replica up on their wall,
• 02:09 find something you have in common, and comment on it.
• 02:13 Now, you don't want to talk about that for an hour, but for
• 02:17 the first couple of minutes it can warm the room up,
• 02:20 make that person feel more comfortable about you as a human being.
• 02:24 And the conversation can be much more natural as far as the job,
• 02:29 your qualifications, and why it might be a good fit.
• 02:33 So small talk is not necessarily an extra, it's not fluff.
• 02:38 It's an important part of the entire interview process.

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