Conversation starters
 

This post brought to you by Guttersnipe's weather post.

It sounds like we all know that SO HOW'S THE WEATHER EH is the most boring thing ever. So what's a good, all-purpose conversation starter?

Obviously you would bring up a common interest if you were in a class together or met through a mutual friend, but when you can think of nothing specific or interesting to say, what can you fall back on?

I usually fall back to a movie or something funny/interesting that happened to the person I'm with and try and talk about it or something..

heres mine "SO I'M GETTING MY BALLS LAMINATED!@!!!!!!" top of my lungs

"Could you help me for a second? I seem to have lost my congressional medal of honor..."

AAfter the weather comes sports.
but since I've never been one to quip,"How 'bout them Eagles?"
I've been known to ask

Whats Poppin?

or

How Goes It?

or

Whats YOUR Mothers maiden name?

generally though it all comes back to "The Weather"

If you want to find common ground I have found family guy as a great one. Everyone seems to love it. "hey do you watch family guy" and it just sky rockets from there.

Have you seen *insert blockbuster movie here*?
Even if they haven't, it tends to lead to celebrity gossip which can fill up a little bit of time, even if it seems totally lame. Same idea with music and singers.

When you actually want a conversation instead of just filling awkward silences:

I was reading this book and it had the most interesting fact...*works if you really read a book with an interesting fact*

What sort of person were you like in high school/college/etc.

Did you hear the news?
*state news*

That is all.

Bring up a dream you had recently. Engage the person or people you're with in the game of interpretation.

Have you ever noticed that people with blue eyes are really intelligent? (Of course it helps if you or they have blue eyes)

Are you gonna eat that?

If you're in college:

"So what's your major"

Thinking of what to say before you have to say it is sort of like rehearsing lines for a play which may or may not ever make it to the stage.

I talk to strangers all the time and never have an issue finding things to talk about. This is because conversation naturally issues from the moment of encounter, doesn't it?

There is usually something happening in the immediate environment that is fun to comment on. People wear interesting clothing or do interesting things - or interesting things happen during the personal encounter. All these are what makes conversation happen.

I don't think I'd be a very good conversationalist if I were to rehearse a couple of standard lines or topics to be cut and pasted into real-life situations.

One way not to go about starting a friendlly conversation is "You look like shit. Is that all the rage now days?"

Smile and focus on the other person. I'm with ARTelevision,

I normally just ask a lot of questions. Things like "Where are you from?" What kind of work do you do?" One excellent one is "Do you have any children?" People LOVE to talk about themselves, and if they have children that's even better. As they tell you about themselves you'll find more things to ask or say and the conversation naturally progresses. I don't pick any particular conversation starter - I just follow the moment. What's going on, where we are, what they look like tells me a lot about what they are going to be more interested in talking about. Showing interest in their lives is about all you have to do to get someone to talk.

Do you like pie?

Ok honestly, not being sarcastic or anything but drink like a glass of wine or something before date. You'll find yourself to be way more relaxed and talkative and way more outgoing and fun...Trust me on this :P

So hey, how's it going?

This puts the conversation in the other person's court.
So they have something to talk about. (themselves)
You can always turn it around.

I took this animal behavior class once, and in it I learned all sorts of bizarre trivia that stuck with me. Things like, "Hey, did you know besides humans, ducks are the most homosexual animal on the planet?" or "Hey... did you know bees can't see the color red?" Or "Hey... do you know what a naked mole-rat is? Did you know that it can eat its own fecal-matter three times over and still get sufficient nutritional sustinance out of it??"

I use these and factoids like them ALL the time while waiting around at the busstop with a bunch of strangers. I've made a lot of "bus friends" this way with repeat customers!

That would work except it's too out of nowhere and the person might think it's kinda weird how you're talking about that stuff right when you see them

I am horrible conversation starter, and can rarely think of anything other than 'whats up, dogg', 'what up yo', 'sup, etc.

Haha. I noticed that. I'm kind of reserved normally and a martini loosens me up like nothing else.

Not, um, that you're around anymore to read this.

I agree with ARTelevision first and foremost, starting a conversation usually springs from the environment you share. By being in the same place you immediately have something in common and can work from there.

Raeanna and rogue's advice are ok for starting a conversation, but even better for keeping one going. If there's one topic you can be sure someone is an expert in, it's themselves :)

Ditto. I just go with it.

I reccomend, "So... I was just imagining what it would be like to kill you..."

F.O.R.M.

Family
Occupation
Recreation
Money

Use this formula and you will know all you need to about the person... if they are interesting... ask for details in any.

I dunno if i would wanna ask someone about money. Kinda an uncomfortable topic. Well, unless I am asking for a dollar. :)

Quite easy actually... ask what they would do if they won the lotto.

I'm very good at not talking -- took some practice, but I'm more than happy to stare at somebody silently if I have nothing to say. Okay, I smile so it doesn't seem too creepy. Kind of takes the anxiety out of random encounters. And without that anxiety, it's paradoxically pretty easy to start a conversation, if I think there's actually worth talking about.

Actually, the best conversation starter is to offer assistance to somebody who needs it. But not if they don't, 'cause then you're just posing.

Me: Do you know how much a polar bear weighs?

Them: No

Me: Just enough to break the ice

Drink a bit before going out, you won't be able to shut up you'll sound 10x more interesting, funny and outgoing ;)