If you find it awkward to make small talk, you are not alone. While it can be daunting, it is also one of the best ways to ...

Increased daily happiness: Research shows that “simple social interactions,” such as engaging in conversation with strangers or acquaintances, predict greater life satisfaction, suggesting that these ...

Small talk has a bad reputation. People roll their eyes at it and see it as a dreaded necessity that they need to get out of the way before the real conversation begins. It has effectively become one ...

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 ...

An evening out on the town with my closest friends — I love the promise of a night out. Maybe I’ll meet someone or learn something that could alter the trajectory of my life. And what a promise that ...

Small talk gets a bad rap for being inane and superficial, but it can open up chances to form unexpected bonds ...

I spent much of last weekend engaging in small talk, a social task I sometimes find a laborious activity. Maybe that’s just me. Still, last weekend was the Labor Day holiday, so I suppose I should ...

Conversations, whether at holiday parties or other times of the year, don’t have to be awkward. (Getty Images) Between holiday dinners with relatives you haven’t heard from all year, office parties ...

What one writer gained when he stopped using the self-checkout, and reclaimed the joy of a life with social friction ...