I think a good time to practice small talk is Monday morning at work. Ask the person sitting next to you “how was your weekend? Did you do anything?” This is a

I think a good time to practice small talk is Monday morning at work. Ask the person sitting next to you “how was your weekend? Did you do anything?” This is a great opener because it guarantees at least a little bit of back-and-forth conversation, since after they answer the question they will likely ask you about your own weekend. If they answer the question by saying they didn’t do anything, you can say that that sounds relaxing. If they mention they watched a TV show or saw a movie, be honest and say whether you’ve heard of it or not. Tell them you’ve been looking for something new to watch, and ask for their recommendation. If they did actually do something — maybe they caught up with friends, or saw family, or went hiking — you can say “oh, that sounds nice!” You can even leave the conversation there if you’d like, or ask follow up questions about where the activity took place, what the weather was like, etc. Next, they’ll probably ask you if you did anything yourself, and you can respond in kind. My one tip is to always be honest. Don’t lie or make up stories to sound more interesting than you are. If you didn’t leave the house and just stayed at home all weekend coding, you can say that. I dreaded small talk when I was younger because I was ashamed of having an uninteresting life. But I’ve found that by expressing the things that I feel a little bit of shame about, I often end up connecting more deeply with other people around me who feel the same way.