While the general advice feels sound, the point of doing small talk as part of the scheduling was not explained clearly enough for me. It's not going to convin

While the general advice feels sound, the point of doing small talk as part of the scheduling was not explained clearly enough for me. It's not going to convince anyone to do things for the other person. It doesn't send the message that the meeting is urgent or important, and nothing about it will help getting both parties closer to the objective. It sounds like it would be better replaced by pleasantries that are actually related to the meeting, like the choice of food, possibility of a follow-up meeting, etc.