The very first thing what you should remember before you start reading our tips is that everyone is different and has his or her own personality, and if someone doesn’t like you or doesn’t want to speak it is not necessarily your fault, and surely you shouldn’t be afraid of this because there are always people who are right for you, and who are not.
Everyone knows how difficult is packing up and going to live at a new place. Especially, when you have a stable job, daily routine, friends… but, sometimes, you get a new job, the one you can’t say ‘no’ to, and must leave your comfort zone. To start a conversation with strangers and to make new connections, do the right first impression and fun first talk is not always easy, particularly at a new job.
Find a friend at your new work place
Let’s look on several methods how to begin a conversation and find a friend at your new work place.
At the beginning, be ready to drink too much tea or coffee. Coffee or tea machines, these are the places where you can meet all your colleagues and have a small talk with them. Lunch breaks are also great opportunities for chatting – food is always a good connector of people. If your company organizes unofficial breakfasts or evenings, don’t avoid them and take up the challenge. Since you have started a dialogue be confident, keep eye contact, and show your interest. A good strategy to maintain a dialogue is to ask about how long they are working here and about their experience during this time. Next time when you meet your colleague, you can move to more personal issues, such as free time and hobbies, what they like and don’t like, and so on. The bottom line is to find common topics and to find out more about the person that stands near to you.
Don’t forget about ice-breaking activities and work events.
It is a nice opportunity to talk to colleagues without any rush and usually, they are more relaxed and talkative. You can take a beer or a glass of wine and join some group of people. If you are shy to start speaking first, simply stay and listen to what your colleagues are talking about. In a while, you will naturally start wanting to express your opinions about the topic and share an experience once you have had.
The next method how you can get to start a talk with your new co-workers is simply to ask for help. Either if you cannot find a kitchen corner or you have problems with office equipment, go and ask your colleagues how to deal with it and be sure, they will help you. You can use some of the special phrases that build relations. You can find them at the end of the article.
In the era of technologies, the social networks are helpful.
And finally, I must mention Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social networks. You can see what your new teammates are doing, how they are spending weekends, so you will be up-to-date. Moreover, it is a field that gives you a variety of options to speak about. Again, if you see that your new mate spent a day-off somewhere out or learned something new, asked about their experience. Trust me, they will be lucky to share emotions with you if you choose the right moment. And one more thing about Facebook that I love is that you can create events, meetings or simply search where you would like to go and invite people from your working place to spend some time outside of the office at a cozy place with chilling atmosphere.
At the end, as I promised, here are the phrases which are commonly used to build relations and start any small talk.
| Thank you for your help/advice/opinion | How was your day-off/weekend/trip/evening |
| Could you tell me more about… | It sounds interesting! I’m with you. |
| I don’t know how to fix it, could you take a look? | How long have you been working here? Could you tell me some interesting things happened during your work period? |
| Don’t worry, we will solve this problem together | Looks very nice! Can I ask where did you get it? (for a nice compliment) |
And the last tip. Be yourself and always stay honest with yourself and your new friends.
Written by: Kamila Shodieva
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Sources:
Entrepreneur 2015 at: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249372
Forbes 2012 at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffschmitt/2012/12/03/15-phrases-that-build-bridges-between-people/#7efcea7f2fde
Fortune 2016 at: http://fortune.com/2016/06/08/how-to-make-friends-at-new-job/
Monster 2016 at: https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/how-to-make-friends-at-a-new-job-0213