Current Events > How do people talk so much about basically nothing

(+) Yeah! (+)

I know I'm weird. Extremely introverted, not good at small talk, etc.

But these 2 middle aged ladies have been talking for an hour straight about basically nothing.

How?

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You ever see a cat with a ball of yarn?
Or a dog chasing its own tail?
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Socializing has its good and bad
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imagine a universe starting from nothing. What exactly is nothing? How does something come from nothing? Nothing is a miserable pile of secrets

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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

You ever see a cat with a ball of yarn?
Or a dog chasing its own tail?

That was pretty much my thoughts tbh. It's just not fun for me.

I like deep convos. Like meaning of life. Man's future in the universe. Etc.

Small talk is boring and painful.

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yeah small talk is hard......... but people appreciate it if you are good at it and can fill the silences
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I've discovered a decent trick to small talking is to ask people about whatever it is they are taking about and then try to relate it to something you're familiar with.

"oh yeah, how long have you done that?"
"That reminds me of a time when I..."
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I have a song for you, TC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKp2CrfmVfw" data-time="
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Here's the dirty secret about small talk
People just do it so they can make themselves feel important.
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CE is literally this

Everyone talks about nothing if said nothing interests them.

You're supposed to talk about your interests.

Because what you find important isn't universal.
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I mean I guess

They just don't even seem like they care about what they talk about.

I'm more in line with brutai on this one. Like a dog chasing its tail

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How old are you? How long you been on this planet yappin so far?
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30. I've been bored of small talk since middle school

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sLaCkEr408___RJ posted...

Middle schoolers haven't learned to function properly in the adult world. Sounds like you never acquired the ability.

small talk is something you learn around the time you're a teenager and get thrown into a more open society.
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DuranOfForcena posted...

talking about people talking about nothing is itself talking about nothing

You're not wrong. I more bitching because I'm annoyed than anything.

Waiting for little bros neuro appt here at Mayo clinic

I was able to zone everyone else out. But there is something about these 2 that just seeps into your brain.

I'm not arrogant enough to say people aren't allowed to chat. But fuck. They have to be out of shit to talk about by now. Makes it hard to focus on reading.

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sLaCkEr408___RJ posted...

mattnd2007 posted...

30. I've been bored of small talk since middle school

Middle schoolers haven't learned to function properly in the adult world. Sounds like you never acquired the ability.

I gotta go with this.
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Maybe. I have misanthropic tendencies. People are annoying.

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Some people simply like to hear themselves talk, so it obviously follows that they can small talk for long periods of time even if the conversation is inauthentic at best.
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It's partially why I work in a laboratory setting. Also because I have a natural interest in the sciences. But also limited contact with people. And the people I do have most contact with are other lab personnel or engineers.

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Paragon21XX posted...

Some people simply like to hear themselves talk, so it obviously follows that they can small talk for long periods of time even if the conversation is inauthentic at best.

Yeah. Just doesn't make sense to me. If I don't really have anything to say I'm content to sit in silence. Rather than talk about the weather. Or how traffic was terrible this morning. Etc. That shit is boring as fuck.

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Lost_All_Senses posted...

I gotta go with this.

Wtf why was I modded for that

Humans find long silences awkward if there are other people nearby.
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

Humans find long silences awkward if there are other people nearby.

I do at times, but most of the time I'm content.

I do have a stupid bitch co-worker that has that weird ability to have like the angry aura around her. I would try to make small talk then. Because it was so uncomfortable. Like you can just feel the tension in the room.

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mattnd2007 posted...

I do at times, but most of the time I'm content.

I do have a stupid bitch co-worker that has that weird ability to have like the angry aura around her. I would try to make small talk then. Because it was so uncomfortable. Like you can just feel the tension in the room.

A long silence is anything more than a few seconds to most people.
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Yeah, small talk sucks. I dont really like shallow or meaningless conversations and I especially do not like speaking more words than needed. Sometimes, I do what Solid Snake does and repeat the last few words of someones sentence in a question like tone so that I dont have to chime in much when Im not invested. It usually works. People love to hear themselves talk so Ill just listen.

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The_Scarecrow posted...

Yeah, small talk sucks. I dont really like shallow or meaningless conversations and I especially do not like speaking more words than needed. Sometimes, I do what Solid Snake does and repeat the last few words of someones sentence in a question like tone so that I dont have to chime in much when Im not invested. It usually works. People love to hear themselves talk so Ill just listen.

Hmm. Maybe I'll try that next time I'm stuck in a small talk loop.

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Tell me what you find difficult about small talk.
I understand you don't like it but what do you find difficult about it when people engage in it with you?
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

Tell me what you find difficult about small talk.
I understand you don't like it but what do you find difficult about it when people engage in it with you?

Feigning interest mostly. People can tell I don't give a shit and get offended. It's just too much energy to pretend like I care.

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And I do try most of the time. But it is exhausting. Like major need for recharge.

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The TNG episode starship mine has a great scene where Data makes small talk with the guy who keeps talking about nothing and nobody can stand to be around

nothing wrong with being an introvert.
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

nothing wrong with being an introvert.

Only when you act like extroverts are doing something wrong for doing things differently
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Lost_All_Senses posted...

Only when you act like extroverts are doing something wrong for doing things differently

In my experience introverts are actually fine. Extroverts tend to be ones that can't accept some people just don't want to play social games 24.7
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

Lost_All_Senses posted...

Only when you act like extroverts are doing something wrong for doing things differently

In my experience introverts are actually fine. Extroverts tend to be ones that can't accept some people just don't want to play social games 24.7

I got the opposite experience. But all the extroverts I know, live like introverts the other half of the time
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Lost_All_Senses posted...

I got the opposite experience. But all the extroverts I know, live like introverts the other half of the time

I've been treated most of my life like there is something wrong with me for being an introvert. And no I don't talk like this in real life. CE is a "safe space" more or less. So I'm more open about how I feel here than in real life tbh.

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I just think more people are understanding of introverts these days because technology has made it easy to live like introverts even when you're mostly a extrovert. These people who needed attention most the time, can now get it while still being a introvert at times. Must just be the people Im around
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sLaCkEr408___RJ posted...

Wtf why was I modded for that

Because it was rude and unnecessary. Even if you had a valid point you could have worded it in not such a dickish way

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Some people have nothing better to do TC. That's why they small talk.
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MACisBack posted...

Some people have nothing better to do TC. That's why they small talk.

See, this is the superiority thing I don't like. What did you do in an hour of not participating in conversation?
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This dude in my T/Th class talks to me every day and tells me the most open ended stories with zero point to them. I dont have the heart to tell him to piss off.
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Lost_All_Senses posted...

MACisBack posted...

Some people have nothing better to do TC. That's why they small talk.

See, this is the superiority thing I don't like. What did you do in an hour of not participating in conversation?

It's not a superiority thing, and I get my stuff done while others are idling chatting about nothing. I do more than I talk.

And, let's be real, almost all small talk has nothing to do with work, and most people use it as way to "take another break" like a smoker pulling out another cigarette even though they can't finish it before break is over, but takes more time to finish it anyway.
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MACisBack posted...

It's not a superiority thing, and I get my stuff done while others are idling chatting about nothing. I do more than I talk.

And, let's be real, almost all small talk has nothing to do with work, and most people use it as way to "take another break" like a smoker pulling out another cigarette even though they can't finish it before break is over, but takes more time to finish it anyway.

Some people actually need the social interaction otherwise it affects them badly
Just like introverts get drained like TC, some extroverts get energy form social interaction
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RdVEHfJqAvUPIbk posted...

Some people actually need the social interaction otherwise it affects them badly
Just like introverts get drained like TC, some extroverts get energy form social interaction

Yeah. I have nothing against extros. My best friend is an extreme extro. But he understands me and I him, and that is why we get along so well.

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MACisBack posted...

Lost_All_Senses posted...

MACisBack posted...

Some people have nothing better to do TC. That's why they small talk.

See, this is the superiority thing I don't like. What did you do in an hour of not participating in conversation?

It's not a superiority thing, and I get my stuff done while others are idling chatting about nothing. I do more than I talk.

And, let's be real, almost all small talk has nothing to do with work, and most people use it as way to "take another break" like a smoker pulling out another cigarette even though they can't finish it before break is over, but takes more time to finish it anyway.

I mean, if you keep it in the context of being at work, I get it. TC didn't specify in the OP, so I started imagining just waiting in a waiting room or line.
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What counts as small talk
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It sucks being the quiet person. You know your coworkers do NOT want to be stuck with you in an elevator.
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EndOfDiscOne posted...

It sucks being the quiet person. You know your coworkers do NOT want to be stuck with you in an elevator.

Just tickle people in these situations. They will respect you for it
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