Small talk is a good way to make friends. If you travel to other countries or have friends from abroad, do you know how to use small talk to make conversation?
In Britain, the best topic is the weather. British weather is changing all the time. 16
Besides weather, it’s good to talk about gardens with British. You could say “Those roses look really beautiful, don’t they?” 17 .So it’s also nice to start with “What a lovely dog! What is his name?”
In America, people like to talk about sports news ,such as American football and basketball. 18 So you might say “It’s a nice shirt! Where did you get it?” Weather is a safe topic there, too.
19 Don’t ask people “How old are you?” Never ask: “How much money do you make?”It makes people uncomfortable. Don’t ask strangers weather they are married. 20 There are others in our daily life.
A. You can start chatting by saying “It’s a lovely day today, isn’t it?”
B. There are also a lot of topics to avoid during small talk.
C. Friends are important to us all, but how to make friends is a problem.
D. Americans also talk about clothes.
AB. Politics or religion is not a good topic.
AC. English people love their pets.
AD. Only a few topics are not used for small talk.
16 A 17 AC 18 D 19 B 20 AB
—Good afternoon. My name is Peter. I’m the general manager of the personnel department. I’ll be interviewing you. Please sit down.
— 61 , Peter. My name’s Jon. Jon Smash.
—Well, Jon, it’s a pleasure to meet you. 62 .
—I’ve been a manager at Nike for over three years. I won manager of the year award two years ago, and I got promoted last August.
—OK. Tell me about yourself…your personality.
— 63 . I think before I act, and if something goes wrong in our company I always remain calm. I never scream at my employees. And I’ve never lost my temper.
— 64 ?
—I think I’m good at solving problems. 65 . I also love challenges. I work well under pressure. When my boss pushes me to finish a project early I always get it done and never complain.
—Jon, you seem like a very good manager. I like your ambition. You’re very confident and motivated. We like that here at Microsoft. Well, our interview is over……
A. I’m glad it’s you who will offer me the opportunity to get the job B. I enjoy approaching problems directly C. Nice to meet you D. What are your strengths E. I owe my success to my employees F. Tell me about your work experience G. I think I’m very level-headed |
61. _______ 62. _______ 63. _______ 64. _______ 65. _______