Many people who want to improve their conversation skills practice their opening lines, but they neglect learning how to end a conversation. It is a mistake to neglect the ending of a conversation because if you handle it badly, you might annoy or hurt the other person you are talking with. You might also miss out on the opportunity to deepen the relationship. If you learn to close a conversation really well, you can move the relationship forward and create an opportunity to meet again in the future.
People bungle the ends of conversations in several different ways:
a) They ignore the signals the other person is giving them that they want the conversation to end. Instead of letting the conversation end, they keep talking and talking. This is one of the most common errors that people make in conversations. By talking on and on, they can irritate and inconvenience the other person, who may really need to leave. A person who makes a habit of dragging conversations on too long can end up getting a reputation as a bore, and people will try to avoid speaking with them.
b) They end the conversation too abruptly without signaling that the conversation is coming to an end. This can confuse and even hurt the other person. There are usually a few social rituals that people follow when a conversation draws to a close. Instead of simply walking away at the end of a conversation, you have to signal in advance that you will be ending it. For example, you can say, "I have to be leaving in a minute; I have an appointment downtown." If you walk away without at least a few closing words, you will be seen as a person with no social skills.
c) They do not tell the other person they appreciated the talk. If you want to end your conversation on a positive note, take a bit of time to tell the other person that you have really enjoyed talking with them. Many people neglect to say something complimentary at the end of a conversation, even though this is a good opportunity to inject some sincere emotion into the conversation. If you appear sincere when you are giving your compliment, you will give a big emotional boost to the other person. If you want to have a real friendship or romantic relationship with a person, you should be sure to tell them how much you liked having the conversation with them.
You can try saying something like, "I'm really glad I ran into you today and we had a chance to talk. Or, "I'm always happy to talk to you." It's been a real pleasure. "
d) They pass up the opportunity to make a future appointment with the person even though they wanted to. Sometimes people neglect to suggest a date in the future because they get nervous, and other times they are too vague. Do not simply say, "We should get together again some time", because this is too vague. You should be more specific, and you should take the initiative to make the call.
If you would like to talk to the other person again in the future without making a specific appointment, you can make some remark such as, "I hope I get another chance to talk to you soon. "
If you really want to be certain that you see the other person again, you can follow this up by asking, "I'd like to meet you for coffee some time. Is it all right if I call you next week?"
If you want your conversations to lead to more friendships and relationships, you need to be good at ending conversations. In fact, it is probably more important to end a conversation well than to have a good opening line. Learning how to end a conversation will successfully result in a better social life for you.