I’m ignored when I try to chat to people. How can I improve my conversation skills? | Ask Annalisa Barbieri
Fruitful exchanges require input from two people. Listen carefully to what others are saying and use feelings, rather than facts, to connect
How do you do conversation? I don’t understand how it works. I can only ever communicate factual information such as “A coffee and a croissant, please.”
Other people seem to rattle on about anything and everything, constantly jumping from one topic to another, but I can never follow. If I ever feel that I have something to contribute and try to join in they simply ignore me or change the subject. If I try to initiate a conversation, for example by complimenting someone on their obviously expensive camera, they will initially respond but after about 60 seconds turn away as soon as they realise that I am “trying to make conversation”.
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I’m happily remarried, but am haunted by my ex’s long-ago betrayal | Ask Annalisa Barbieri
Your first husband robbed you of a lot, and you have some mourning to do. But there seems to be a part of you that thinks you don’t deserve happiness. • Every week Annalisa Barbieri addresses a family-related problem sent in by a reader. I met my ...The Guardian - World -
‘I don’t want to end up with stalkers’: Should I tell my heirs that I’m writing a will and how much they can expect to inherit?
“Should I even let them know that there is a will in which they are mentioned?”MarketWatch - Business -
I’m getting married but my father isn't invited. How can I ensure he doesn’t crash the wedding? | Leading questions
You can’t cordon off every weird dynamic on the big day, writes advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith. But you can be clear you won’t accept trespasses without consequence. Get our weekend culture and lifestyle emailI am getting married next year. ...The Guardian - World -
Ask Shrimsley: how do I get my kids off their phones?
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'I will be paying my mortgage until I’m 68'
With more young homebuyers opting for ultra-long mortgages, we hear from people about their personal experiences.BBC News - Top stories -
How I Met My Father
“What took you so long?” he said.The New York Times - Lifestyle -
‘My goal is to become a millionaire before leaving this world’: I’m retired and in my 70s. I have $768,000, but want $1 million. How do I achieve that?
“When I was young, I did not invest much for it to amount to anything, and then I had to use what I had saved.”MarketWatch - Business -
My father ‘deliberately and hurtfully’ cut my late sister’s two kids out of his will. How can I ensure they get their fair share?
“How can I best do this in such a way that nobody is penalized from gift taxes and other costs?”MarketWatch - Business -
'I can only eat once a day to make my medication last'
Paul Elcombe takes Creon three times a day after having part of his pancreas removed.BBC News - Top stories -
Gaël Monfils: ‘I’m getting a little bit old. People forget that I still have it’
The Frenchman has battled with injuries and perceptions to remain one of tennis’s great entertainers at the age of 37. At any tournament in almost any part of the world, one of the certainties over the past 20 years is that whenever Gaël Monfils ...The Guardian - World
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