Why I hate to schmoose

[bnewman]

As I was reminded last night at the Hillel social, I hate to schmoose.

What's new is, now I know why — when I walk away from my first conversation with someone, I want to know why I can expect to speak with them again. Where a person is from doesn't answer this, unless they are from my neighborhood and remember fondly the same restaurants. What a person is studying doesn't answer this, unless they are going to be in my classes, in which case I will get to know them in class, and don't need to beforehand. Only the prospect of shared interests and projects serves this purpose, and while I imagine most people at the Hillel social did have one thing in common, the Jewish community at Brandeis University is too large and diffuse to serve in toto as a social nexus for someone like me. I eagerly await the Activities Fair on Sunday, which I imagine will be much more useful in this regard.

Comments

[reldnahkram.livejournal.com]

I believe, and I'm no expert, that the point is to find something interesting about the person that is the basis for continuing conversation. Whatever that may be, look for it. Alternatively, five minutes of idle chatter could reveal whether a person thinks, and therefore talks, in a way that might merit future conversation.