Jeopardy questions
Because I am often in situations where I am either meeting new folks or bringing together a bunch of folks who don't know each other (but have me in common), I like to get things started -- let folks get to know each other and begin the conversations -- with a question: If you were on Jeopardy, what would be the bit of trivia about yourself that you would tell Alex Trebek?
I usually ask this question around a table, usually over food and drinks, and it has been wildly successful in getting interesting stories out of people. So much so that after one round (of answers), people often turn to me looking for the next question... kinda like legitimized gossip about each other. Legitimate because we're outting ourselves. It's great fun, especially when you really only know someone in one context, e.g., you're used to seeing someone as a co-worker although you may vaguely know that s/he has an interest in, say, attending Star Trek conventions.
So I came up with another question: What is one thing about yourself that no one else at the table knows about you? This is really fun when you have a mix better and lesser acquainted people. Once, one conversation where this question was the focus included a set of best friends from college. Now, THAT was fun. She had to delve deep for an answer. This question always leads to really interesting and fun disclosures which invariably lead follow-up disclosures and more conversation. It also really allows folks to paint a more colorful picture of the others present and open up the "boxes" that we tend to sort each other into.
And once when the chatting was so enthusiastic that we exhausted that line of Q and A, I invented a third question: Who is the most famous person who knows you by name (generally operationalized as if you called her/him, that person would take your call?)? That evening that that question was invented, we were lucky that a friend had already left because none of us could beat Bill Clinton.
I'm starting to use these questions so often, that I am in danger of having to come up with a fourth.
(BTW, 1. I have travelled to 40 countries; 2. I have five tattoos; 3. George Takei, who played Sulu on the original "Star Trek")
I usually ask this question around a table, usually over food and drinks, and it has been wildly successful in getting interesting stories out of people. So much so that after one round (of answers), people often turn to me looking for the next question... kinda like legitimized gossip about each other. Legitimate because we're outting ourselves. It's great fun, especially when you really only know someone in one context, e.g., you're used to seeing someone as a co-worker although you may vaguely know that s/he has an interest in, say, attending Star Trek conventions.
So I came up with another question: What is one thing about yourself that no one else at the table knows about you? This is really fun when you have a mix better and lesser acquainted people. Once, one conversation where this question was the focus included a set of best friends from college. Now, THAT was fun. She had to delve deep for an answer. This question always leads to really interesting and fun disclosures which invariably lead follow-up disclosures and more conversation. It also really allows folks to paint a more colorful picture of the others present and open up the "boxes" that we tend to sort each other into.
And once when the chatting was so enthusiastic that we exhausted that line of Q and A, I invented a third question: Who is the most famous person who knows you by name (generally operationalized as if you called her/him, that person would take your call?)? That evening that that question was invented, we were lucky that a friend had already left because none of us could beat Bill Clinton.
I'm starting to use these questions so often, that I am in danger of having to come up with a fourth.
(BTW, 1. I have travelled to 40 countries; 2. I have five tattoos; 3. George Takei, who played Sulu on the original "Star Trek")
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