So I want to look at the 4 Fs that will help you jump into your next conversation with a lot of confidence.

I'm Alex Lyon and I'm here to provide communication tips to help you increase your impact and lead your teams with more excellence.

We're going to talk about how to have conversations.

It's pretty difficult. A lot of times we feel awkward.

But the four Fs will help you enter conversations with a lot more confidence than usual.

Yes, you can talk about the weather. Check.

Yes, you can ask them about their job. Check.

But these 4 Fs are something else that you can bring into those conversations.

So let's jump right in.

The first F is family.

Ask them about their family.

Most adults that are already working have a family or maybe they're about to have a family.

Now this can be a sensitive topic, but if you see a wedding ring, if they are already talking about their family, ask a follow-up.

You'll often see people light up about that topic.

Sometimes it's sensitive, though, and so you might go a little more round about way to get at the topic.

You could ask them where they're from, if they have a family in the area, something like that.

And then you feel them out. See if they're ready to go in that direction.

But a lot of times you will get people that are pretty excited.

I'm a family man, personally, and I can't wait for people to ask me about it.

You can't shut me up and a lot of people are like that it's a really important topic to most people.

The second F is what to do for Fun.

Say, "Hey what are you doing for fun?"

Do you have any hobbies? Do you like to play basketball? Sports?

What do you do for relaxation, recreation? Just broach that topic.

If it's fun for them then they're going to want to talk about it.

It also opens up the possibility that you might have some over lapping areas of fun that you like to do.

I know many times in conversations they start talking about what they like and I didn't know you like that.

I like that too. It's one of my favorite things to do.

I play chess or I like to go camping.

That's one of those fun things.

So you see connections and then you get to know them in a deeper way than you did before.

The third F is what fires them up.

Ask them about their passions. Ask them about the things that really get their heart thumping.

Usually, if you're asking about other things you'll see one of these things will pop out anyway.

If they're excited, follow up and ask them about that.

You... Sometimes you'll bring up the things that really fire you up and that will trigger them.

However, you can get it there areas of passion,

that's one of these things that can really open up a relationship and help you get to know people in a deeper way.

And the fourth F is Future plans.

Ask them about the coming weekend. Ask them about their coming vacation or what they might be doing this summer.

We'll get really excited about the future.

I don't know about you, but I take a vacation that lasts a week but I'm excited for three months building up to that vacation.

And so asking about future plans, even life plans sometimes, can really lead to great opening in that conversation and build that connection even stronger.

So Communication Coach is here, this channel, is here to help people like you I call you rising leaders.

You're tuning and, hopefully, to increase your communication skills and lead your teams with more excellence.

And tip like this, today's tip about the 4 Fs is one way for you to connect with people more and to help build those relationships.

And that's a really key part to being a good leader.

So if you're interested in ongoing content in this area and you haven't yet done so, I encourage you to subscribe, post a comment below about how you like to enter conversations and the topics that you enjoy talking about.

Answer somebody else's question or perhaps ask me one.

I'm pretty good at responding to almost every single thing that people post.

So thanks for tuning in. God bless.

And I hope you get to use one of these four Fs in your very next conversation.