-With vaccination rates steadily increasing
and more cities reopening, you may be nervous
about getting back into society
and having in-person conversations again,
especially after an entire year of being inside.
Well, if that's the case,
I came across a service that might help.
Check it out.
-Hello!
I'm Lark Kimble, and I'm a real-world conversation coach.
These days, we're all a little out of practice,
but with my help, you can get back to those
in-person interactions in no time.
Come on!
Hey, it's my friend Ben.
Let me show you how it's done.
Hey there, Ben!
It's great to see you. How are you doing?
Freeze.
What I've done is begin a conversation.
I used a greeting
and then engaged my listener with a question.
This is how virtually every conversation begins.
Unfreeze.
-Lark, man, I'm good.
It's been forever. How are you?
-I'm doing great.
Yeah, I'm just out for a walk to pick up some 2% milk.
How is Lori?
Freeze.
The repartee is under way.
Notice how I listened to Ben's question,
then answered it with specific details from my own experience.
Most importantly, I asked another question
to continue the conversation.
Unfreeze.
-Oh [bleep] man. You didn't hear?
Me and Lori split up in August.
We haven't spoken to each other in months.
It got real messy.
The pandemic was just like a pressure cooker,
and we just, like, were going at it, like, night after night.
And it got to the point where we were just like,
"Do we even want to do this anymore?
Like, are we still in love anymore?"
-Freeze.
The conversation has taken a turn towards personal issues,
which can have a chilling effect on the entire exchange,
especially when you still have to get that milk.
You can avoid this by subtly
guiding the conversation into another direction.
Unfreeze.
-So, um, how are you?
-What?
You -- you just asked me that.
Bad. I'm -- I'm bad, man.
Like, I'm in a real rough patch.
Like, I got COVID twice.
I lost my job.
I adopted a dog, but then the dog died right away.
I'm, like -- I'm miserable.
-Stop! [ Laughs ]
This guy's got a lot to unpack here, so --
-What?
-I -- Uh, I mean, freeze!
Whoops.
Okay, Lark, don't get sloppy here.
Come on. [ Clears throat ]
Alright. [ Breathes deeply ]
Unfreeze!
Uh, what's your favorite color?
-What was that?
Why did you say "stop" a second ago?
Do you not want to talk to me or something?
That -- that's fine, okay?
You know what?
I was actually having a good day
for the first time in like nine months.
Like, honestly.
And then you came over and you, like,
asked me about Lori and my pathetic life.
And, lo and behold,
you don't even care.
So, like, of course.
Like, of course you don't want to talk to me.
I'm pathetic.
You don't want to talk to sad-sack, pathetic Ben,
the loser with a dead dog in a freezer,
because you can't bury a dog in Brooklyn in January.
I don't know how to do that.
So, how is this for a conversation starter?
Here's one [bleep] you, Lark Kimble!
Oh, and my favorite color is green, you piece of [bleep]
-Freeze! Ha ha!
As you can see, getting back into conversation
can be fun, rewarding, and very exciting.
So call me up, and we'll get you chattin' in no time.
Conversations -- they're a lark...Kimble.
[ Chuckles ]
-What's happening to me?!
Oh, God!
Oh, it hurts!
Can somebody help?!
-Lark was the guy from the rap thing earlier.
[ Laughter ] Yeah.
And you know what the best part is?
Because they were in the same show,
we only have to pay him once.
[ Laughter ]