Immediately after introductions are made there is usually a period of time in which impersonal or trivial subjects are discussed. This type of conversation, called "small talk", is important because it often helps to keep conversations and can lead into interesting discussions.

Usually people start small talk by asking about things like family, work, school or sports. They ask each other questions like "do you live in this area " "Do you have any brothers or sisters " "Where do you work " "What school do you go to " and "do you like sports " these are polite questions. They are not personal or private. But it is uncommon and considered impolite to ask questions about a person"s salary, such as "How much money do you make " They don"t ask how much money someone paid for something, for example, " How much does your house cost " It is OK to ask children how old they are, but it is not polite to ask old people about their age, especially women. It is not polite to ask people questions about politics or religion either unless you know them very well. People don"t ask unmarried people, "Why are you single ", and they don"t ask a married couple with no children, "Why don"t you have any children " these are generally considered too personal for first meetings. (219 words)