There’s more than one way to participate in a conversation. Being an active listener is just as important as anything else in an interaction. It’s also one of the easiest ways to build your confidence - both as a conversationalist and in relationship building.

I see it happen all the time in big league clubhouses. The newcomers aren’t usually the ones driving the conversations. They’re hanging back, listening and warming up the space. 

Here’s what that means for you – just show up. 

Be willing to interact. Small talk isn’t about having all the answers. Small talk is about making connections and building rapport. These sports conversation starters can help – even if you didn’t spend the weekend watching sports.

You already know I think of sports conversations as a way to connect. I also think of them as a way to practice skills I know I need in other areas of my life.

If you're looking for ways to shine in big moments you should be finding ways to practice in small ones.

Accepting change or leaning into change is something I could always do better. And you know what? I've done that in the last couple weeks and if you're a baseball fan so have you! Almost 3 weeks into the season you've not only heard about the new rules across the major leagues you're probably already used to them. That's change management. That's accepting and leaning into change. Gold star for you! 

If you're not quite there, this reminder from the Spring Training for Your Career series could help. 

As for this week's conversation starters, there's no need to change a good thing. Here's the list you can use to get the ball rolling in small talk.

After 20 minutes of responding to fans on Twitter I gave up. There was no point. I’m not a huge fan of engaging in “conversations” on Twitter to begin with and when the interactions involve frustrated fans it’s usually an exercise in futility because I can’t actually gauge the reaction.

Words on a screen don’t mean nearly as much as talking to someone in person.

Maybe that’s a personal preference, but there is definitely something lost in translation between typing a response and hearing a response in person. This is your encouragement to stop reading between the lines and start having in-person conversations. These sports conversations starters can help with small talk this week.

Women watch sports. Women play sports. Women are sports fans. 

Typically, I use this space to give subtle reminders about ways to be strategic with small talk and sports conversations. Today it’s a straight up, ALL CAPS, reminder –WOMEN ARE SPORTS FANS.

I have worked in sports 22 years, and yet, I still encounter people who are surprised to discover there are women who passionately follow sports, not to mention work in sports.

So, allow me to offer these reminders…

• If you’re not talking about the women’s NCAA Tournament this week you’re missing out. TV ratings were up more than 40% from last year.
• Last Thursday was the most-watched Opening Day in Major League Baseball history. You know who was part of the fan base? Women.
• If you are not using these weekly conversation starters to engage with ALL sports fans, you are missing out.

And with that, I’ll step off my soap box and allow you to continue.

Every conversation has the opportunity to be productive... if you're strategic and intentional. When you go into a conversation with a plan you're more likely to meet your objective.

This weekly list of sports conversation starters isn't just to help keep you in the loop, it helps me plan for conversations and think through the types of small talk I know I'll encounter. It's not about how much sports you've watched (which for me this weekend was zero because I spent time with my grandparents) it's about the connections you're willing to make in a conversation. 

I got it wrong, but so did everyone else. It’s kind of the beauty around the men’s NCAA Tournament this year. Everyone is in the same boat. No one has a perfect bracket, at least not among the more than 20 million submitted in major online games. 

I would give mad props to anyone who correctly predicted all the upsets in the first two rounds, but sports small talk isn’t about being right. It’s about connecting.  

Sports gives you an avenue to do that win or lose. You can use these Sports Conversation Starters to get the ball rolling this week. 

It will go down as one of the wildest weekends in Men's NCAA Tournament history. 

For the second time ever a No. 16 seed upset a No. 1 seed (which busted plenty of brackets) but that's not all. There were upsets throughout the bracket and by Friday night, two days into the tournament, zero perfect brackets remained out of more than 20 million submitted in major online games. Zero.

That means there's a lot of folks talking about upsets, Cinderella's, busted brackets and NCAA Tournament games. Which gives you a lot of chances to connect because Misery Loves Company. 

Sports conversations don't have to focus on game outcomes. In fact, in a business setting I think of sports as a way to find common ground in building relationships. I don't care about the scores nearly as much as I care about making a connection. 

If you're new to sports talk it can feel overwhelming to jump into conversations with sports fans. The Talk Sporty 101 series offers strategies to...

March Madness gives you an advantage in small talk and relationship building for the next three weeks.

Spring Training can be a reminder about getting the right folks on your team and in your corner.

Sports is more than stats and scores… if you allow it to be. With that in mind here are sports topics worth using in small talk this week

Each week I encourage you to utilize opportunities in small talk. This week I’m encouraged by a conversation that took place 10 years ago…

Friday I spoke a conference and the name of one our afternoon speakers looked very familiar. I couldn’t place it until she gave me a hug and said thank you for taking the time to talk to her several years earlier at the same conference. That interaction and the couple follow up emails and conversations led to finding her perfect job in sports. 

Talking to aspiring broadcasters is something I do frequently, but I don’t always hear the follow up success stories and get the reminder that conversations matter – even the ones you might have forgotten about or are no longer top of mind. I don’t remember the specifics of that conversation 10 years ago but I am positive it started with small talk at the conference. Small talk set the tone for our interactions and laid the foundation for bigger conversations that...

Change management in real time.

That’s what we’re seeing across Major League Baseball as a result of new rule changes that include a pitch clock. That means that for the first time ever the game will be timed at the big league level.

There are a couple of things I want point out:

1. Regardless as to if you’re a baseball fan, change is something we are all forced to deal with from time to time.
2. This is a perfect example of a parallel between sports and business. You don’t have to talk about baseball. You can use baseball to springboard into bigger topics about adapting and reacting to change.

The baseball rule changes are a popular topic at the moment, but if you’d like additional headlines for small talk this week check out the full list below.