There's plenty of room to think outside the box scores this week and use sports small talk to springboard into different conversations. 

The start of baseball season can prompt stories from childhood and watching games as a family. Or maybe it's the ballpark food you indulge in from time to time. When talking about the NCAA Tournament you could turn the conversation towards celebrating successes. How long to you give yourself to enjoy a win? For NCAA Tournament teams there's not much time before they have to look ahead to the next game. 

Sports talk can be whatever you want it to be. These topics could help spark the conversation this week. 

March Madness is officially underway. What strategy did you use to fill out your brackets? 

Are you the type to go with top seeds? Looking for the upsets? Riding the hot hand? Mascot matchups? 

Notice that I'm assuming you're filling out at least one bracket. It's because you should. It's an easy way to connect with sports fans and there's literally zero pressure because there's never been a verified perfect bracket in the history of the NCAA Tournament. So what is there to lose? Nothing, but there's so many conversation starters to gain. There's also these topics making news this week. 

Selection Sunday is a week away, there have been plenty of bombshells in the NFL ahead of the new league year Wednesday and Alexander Ovechkin is less than a month away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s scoring record.

All of that is to say there are plenty of sports topics that can spice up small talk conversations this week.

For as much as I like to emphasize the importance of small talk in relationship building, sometimes you just don’t have time. Or maybe you have time for a three-minute conversation, but not a 25-minute conversation. I totally get it, but do you ever mention that to the person you’re talking to? Or do you just hope they can read your mind?

It is possible to be direct and kind in setting parameters around conversations.

If small talk feels like a waste of time because it takes too long, be clear about how much time you do have to chat. For example, “I only have three minutes before I need to hop on a call, but I wanted to ask how your trip went over the weekend?” When you set up the conversation with clear expectations it’s not rude to look at your watch or interrupt when it’s time to hop on that call, you’re just doing what you said you were going to do.

If you need a few sports topics to help break the ice in those conversations, these topics can help.

The idea that more is better leads us to believe that longer conversations (i.e. more words) are needed to make an impact. That’s simply not true.

You can’t measure the impact of a conversation by the number of words (although researchers continue to try.) Impact comes down to making an authentic connection that’s driven by curiosity. That means a quick conversation about a favorite team or sport can be impactful in building relationships.

If you don’t know where to start here are a few sports topics making headlines this week.

The flight attendant greeting everyone on my Alaska Airlines flight Saturday night couldn’t have been nicer. She said hi to everyone boarding the plane, and every single passenger smiled and returned a greeting – even though we’d been delayed an hour.

The interactions weren’t long and often just a “Hello” but they made a noticeable difference.

You can have the same impact this week in greeting colleagues and engaging in small talk. Your interactions don’t have to be more than one word, but if you’re thinking about small talk these sports topics can help.

Just a reminder that the way you talk about the outcome of a game is part of your personal brand. You might separate your fandom from who are you are work, but that’s not necessarily how others see it.

It doesn’t matter if you liked the outcome or if you agreed with the ref's calls, hated the halftime show or think the money spent on Super Bowl commercials is a waste. Choose your words carefully in how you characterize the Big Game because it all points back to you in the end.

Speaking of your personal brand and conversation skills, I'm launching a new coaching program in March called Confident Conversations. It's 30 days of conversation skills and encouragement. Early Bird pricing of 40% off ends Wednesday. 

Here are a few additional conversation starters if you want more than the Super Bowl to talk about this week.

The Super Bowl isn’t just the biggest football game of the year, it’s one of the biggest events of the year period.

Of the 30 most-watched telecasts in the United States, 27 are Super Bowls. Global viewership topped 62 million last year, in addition to the 123 million viewers in the United States. And it’s not just about the game. It’s the parties, the food, the halftime show and the commercials. There’s something for everyone even if you haven’t watched any football this season.

All of that is to say I’m pretty sure your conversation starters are covered with the Big Game, but just in case you’d like a few other items to talk about, this list has you covered.

Did you know that we gained 1 minute and 52 seconds of daylight this month? It’s less than two minutes but it makes a big difference in how your day feels, especially for those of us in the Seattle area dreaming of long summer days.

That little factoid could make for a fun conversation starter this week along with the sports topics listed below. And just like a few seconds of daylight we’re gaining every day, the few seconds spent in small talk and conversation with colleagues can make a big difference.

You’ve got more leeway than you might think.

That was my takeaway after observing a little boy riding his bike yesterday morning. He was happily swerving along the paved path, exploring one side and then the other. After successfully dodging his maneuvers I realized I am the person who would try to ride in a straight line, but there’s a lot more leeway and more to explore than a straight line.

It’s true in our conversations too. Sometimes we get so dialed in and focused on saying the exact right thing we forget there’s a lot more leeway than we might think. We don’t have to be perfect in our conversation skills, just willing to explore.

Perhaps these sports topics can help you do just that.