We all encounter few of those Sir Talk-a-Lots, or Ma’am Talk-a-lots, who just don’t know when to shut up. And, it’s impossible to handle them, or get away from them. This is especially tough when it’s your long time friend, family member, or friend/sibling of someone close to you. But, the only way to handle them is through communication. Once again, the question arises, how do you communicate with someone who doesn’t even seem to need to breathe while talking? Here are few things that might help you in handling your talkative friend.
1. Choose an appropriate venue
Whenever you meet someone who cannot keep a hold of their tongue, you just wish you hadn’t met them. If you have to meet a friend who is talkative, choose the locations wisely. Suggest meeting in places where it will be hard for your friend to continue blabbering. Places like concerts, libraries, loud parties among various others could be the best option for you to save yourself from your talkative friend.
2. Use their moment of pause to your advantage
If you happen to encounter a stranger who just won’t stop talking, you can simply leave by giving him a show of hands or saying that you simply don’t care. But, when it’s someone close to you, you have to be careful not to hurt their feelings, despite the torture. Find a tactful way to get out of the conversation. Wait for your friend to talk thoroughly about a certain topic, but if you are short on patience, like me, find that moment of pause, and let them know you are in a hurry.
3. Divert their attention
Another way to not seem rude, while effectively telling your friend to shut up is diverting their attention. Pretend to notice something in the distance, or cleverly check your phone. Remember, you are not waiting for something to come up naturally. Usually, lying is bad, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Find some clever excuses to back out of the conversation. Or, you can pre-plan the excuse with someone else, if you know you are going to be spending some with that talkative friend.
4. Choosing the topic to your interest
Try and make the conversation interesting. If you are forced to hang out with that person anyway and you know the talking is going to be endless. You be the one to choose the topic. Be very specific to choose something that actually interests you, who knows, their insight on the matter could actually prove helpful. Or, choose a topic that they have no idea of. This will definitely help you to cut the conversation short and bolt.
5. Let them know
You can only keep avoiding and making excuses for so long. Either completely stop hanging out with the person that irritates you to the core, or just accept them as a part of your life and confront them. Be honest to them about your problem. You might want to keep the cursing and frustration inside your head though. Let them know that only reason you are confronting them is because you value your relationship with them and would like to have a good time in the future.