Why it’s important to know how to end a conversation properly

Communication is like food: some you look forward to and then enjoy the exquisite taste, some you grab on the run, while doing something else, and some food you want to spit out.

If one eats unpalatable food every day, consumes large portions quickly, one may notice a deterioration of well-being. The same happens with the state of mind if a person does not watch his or her surroundings.

What does the internet teach you?

A lot of articles and coaching teach you how to build a dialog correctly, how to maintain a conversation even on a topic you don’t understand, and how to ask the right questions. The website wedaf.com, where you can find an interlocutor to suit any taste, will help you practice your communication skills.

However, little information is online about ending a conversation, especially if it’s already in drag.

How do you end a conversation?

When the communication has exhausted itself, all common and interesting topics have been agreed upon, it is not necessary to keep asking questions again and again to continue. Sometimes it is worth stopping and keeping the taste of a pleasant dish in your mouth, rather than eating it. Focus on the conversation held, you can summarize, note your own conclusions.

Every day a person has dialogs with different people. Sometimes it is a pleasant conversation with close friends, which you don’t want to end, but there is another situation.

Boring conversation with coworkers, forced conversations with relatives, unnecessary interactions with random encounters for which there is no time or desire. What to say when it is necessary to end a dialog? How to do it correctly without offending the opponent? We have selected several effective techniques.

Useful tips for communication

1. Use gestures. To end the dialog on a polite note, you can use non-verbal signals. For example, lightly pat the interlocutor on the shoulder, touch his hand, as if summarizing everything that has been said. Act politely and gently, but persistently. Remember your personal goal of ending the conversation.
2. Say “I don’t know.” When the other person is trying to draw you into a serious or emotional discussion, you can simply admit that you don’t know about the topic. When the other person sees that you don’t understand and are not interested, they are more likely to switch to a more engaged listener. The relationship between the two of you will not suffer in the process. For example, you could say, “I’m sorry, I’m not interested in this topic at all,” “I’m afraid I don’t know much about it,” or “Unfortunately, I’ve never touched it.
3. Talk about your current case. If the conversation is weighing you down, you can mentally allocate a few minutes to it, and then say that you have work or a scheduled meeting or other commitment. You don’t have to come up with important things to do, you can just remember your schedule and refer to the upcoming task. For example, “I’m sorry, I have a meeting starting in five minutes,” “I’m sorry, but right now I’m in a hurry to attend to an important matter,” “Unfortunately, I can’t give you my attention right now because I have to work.
4. Give a compliment. At the end of the conversation, you can summarize a little and praise your opponent for the dialog. This will help to end the communication politely, you will show your understanding and position the interlocutor to yourself. For example, you can say “Thank you for the conversation, I will think about this issue”, “You are an excellent interlocutor, you have a good understanding of the topic”, “It was a pleasure to discuss the issues identified with you”.
5. Interrupt yourself. This is a tricky technique, when you can not rudely cut into the interlocutor’s speech, but interrupt your answer. It is easier to perceive such liberty when it is directed not at the other. For example, during your statement, you can catch up and “accidentally” remember about an important call or an urgent meeting. For example, you could say “Oh, it’s embarrassing, but I remembered about an urgent call”, “Sorry, I completely forgot about a meeting with a client”, “Oh, I got distracted, I have an urgent order at work”.
6. Ask what else you can do to help. A little summarizing and saying that you can be helpful in the future will help to bring the conversation to a logical conclusion. This brings the current conversation to an end, but suggests a follow-up meeting where additional topics can be discussed. For example, you could use the phrases “We’ve talked about this issue, we can talk about the rest next time”, “So, if you need anything else, you can call”, “Thank you for contacting us, if you have any further questions, you can contact our support team”.
7. Don’t be afraid of hackneyed phrases. If you need to leave urgently or just don’t want to be involved in the conversation, you can use the usual words about urgent matters. These are fairly common expressions, but a politely spoken suggestion that you need to go will help you end the conversation in a positive way. For example, the common phrases “Excuse me, please, I have an urgent matter”, “Excuse me, but I have an important meeting waiting for me”, “Unfortunately, our time for communication is up”.

And if that’s not enough?

You can use one of the suggested ways, or you can combine them. For example, a pat on the shoulder, a compliment and a reminder that you have an urgent matter to attend to will look good together. Or interrupting yourself and a compliment will look good together. You can also use together an admission of your lack of competence in a matter and a suggestion to discuss it next time.

Be polite

Remember that politeness is very important in any reception. If your tone is rude, even the most pleasant phrase will be read negatively. Do not be afraid to use words of gratitude, they are very favorable to the interlocutor.