Presuming someone is more interested in your life and wellbeing than they actually are is really easy to do. It happened to me the other day, and not for the first time either, when I gave an answer to a question that someone never asked. I got a “Hi Glenn” from someone at work, and without thinking quickly fired back with a, “Yeah, not too bad.”  A few seconds later I realised my conversation blunder and felt a bit silly, but what could I do? I’ve committed myself to a deeper level of conversation than the other person ever intended. “What about yourself?” I asked, hoping to confuse the person into thinking that maybe they did in fact ask me how I was going. They answer of course and the small talk begins, only to be eventually broken when another co-worker arrives and says “Hi” – or was it “How you going?”

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