Lesson 9 of 12 · Leading the conversation

Steering the conversation

You can change the subject without anyone noticing. You just need a bridge.

About 20 minutes
Chapter 9 of the book
Saves on this device

Activity 1 of 5 · Sort

Link, change or return?

Transition phrases do three jobs. Sort them.

Transition sorter

Does this phrase link to what was just said, change gently, or bring back an earlier topic?

✓ Done

A learner's story

Marta and the football

Marta · marketing assistant from Gdańsk · upper intermediate

Every Sunday lunch, Marta's father-in-law talked about football. She didn't mind, but after an hour she wanted to talk about something else. She tried “Anyway, I went to an exhibition…” and everyone looked at her as if she'd interrupted.

Her sister-in-law showed her a trick. When he mentioned an away match in Spain, she said: “Spain? That reminds me, we're thinking of going to Seville in the spring. Have you been?” Ten minutes later they were all planning holidays.

She hadn't changed the subject. She'd built a bridge.

Activity 2 of 5 · Build

Build a bridge

Choose a bridge, then fill in what they're talking about, your link, and a question that takes everyone to the new topic.

Bridge builder

Try each bridge type with the same details.

✓ Done

Say it

Phrase box

Useful phrases from this chapter. Anything that isn't British English is labelled.

Link

That reminds me…
Speaking of …
That's a bit like…

Change gently

By the way…
On a different note…
Can I ask you something completely different?

Bring it back

Anyway, as I was saying…
Going back to what you said about…
Sorry, where was I?

Activity 3 of 5 · Play

Steer the conversation

Your colleague is complaining about work. Your goal: get to weekend plans in three moves, without being rude.

Steering game

Each move should link to what they just said.

✓ Done

Activity 4 of 5 · Choose

Smooth or abrupt?

Choose the smoothest way to move the conversation on.

Turn

✓ Done

The research

Across ten languages, researchers led by Tanya Stivers (2009) found that the typical gap between one person finishing and the next starting is only about 200 milliseconds. That's why bridge phrases like “That reminds me…” help: they buy you thinking time while the conversation keeps moving.

Activity 5 of 5 · Say it

Say it aloud

Practise your bridge so it sounds natural, not planned.

Your bridge

Your line comes from the bridge builder.

✓ Done

Before you move on

Three questions

Which topic do you often get stuck in?

What would you like to talk about more?

Write a bridge from one to the other.

5 activities to go

Finish all five activities to complete Lesson 9. Your progress saves on this device, and finished lessons are marked on the lessons page.

What to remember

Five things to keep

Find a word in what they said and link from it.
“That reminds me…” is the easiest bridge.
“By the way…” is for a gentle change.
“Going back to…” brings a lost topic back.
End your bridge with a question, so they follow you.

Your answers and progress stay on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.