AEE 299: 4 Topics that You Should NEVER Discuss in a First English Conversation

Come back to our blog and leave a comment. Did you bring up one of
these topics on a first date? What happened? Tell us your story:
http://www.allearsenglish.com/299 Get our free IELTS Chat Sheet at
http://www.allearsenglish.com/evaluation   Jessica is the
author of Hopeful Disasters where she explores dating in New York
City. She is also an ESL teacher in New York City. Check out her
blog here!   When you meet someone for the first time in
English, whether it’s a date or just a first-time meeting with a
friend or colleague, there are certain topics that you should NEVER
discuss. Today you’ll find out what they are with our favorite AEE
dating consultant, Jessica Coyle. A few weeks ago we talked about
what four things you SHOULD talk about on a first date in English
or at a first meeting but today we’ll show you what you should
avoid.   4 Topics to AVOID on a first date or first meeting in
English: Politics: You can casually mention your political
interests but don’t get drawn into a political debate or
discussion. Jessica calls this “quicksand” because you can start to
sink and you’ll get stuck and you won’t be able to get out of it.
It’s better to bring up this topic once you already know someone
well and after you know their triggers well. Age: You should
definitely avoid asking the person their exact age. Also, this
means that you should not ask people about their timeline in terms
of when they want to get married or have kids. It’s too direct and
too intense for a first date or first conversation. You might
terrify the person if start asking these questions too early.
Religion: You probably have a rough idea of your date’s religion
and it will be important later but it’s too personal to get into
during a first date. It’s ok to share your own religion if you want
to but don’t ask the person directly what their religion is.
 Education: This is tricky. Jessica says that the goal in
not asking this question is to avoid coming off as arrogant or
judgmental. If you ask the person where they went to school or how
many degrees they have, it will be clear that you are fishing for
information regarding their intelligence or social status. You
might make the other person feel bad if you ask this question. Try
to figure out if there is an intellectual connection instead. Learn
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