|
What’s new: That’s the question yours truly asks as an icebreaker when a 1-1 is not going anywhere.
Why it matters: A bailout line like that immediately changes the tenor of the meeting.
What ends up happening: At worst, you get a smile. Ok, a half-smile. At best, you have a transformative conversation.
Here’s the question:
“What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you since ___”
You can fill in the blank with whatever you think is appropriate. When I used it, I hadn’t seen the person in more than 20 years. So, it was quite natural to ask:
“What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you since the last time we saw each other?”
If it’s somebody you’ve seen fairly recently, you can alter it to:
“What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you since you’ve been in business?”
Or “what’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you in 2026?”
Why I used it: Confession time. The 1-1 had stalled. Both of us had done our mechanical “this is what I do” rap. And we’d only been online for 15 minutes or so.
So, I made the tactical call that business was not going to be passed, referrals not made. A course correction was in order. So, I asked the question.
What happened after that: Magic. He smiled instantly. Then began sharing his story, which honestly was not that weird at all. It includes his joining a men’s group. That’s something I’ve done years ago as well.
And that’s when things clicked.
So, while I had been watching the clock, the next time I checked the time an hour had gone by. And a bond had been created.
Try it out: The beauty of the line is you don’t have to wait for the 1-1 to stall before asking. You can even start off with it as your opening question.
| 
