It's time to end the dreaded "fun fact"

weekly icebreaker #6

I promise you, no one wants to share a “fun fact.”

First of all, what does “fun” mean? It’s so subjective. How “fun” should you go? Especially if you’re at a new job or with a new group of people, you might not know how to calibrate. Plus, the ask for something “fun” is so unspecific that it’s hard to come up with something actually interesting.

And because we’ve all been asked for a “fun fact” so many times, most people have a canned, curated response that’s exactly that — canned and curated, and therefor not really fun at all.

So, here are two get-to-know-you, low-stakes icebreakers to try instead of the dreaded fun fact:

For work:
What topic could you give a 10 minute presentation on, with no prep time?

Outside of work:
What weird or unusual genre of YouTube or TikTok videos are you obsessed with?

Together, we can come together and do away with the “fun fact.” I believe in us.

Until next time!

P.S. - I just launched a training for people who want to grow their meeting facilitation skills. The first half-day workshop is scheduled for December 1 and there are a few spots open! If you’ve got professional development money to spend this year, this is a great opportunity to develop some useful skills! Interested? Register here or shoot me note.