My wife and I had a nice dinner with a couple tonight. On the drive home, I realized that I have no idea what the lady I just ate with does for a living. I'm almost positive neither of them know what I do for a living. We spent an entire evening together talking and laughing with the conversation remaining lively and constant, and never once did we talk about work.
Most people don't hold work in jovial fondness, and it's expressed in the way they talk about it. They complain, grumble, sneer. As my mother so nicely put it, "Work is a four-letter word."
I think the most fascinating people I know are capable of carrying on a conversation about a myriad of topics never having to resort to the "work fallback." This is especially true about work colleagues. Of course we share common ground about work, but if our association is going to progress to friendship, then we'll have to be able to talk about more than work.
My evening tonight is proof at how easy this is to accomplish.
