Imagine you're stuck in a lift with a total stranger for ten minutes. What would you talk about?

A natural way to answer

I think I'd start with something easy, like which floor they're on or how their day's going. The goal would be to keep things light and stop it from feeling awkward.

Key phrases to use

• crack a joke — tell a joke, usually casually to lighten the mood“He cracked a joke and everyone relaxed.”
• keep things light — keep a conversation cheerful and not too serious“Let's keep things light tonight.”
• get the conversation flowing — help a conversation move along easily and naturally“A few questions got the conversation flowing.”