Go somewhere private.
FaceTiming is much easier when you’re alone. If you live with other people, head to your room and shut the door. Or, you could go outside for a change of pace. Wherever you are, make sure the person you’re FaceTiming can see and hear you clearly. It can be kind of awkward if your parents or roommates are watching you video chat with someone.
Clean up your surroundings.
Make sure your area looks neat and tidy. You don’t have to spend a ton of time cleaning, but try to pick up any trash and straighten up the furniture you’re sitting on. The better your background looks, the less distracting it will be for the person you’re on a call with. Solid-colored backgrounds look better on camera than busy prints.
Think of a few things to say ahead of time.
Before you call, have a few fun topics in mind. You could have a funny story, ask about something in their life, or just update them on how things are going with you. Try not to FaceTime someone until you’ve come up with a couple of things to say first. You could talk about the shows you’ve been watching, your pets, how school is going, or how excited you are for an upcoming event.
Hold the phone at eye level.
Don’t give them an awkward view of the ceiling. Instead, hold your phone up and make sure your face is front and center. People tend to feel a little weird if the camera is pointed at the sky (or worse—up your nose). If your arm starts to get tired, place your phone on a coffee table or a shelf. Just make sure your microphone isn’t covered up so the other person can still hear you.
Focus on the other person, not yourself.
It’s easy to watch yourself and critique how you look. Instead, try to really focus on what the other person is saying so you don’t feel so self-conscious. It will get you out of your head and allow you to engage them in a fun conversation. Try to glance up at the camera every now and then, too. It will make it feel like you’re making eye contact with the other person.
Skip the pleasantries.
You don’t need to say, “Hi, how are you?” It can lead to some awkward pauses as you try to get the convo going. Instead, after you both say hello, jump right into a fun conversation topic to get the banter started. For instance, when you first pick up the FaceTime call, you might say, “Hey! I heard you were going to be valedictorian this year?” or, “Hey! I have the craziest thing to tell you.”
Ask a few icebreakers.
They can lift the mood and get the conversation started. If you two don’t know each other super well (or if you’re on a first date), try preparing a few silly icebreakers ahead of time. If the conversation lulls or there’s a pause, pull one out and ask. For instance: “Be honest—are you wearing sweatpants right now?” “Would you rather fight 10 duck-sized horses or 1 horse-sized duck?”
Spur conversation with questions.
Open-ended questions will allow the other person to talk. If you can’t quite think of anything else to say, ask your conversation partner a question. Just make sure they can’t answer it with a yes or a no. Try something like: “How’s school been going for you?” “What have you been watching lately?” “What are your plans for the summer?”
Tell a fun story.
Engage your FaceTime partner with a silly story. It could be about something that just happened, something you remember from the past, or even something a friend told you. Chances are, the person you’re talking to will follow up with a fun story of their own. For instance, you might say, “The funniest thing happened to me the other day—I was walking while looking down at my phone and I ran straight into a pole! There were tons of people on the sidewalk, I’m sure people were laughing at me. It was hilarious.”
Show off an object you want to talk about.
It could be a book, a souvenir, or a trophy. Video chatting is a chance to let the other person in on your surroundings. If you see something cool that you could tell a story or share about, grab it and show it off. You could even ask the other person about an object in their room once you’re done. For instance, you might grab a soccer trophy that’s on your desk and tell the tale of when you won the championship in 8th grade.
Do something else while you chat.
It will make the conversation a little less intense. While you two talk, take your phone into the kitchen and make yourself a cup of tea. Or, head into your backyard and pick some flowers. As long as you’re not too distracted, you can keep a conversation going without just staring at each other the entire time. Just don’t do anything bathroom-related (gross!) or chores (boring!). The activity should be something you can do in the background while still chatting.
End the conversation by saying you have stuff to do.
It’s better to wrap up a FaceTime conversation quickly. If the silences are getting a little long or you run out of things to say, tell them you had a nice time but you have to go now. Ask them if they want to FaceTime again later to let them know you enjoyed talking to them. You could say something like, “Well, it’s getting a little late. I should probably go make dinner. I had such a fun time talking to you!”
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