How to Get to Know Someone

If you are on a college campus, the usual way to learn a lot about someone quickly is to ask, "Where are you from, and what's your major?" Outside of an academic setting, those questions don't quite make sense. It's tough enough making new friends as an adult, much less getting to know a potential romantic partner. In business relations, too, it's essential to learn all you can about the people you deal with. If you ask the right questions, you can spark a conversation that really gets to the heart of what the other person is all about.

Many of these questions are deceptively revelatory, such as “who or where would you haunt if you were a ghost?” It may seem like harmless fun, but this question might reveal if your conversation partner has a sentimental or a vengeful streak, for example. The best part is that asking just one of these questions can open and carry an interesting conversation that will leave you far better acquainted with a new contact than everyday small talk.

One question might work, but in this list at Gentlemen's Gazette, there are 53 to select from, so you can pick and choose what might work in a given situation.