The Small Talk Before the Ask

Remember when people you haven’t spoken to in a long time suddenly call to check on you? You feel confused, delighted, even guilty that you misunderstood them, so you engage with them with your heart open. Then, subtly, they slide in the real reason they called. You realise the whole charade was for that one purpose, and you hate yourself for falling into the trap. I have a disgust for people who use such tactics. They think they are being strategic, but everyone can see through them. They are fooling no one. How arrogant do you have to be to believe people won’t notice what you just attempted to do? How stupid do you think everyone is? I won’t say I have never been duped by such people, but with me, you get one chance. You can fool me—I am not God—but only once. The next time, I will see all the signs I ignored because I was being emotional. And I am one smart motherfucker when I am not being emotional. If you haven’t spoken to someone in a while but now have to, the best approach is…