Today we have another conversation starter episode: What life experience defines and makes up who you are today?

We absolutely love conversation starters that cause you to look within and explore your inner thoughts, concerns and life passion. A lot of times it's so easy to play it safe and talk about topics that have nothing to do with us or who we are, whether that's the news, the latest celebrity gossip or the weather. But those typically don't foster the type of connection that will lead to meaningful relationships.

Today's question definitely forces you to go beyond surface small talk. It calls you to think about a moment that changed your life in a significant way, whether it was a entering a new stage in your life, a childhood experience, or an unexpected circumstance that forced you to look at yourself differently. 

And we invited our internet friend, Tiera Haynes to join the conversation. Tierra is a speaker, content creator, momcoach, and most recently an author.  She uses her platform to empower moms to find their inner strengths and passions outside of motherhood. We wanted to learn more about her, specifically how she has so much energy to do all that she does with fun, passion and purpose. Her page is so LIVE! We know you'll enjoy her energy just as much as we do!

Our conversation starters are designed to create more interesting and memorable social interactions. The great thing about our conversation starters is that they start off with one basic question, but will prompt a back-and-forth exchange of ideas and lead to other interesting topics. Use them and watch your relationships grow stronger as you share your answers and listen to others.

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No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Have you met someone and instantly felt a connection, like you just want to talk to them forever?!

Our conversation starter today is: What are you most worried about in our country moving forward and what are you most optimistic about?

This conversation starter led to so many amazing topics such as struggling with raising our children in a safe environment where they can actually live and thrive yet keep them protected, the struggle with social media and the never ending battle with keeping a limit on screen time. (And yes - This turned into talking about setting boundaries for ourselves as adults!) That's important too! We discussed how COVID has rocked our world and going back to what will be our "new" normal. And then the optimism of having females in leadership roles, Nigerians in leadership roles, and how empowering it is for women, and especially, women of color to see.

As always, we touched on everything and walked away feeling inspired and oh so good!

Our conversation starters are designed to create more interesting and memorable social interactions.  The great thing about our conversation starters is that they start off with one basic question, but will prompt a back-and-forth exchange of ideas and lead to other interesting topics. Use them and watch your relationships grow stronger as you share your answers and listen to others.

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No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Privilege.... What are the first thoughts that come to mind when you think of this word? Anger? Shame?

On today's episode we explore this topic with our fellow introvert friend Delores Sarfo-Darko. Delores Sarfo-Darko is a driven dreamer, educator, storyteller, and student advocate. She has a passion to help students and young adults learn to embrace their journey. Her platform, Flourish with Delores, strives to help you fulfill your dreams as you engage in her curated workshops and visual resources.   We so admire how Delores uses her platform to amplify the voices of black women and as a source of inspiration.

If you struggle with discussing privilege or identifying your own privilege, make sure to check out this conversation, which led to a discussion on so many other topics (as always!)

Our conversation starters are designed to create more interesting and memorable social interactions.  The great thing about our conversation starters is that they start off with one basic question, but will prompt a back-and-forth exchange of ideas and lead to other interesting topics. Use them and watch your relationships grow stronger as you share your answers and listen to others.

Links and Resources Mentioned in this Episode:

Get Social with Us:

No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Are you a super ambitious introvert, who wants to be the best at everything you do? Well, so is Ebony, and when she heard Katie Rasoul's TEDx Talk, she thought "That sounds like me!" So we wanted to share with you this TEDx Talk, because we thought that there is probably some listeners that can relate to this as well.

Katie Rasoul is a fellow introvert and author of the book Hidden Brilliance. Katie is a high-achieving introvert. Someone who feels the intense tug between the drive to achieve more and the need for solitude, between going out to conquer the world fighting with the desire to simply be alone.

Ebony had a similar journey to Katie's and learned that her value is not based on accolades or accomplishments That her value also comes from experiences and our journey. And that journey includes the wins and the losses. There is value from failing and lessons that can be learned and shared from our mistakes in life.

So, if you consider yourself a high achieving introvert, remember to not base your value on what you can and cannot achieve. But instead create your own definition of success, and enjoy your journey along the way.

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No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Why is it important to shoot your shot or take initiative? Well for one, taking a chance at something can turn out to be life changing, and that life change won’t happen without your actions and initiative!

Today, Ebony and Sherry are talking about their 3 experiences when they decided to shoot their shot. They are sharing about taking chances, and initiatives they took to reach their goals and the things they wanted to accomplish in life. As introverts it can be easy to stay in our comfort zone, and not push ourselves to try new things, or surround ourselves with new people. But getting out of our comfort zones and pushing ourselves is what allows us to grow and evolve. If you have a goal to improve your situation there is no getting around taking chances! Without action there will be zero results!  

We hope you enjoy this discussion with Ebony and Sherry, and leave inspired and encouraged to go after your goals and dreams and turn them into a reality!

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No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

We all know that the world has tons of misconceptions and assumptions about introverts: who we are, who we're not and why we can or can't be fixed. But what if the misconceptions come from your own sisters?! We expect that the very people we grew up with and lived with will see us the same way we see ourselves. But apparently, that's NOT always the case.

In this episode, Ebony invites her 3 sisters,  Abies Senior, Ivie Omede and Orobosa Omede to the podcast and they duke it out. The ladies challenge each other's thoughts and assumptions about introverts and extroverts, as well as their perceptions of each other. The conversation gets VERY interesting. For one thing, not everyone believed Ebony was an introvert *sips tea*.

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No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Would you like to deepen your connection to your spouse, or someone you’re in a relationship with, but not sure how?

Today, Ebony will be exploring different ways that couples, specifically married couples, can deepen their connection, by understanding the different types of intimacy. In relationships and marriage, fulfilling each area of intimacy will help strengthen your bond. It is a natural part of developing the relationship and growing closer. It’s not just physical! Ebony will be going over multiple ways you can build a deeper connection with the person you love.

Ebony and her husband have been married for almost 10 years, so she is sharing with us her perspective on developing intimacy in her marriage. Ebony explores:

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Subscribe & Review

Are you subscribed to our podcast? If you're not, we want to encourage you to do that today. We've been adding a lot of bonus tips and conversation starters to each episode, and if you're not subscribed, you may miss out on the goodness. Click here to subscribe in Apple. Now if you're feeling extra generous, we'd love if you left us a review on Apple as well.  Those reviews help other people find the podcast.  Just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and let us know what you love about the episode. Thank you!

No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun

Sherry is really calling us out in this episode! Are you an introvert who finds herself avoiding events, conversations, and networking?  

That may be impacting us in more ways than we think! If we want to up level our lives - we need people! As introverts we want meaningful, strong, and real relationships. So instead of running away from every event out of fear of small talk, let's change those conversations!  

We can change those conversations by using 3 relationship-building pillars that Sherry will be sharing with us today. These 3 pillars are going to help you feel more confident, authentic, and open. So many of us don't find this easy to do, but with a roadmap to help us navigate through these events successfully, your life will become more fulfilled, and in turn positively impact others as well.

Sherry will be sharing with you: 

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Subscribe & Review

Are you subscribed to our podcast? If you're not, we want to encourage you to do that today. We've been adding a lot of bonus tips and conversation starters to each episode, and if you're not subscribed, you may miss out on the goodness. Click here to subscribe in Apple. Now if you're feeling extra generous, we'd love if you left us a review on Apple as well.  Those reviews help other people find the podcast.  Just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and let us know what you love about the episode. Thank you!

No Small Talk is hosted by Ebony Anuforo and Shereefat Balogun; produced by Wale "Breathe Easy" Balogun