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"Yes/no" questions are the enemy of good talk. By their nature they produce answers of only one or two words:
"Isn’t this hot weather awful?"
"Do you think we’ll have another recession?"
"Think the Redskins will have another bad year?"
These are all legitimate subjects for good conversations, but if you ask about them in simple yes-or-no terms, that’s what you get—yes or no answers. End of topic. And maybe end of conversation.
But, if you couch them in more substantive terms that will generate an expanded answer, the conversation keeps on flowing. The difference:
"All the hot summers we’ve been getting make me think there might be something to this business about global warming. What do you think?"
"The way the stock market has fluctuated so wildly this year, you have to wonder whether our economy is as stable as we like to think. What do you suppose the chances are that we might be headed for another recession?"
"I’ve been a Redskins fan ever since I moved to Washington, but I have to admit they have a rebuilding job to do, and the Cowboys are always a threat. What do you think the ’Skins chances are this year?"
The person you’re talking to can’t get off with only one or two words. The three questions in the second group are on the same subjects as those in the first group, but in each case the question asked the first way might produce only a yes or no. The second way will generate a lengthier answer and, automatically, a better conversation.