19 questions that will immediately improve your conversations with friends.

This article was originally published in the Substack Uncynical. It has been republished here with permission.

I think it's important when you're having a dinner party to strive to have "one conversation" at least during the dinner itself. Why get all these beautiful minds together and not focus them like laser beams on a singular point?

Besides, it's just more fun when everyone is talking and having a lively chat about the same thing. Talking over each other, getting excited, disagreeing, learning, what have you.

Watch: Do you have a satellite friend? They discuss on Mamamia Out Loud. Post continues below.

The easiest kind of conversation to have is "remember when." You regale each other with old stories, usually ones half the people have already heard. It's fun, for sure, but is it getting you anywhere?

Where exactly are you trying to get? Closer. The more you get to know your friends the better life is. They become extensions of you. You can climb into their skin and therefore your life becomes bigger.

They have experiences and ideas and feelings you have never felt and they can help you to understand them and feel them too. That's cool and interesting.

Anyway, I'm going to stop waxing away here and get to it. Here is a list of questions to ask the table at dinner parties that spark good conversation and help you know everyone better.

What's a mystery in your life you want the answer to?

It has to be a mystery that is solvable. So it can't be like, "How would my life have been different if I took a gap year?" It has to be something that someone somewhere knows the answer to, like "Why did _____ stop talking to me?"

If you could have one full-time staff member, what would they do?

Driver, chef, EA, masseuse etc. You only get one. They are on call 24/7.

If you could retire now and maintain your current lifestyle without work but no further, would you?

So, basically, you're retired and you receive a pay cheque that is exact same as you are currently making for the rest of your life. There is no way for you to make more money than you currently make.

What are your arbitrary rules you have for yourself?

Things like:

• I won't have my phone in bed.

• I won't initiate plans with someone more than twice if they don't initiate with me.

• I will never ask someone what they do for work.

• I have to walk 10k steps a day.

Some other options could include:

What is something you love that you wouldn't recommend to others?

What's a lesson you need to keep relearning?

What's a piece of advice you give to others but struggle to abide by?

What's a small moment in your life that seemed insignificant at the time, but you think back on a lot?

What's a piece of common advice that you disagree with?

What's something that's farfetched now that you think will be common sense/knowledge in 25 years?

What thing are we doing today will be the most laughed at in ten years?

Do you think the goal of travel is to see as many different places as possible or do you prefer to find a place you love and keep going back?

If you could be an expert in one subject overnight, what would it be and why?

How would you live your life differently if everyone had the same amount of money and there was no way to be poorer and richer than anyone else?

What thing/trend/practice from the past should we bring back?

If you could pick one brand and all your stuff had to be from there, what would you pick?

What's something you were on the wrong side of history on?

What stereotypes do you think are true?

What opinions do you have that seem most out of line with your general political affiliations?

Listen: Advice on how to make friends as a grown-up, according to the hosts of But Are You Happy? podcast. Post continues below.

Enjoy trying these out! Or don't, whatever, I'm not the question police. I don't care what you do.

To find more from Dylan, you can subscribe to his Substack, Uncynical, here.

Feature image: Substack/ Uncynical.