--- title: "Tuesday Buzz: Better Ways to Break the Ice" id: "41448" type: "post" slug: "tuesday-buzz-better-ways-to-break-the-ice" published_at: "2018-02-06T23:24:44+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T16:06:53+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/02/06/tuesday-buzz-better-ways-to-break-the-ice/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/02/06/tuesday-buzz-better-ways-to-break-the-ice.md" excerpt: "Your meeting icebreakers may not be doing enough to close the distance between attendees. Also: Before you worry about using advanced technology at your next meeting, Adrian Segar says to make sure you’re prioritizing face-to-face interactions." taxonomy_category: - "Meetings / Events" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "icebreakers" - "Meetings" - "Networking" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Director" - "Manager" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Tuesday Buzz: Better Ways to Break the Ice Icebreakers perform an important role at meetings, but all too often, career-related questions like “What do you do?” aren’t sufficient to establish personal connections. A recent [Padraicino blog post (opens in a new tab)](http://padraicino.com/tips-better-networking/) suggests getting a little more personal with icebreaker questions. “When I discover that the other person supports the same football team as I do, or likes the same kind of music, or went to the same high school, or grew up in the same neighborhood, then we share a tie or connection beyond the work context and our rapport is much more likely to deepen and flourish,” writes Pádraic Gilligan. Gilligan points to a *[Harvard Business Review (opens in a new tab)](https://hbr.org/2018/01/8-questions-to-ask-someone-other-than-what-do-you-do)*[article (opens in a new tab)](https://hbr.org/2018/01/8-questions-to-ask-someone-other-than-what-do-you-do) that suggests using questions such as “What’s the best thing that happened to you this year?” or “What excites you right now?” *Forbes* also [shares a long list of intro questions (opens in a new tab)](https://www.forbes.com/sites/darrahbrustein/2017/11/19/the-55-best-questions-to-ask-to-break-the-ice-and-really-get-to-know-someone/#5f0f14273ca1) that help people get to know each other and get a conversation buzzing. Consider asking, “Who, or what, was your biggest teacher?” or “Knowing what you know now, what advice would you give your 18-year-old self?” ### Humans Over Tech [https://twitter.com/meetingsnet/status/960665128055255040 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/meetingsnet/status/960665128055255040) **Why is it so important** to help your conference attendees make personal connections? Meeting designer and facilitator Adrian Segar [contends that human connections (opens in a new tab)](https://www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/learning/2018/02/whats-better-than-people-augmented-by-technology-at-meetings/) —not fancy technology—are what maximize learning. “At face-to-face meetings, facilitating relevant connections and learning around participants’ shared just-in-time wants and needs is more effective than augmenting an individual’s learning via technology,” he writes. ### Other Links of Note **In the wake of Facebook’s shift**away from prioritizing publishers, some social media managers are moving from Pages to Groups. *Kivi’s Nonprofit Communications Blog* shares a [step-by-step guide for creating a new Group (opens in a new tab)](https://www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2018/02/05/create-facebook-group-facebook-page/) . **Are you keeping up with your donor retention rate?** The Network for Good blog explains why your retention rate [should be a top focus in 2018 (opens in a new tab)](https://www.networkforgood.com/nonprofitblog/donor-retention-focus-2018/) . **Valentine’s Day is right around the corner.** Here are some ways to send donors a little love, [from the Fired Up Fundraising blog (opens in a new tab)](https://www.gailperry.com/valentines-for-donors/) . (polymerase/iStock/Getty Images Plus) [Raegan Johnson](https://associationsnow.com/author/raegan-johnson/) Raegan Johnson is a contributor to Associations Now. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/raegan-johnson/) Tags: [#icebreakers](https://associationsnow.com/tag/icebreakers/) [#Meetings](https://associationsnow.com/tag/meetings/) [#Networking](https://associationsnow.com/tag/networking/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoAshley Cobb Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 12, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/12/ashley-cobb-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoJenny Teeson, CHSE Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 12, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/12/jenny-teeson-chse-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoJanel Johnson Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 11, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/11/janel-johnson-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoAshley Walton Shares Her Experience at the 2025 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 11, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/08/11/ashley-walton-shares-her-experience-at-the-2025-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2018%2F02%2F06%2Ftuesday-buzz-better-ways-to-break-the-ice%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !