Communication in the United States of America is the least of your problems. So long as you are an English-speaker, you will be able to get around just fine and get yourself to breeze through smoothly in your first days inside this country. The USA has the most mixture of race, ethnic origins, and culture, with over 44.7 million of the population in the country being immigrants, but we are safe to say that almost everyone in here would be able to speak to you in English.

Language Skills
Since you would probably be able to speak English, you might as well take your communication skills to the next level by improving to a C2 level of proficiency. English is spoken by almost everyone in the country and it can be life-saving for you to be able to communicate well as an expat. You can access English lessons for free in Talk English or in English Speak. However, to get a thorough practice of a C2 proficiency level in English, you may want to visit Cambridge English or Exam English and get hold of sample examinations.

You may already be familiar with the common informal greetings in the USA which may be a short ‘hey,’ ’hi,’ or ‘hello.’ You may also want to try extending your greetings a little bit by asking ‘how are you?’ The said greeting is not an actual question and may just be answered with ‘I’m doing great, how about you?’ This is a simple way to establish a connection and to break the ice with a local. If you would like to hear how you can pronounce greetings appropriately in America, check out the video in this link.

Body Language
Americans are welcoming and friendly people, you’ll definitely receive a lot of smiles from strangers as you stroll. It is part of the American culture to be friendly and approachable, along with this is making conversations with direct eye contact to let your counterpart know that you are engaged well in the discussion. Additionally, whenever you are in the middle of a discussion and someone is talking, you are expected to at least show body language that may either mean agreement or disagreement, such as light nods.

In general, Americans are not tactile with people that are not within the level of close relationships. With friends, they may share hugs, kisses, and cling onto someone’s arm. However, if you are a stranger to an American, try to keep your distance and just greet with a handshake. The locals also do not want conversations that are discussed in close proximity with a counterpart they just met. Be mindful of a person’s personal space and avoid randomly touching someone for this can easily be taken as ‘sexual harassment.’ When in a conversation, speaking too close to a person might cause a local to step back because they often refer to it as feeling you’re ‘in their face’ already.

When passing along a street and someone smiles at you, it is expected that you respond nicely with a smile too. This is a gesture of goodwill, because whenever a smile is not reciprocated, Americans may feel that you are unfriendly and slightly rude.

Topics for Discussion
If there’s something you shouldn’t miss discussing with your American counterpart, it should be about sports and food. American love their sport so much that you can spend a day just talking about the famous ones in the country. Research about the NBA and their other popular sports such as baseball and American football. A conversation about sports could get you through a day of conversation with almost everyone in the US.

Another topic you’d like to talk about is food. The USA is a home to a variety of cultures and in terms of food, it already has a mix of almost every cuisine you’ve ever known. Try asking your counterpart about restaurants within the city or go-to places to eat. You may also want to try sharing a food experience of your own, Americans enjoy listening to new stories too! They will appreciate it if you also share details about places you’ve gone to in America, or anything related to travel. Americans are heavy travelers, and a topic about your home country can perfectly fit a conversation to introduce them to a new country.

Although Americans can be friendly, there are topics that may bring out negative responses from the locals. Take note that some Americans are extremists in certain topics such as issues on political conflicts and parties, prevalent racism in the country, sex, gender preferences, and rising numbers of oppression and violence. Try to avoid topics where dissenting opinions are usually thrown out. Also avoid conversations about personal finances, such as how much a person makes or anything that may be cash-related. Topics on money are seen as very personal and should not be discussed.

When engaging in a conversation with a local, note that the majority of Americans are oblivious of the environment other than inside their country. Don’t appear surprised when an American is not aware of the recent international news or any significant event happening outside their home country because most of them give more interest on local happenings.