Among all the men who have offered to meet me, I’ve met someone who talks almost exclusively about himself for the first time.

I’m Kazu, a male member who’s unusually late to the conversation. After reading the answer from Tsuzuki on the staff, I had an idea. Let’s try playing the role of a master flatterer by delivering well-timed reactions, nods, and questions. Right now, it’s free to play—and you even get your transportation costs covered.

I’m Flag Maker, a column writer. I think the next step is to “take an interest and dig deeper.” Every success story has a process that led to that success—whether it was inevitable or only made sense in hindsight. If you show interest in that process and ask questions, you might hear stories that are deeper and more fascinating than ever before. Why were they able to make that judgment at the time? What were they thinking? And, more importantly, what hardships had that man gone through on the way to becoming successful? They might even appreciate you asking. Just be prepared for the conversation to get pretty long. lol Come to think of it, I was having a drink with a company president the other day and kept asking him to tell me more about the hardships he’d faced. Partway through, he started crying as he talked, going, “Waaah… sob…” In the end, he absolutely loved me.

I’m Date◎Yume, a male member. > I’d like to know if there are any good ways to respond—through words or actions—to men who brag. It depends on what they’re bragging about and the subject they’re talking about, but listening while thinking, “What would I do in that situation?” might make it more enjoyable and even help you improve yourself.

I’m in Seattle. Ideally, the conversation would keep going if you shared some of your own stories too. Since you’re not saying much, you may end up talking about yourself—and probably bragging a little, even if you’re not very good at it. If you don’t want to talk about yourself, all you can really do is listen and nod along.

I’m a male member called Paper Airplane, and I’m perfectly fine going from morning until bedtime without saying a word. If there are three or more people, I barely speak and just listen—and before long, I start thinking about something else and hardly hear anything at all. So it’s pretty clear what kind of person I’m compatible with: - A woman who does most of the talking almost the entire time, or - Someone with whom casual conversation about whatever is happening in front of us naturally clicks. That makes it relatively easy to tell whether we’re compatible. When the former type of woman talks nonstop about recent events, I just keep listening. It’s incredibly easy and I don’t have to make any effort. It isn’t painful at all, and I don’t even remember what I was saying in response. She just keeps talking and talking. Since it’s just the two of us, I am listening, but sometimes a thought crosses my mind and I suddenly lose track of the conversation, thinking, “Huh? Did we just fall silent?” The fact that you can keep responding with that many acknowledgments is actually quite difficult, so I applaud you. As long as you can keep listening with at least a reasonably serious attitude, I think that’s more than enough. You don’t have to talk, and if the other person is able to enjoy themselves, that makes you feel good too. Since both sides benefit and can spend the time without feeling uncomfortable, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. > It’s not difficult for me at all. I think that’s the key point. If you can listen happily while your partner is enjoying himself, then that’s perfectly fine. The fact that you’re listening with genuine pleasure probably feels good to him as well. And I feel that this is what being compatible—and what really matters—is all about. By the way, both the older mentor I occasionally write about and the close male friend who’s the same age as me are very talkative. Actually, they practically talk nonstop. They only ask me about the important points, and I just answer those.

I’m Rin, a female member. What may sound like bragging to you could actually be a loving, insightful story from a man. If you don’t find it difficult, rather than trying to come up with flattering comments, how about looking him straight in the eye, listening attentively, reacting with genuine surprise, and asking, “I’m not quite sure I understand that part—could you explain it to me?” And when he’s talking about something you do understand, showing genuine respect for his knowledge—especially when he knows more than you—may help him feel that your conversations are enjoyable and meaningful. After all, he has far more life experience. If he’s a wonderful person and listening to him doesn’t make you uncomfortable, I think it’s enough to listen with a bright, engaged expression and let him know that you want to learn as much as you can and genuinely enjoy hearing what he has to say.

I’m Tetsu, a male member. When I get caught up in a conversation, I sometimes end up talking about myself and bragging a little too. I’ll try to be more careful(^^ゞ It’s wonderful that you’re considerate and want the man you’re with to have a pleasant time. If things are fine as they are and he doesn’t seem bothered, I think you can just continue as you have been. Some people may find constant, predictable flattery irritating or insincere. I don’t think there’s any guaranteed formula for handling it. Just respond naturally while paying attention to how he reacts. One thing you should avoid, however, is giving half-hearted responses. For example, if a man is telling you about getting a great score in golf and you interrupt with, “I play golf too, but I’m not very good,” adding your own limited experience to his topic can often lead to the conversation expanding into him bombarding you with questions. People who talk one-sidedly are often looking for a new topic to move on to, so be careful.

This is Maezawa from the CEO’s office answering. Wouldn’t it be fine to keep doing things the way you have been? In my case, I usually end up interjecting with things like: “Huh? But…” or “Hmm? Is that so?…” So the other person can’t really talk comfortably（笑） When I think about it that way, you’re impressive for being able to make the other person feel comfortable enough to talk. As for what else you could do, I’ll leave that to the other respondents（笑)