🎤 Is Your Conversation a Two-Way Street… or a Solo Podcast?

Ever walk away from a chat feeling like you just sat through someone else’s TED Talk… without snacks or a Q&A? Yeah, there’s a name for that: conversational narcissism.

It’s basically when a conversation turns into a one-person highlight reel. Think of that iconic line from Beaches starring Beaches and delivered by Bette Midler: “Enough about me… what do YOU think about me?”
Subtle. Graceful. A masterclass in making it all about yourself.

One psychiatry professor compares it to playing catch… except one person just keeps the ball and starts juggling it like they’re auditioning for Cirque du Soleil. 🎪

RELATED: Study Reveals BMW Drivers Are the Biggest Narcissists on the Road

🚩 The Biggest Signs You’re Dealing With One

Here’s how to spot a conversation hog in the wild:

1. The “Shift Response.”
You share a story, and before it even lands, they’ve already grabbed it, flipped it, and made it about them. No follow-up questions. No curiosity. Just a conversational boomerang that never comes back.

2. The “Fake Listener Face.”
You know the look. Nodding… smiling… eyes slightly glazed like they’re buffering. They’re not listening. They’re just waiting for their turn, like it’s karaoke night and they’ve already picked their song.

3. The “One-Upper Olympics” 🥇
Got good news? They’ve done better. Had a bad day? Theirs was worse. You got a paper cut? Somehow, they survived a dramatic chainsaw incident in 2007. It’s exhausting.

😩 The Real Test

If you’re not sure whether you’ve just experienced this, ask yourself one thing:
Do you feel drained after the conversation?

If you leave feeling like your social battery just got robbed in broad daylight, that’s a pretty strong hint something was… off.

🤔 Plot Twist: It’s Not Always Ego

Here’s the surprising part. Experts say this behaviour isn’t always about arrogance. Sometimes it’s just awkwardness in a hoodie. People get nervous, overcompensate, and accidentally turn a chat into a personal monologue.

So before you mentally block them like a spam call… There might be a little insecurity behind the scenes.

Still, though… maybe let someone else catch the ball once in a while. 🎾