I like small talk. It may or may not lead to deeper conversations or insights, but it’s the equivalent to animals sniffing each other’s butts. More is revealed in small talk than you might think. Body language, tone of voice, etc. lots of communication going on for people who are observant. It takes a measure of humility to engage in small talk. Who do people think they are that even one second of their time should be wasted? Yes, introverts have a harder time with low level social interaction, but to me, there is a lot of narcissism involved in the resistance to small talk.