As a kid that used be the question that made me panic. Some teacher or parent would ask “What’s up?” In a casual manner and I would just freeze. To this day I have no idea what the proper response is. I assume it isn’t to start talking about orbits.
As a kid that used be the question that made me panic. Some teacher or parent would ask “What’s up?” In a casual manner and I would just freeze. To this day I have no idea what the proper response is. I assume it isn’t to start talking about orbits.
This is one of those frustrating social conventions that’s partly a greeting and partly a way to find out if you’re busy (particularly if they are asking if you’re in the middle of doing something or are speaking to the other person on the phone/via message where they can’t see what you’re doing).
A good response, as mentioned in another reply here, is “Not much. You?” or “Not much - how about yourself?” if you haven’t done anything out of the ordinary or aren’t really busy.
If you have done something that you think the other person might find interesting, though, give them a brief answer, e.g. “Oh, just had lunch at a new restaurant. The food was great.” Keeping it short then allows the other person to either ask a follow-up question if they are actually interested, or to move the conversation along to the actual topic they wanted to discuss with you.
If you are actually busy and in the middle of a task, then a short and polite response and suggestion to reschedule works, e.g. “Sorry, just in the middle of painting the spare room… can I get back to you tonight?”