[rdiddly]

The accusation sounds frivolous, judging from your side of the story, which is all I have access to. Keep in mind though, that it's not always strictly about what's said. Like if your eyes keep unconsciously drifting to her tits the whole time you're talking, the conversation could be about feeding the hungry and singing in the church choir with your wife of 8 years and it'll still be pretty "uncomfortable" for her -- maybe doubly so!

Anyway I think I recommend the same thing your management does, except take it with you for your whole career: Keep the conversation to business-related things, and save the BS small-talk stuff for your social life outside work. Those are low-value conversations anyway... people's boring-ass weekends? Their stupid commutes? Who cares? I personally could not give a flying you-know-what about what any of my co-workers did this weekend or ever. Kill me with a thousand knives first!

That's just me. Still, you might not believe me when I say, it is truly a privilege to work in a professional, work-focused environment of basically disinterested strangers who happen to work together. It's truly something to behold. There is no drama whatsoever... nobody has time for it! Everybody is happy as a clam and almost as quiet. That's why I stick with my current job even though I'm kind of underpaid.

It's not done out of a sense of discipline. Well I mean it does take a little bit of discipline but it shouldn't take a lot. I'm there to work, I value the work, I enjoy the work. And I like getting it done, preferably as fast as possible and with concise work-related answers to my work-related questions, and a minimum of hearing about people's weekends. All those conversations do is slow down the work and interrupt the work. Sounds fanatical doesn't it. Again I would say it's a privilege to be in a situation where I can say all this honestly.