A great way to start a conversation with a teammate is to respond privately to comments made in public channels. For example:
<ul>
<li>Your comment was very funny!</li>
<li>Great job on solving that tricky issue!</li>
<li>Thank you for answering my question, I appreciate your perspective.</li>
</ul>

Conversation starters: Respond privately

A status is a good way to let people know that you're doing focused work or that you're otherwise unable to respond. Don't reach out to chat when someone is busy.

Respect people's status

Reaching out privately to a colleague can feel weird because making the active decision to initiate a conversation usually creates the expectation that you want something. So explain why you're reaching out. Always give a reason why you want to talk to someone. Also, send one message, then wait for a response. And if someone continually doesn't respond when you reach out, take the hint.

The weirdness of it

Reaching out and offering your help to a new colleague, for example, is a great way to start a conversation. It can feel weird, but in a remote setup, this is the only way these chats will happen.

Conversation starters: Reach out

Sometimes people will respond immediately. But sometimes they won't, and that's okay. Everyone has things to do, and that means they will not be responding to every message right away.

Don't mind the delays 

Explain that you just want to say hello. This is usually enough to remove the weirdness of just saying "hi," especially if you frame it using a little humor.

Conversation starters: Be vulnerable

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Saying good morning, in person, to a coworker you don't know is perfectly normal. Sending a private message to a coworker you don't know to say good morning is...weird. If not downright creepy.Look, that's just how it is. I don't make the rules. Seriously, though: the difference between these...

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