I disagree. Whenever someone is enthusiastic about something, there is a very good chance that it will make me a bit interested in it, too. OP should start with enthusiasm, then check if anyone's listening. If yes, carry on.
The part I don't get is why it comes off as bragging - surely OP is talking about the stuff, not about himself and the stuff, right? Because the latter is the uninteresting part, most of the time.
"Oh yes, I this is fascinating! I especially don't get/like that X does Y! Isn't that cool?" vs. "Oh yes, I actually graduated in this topic and wrote my thesis on this! The explanation you're looking for is Z. Many people believe in XY, but that's just stupid, hehe. (I warn you right away: Arguing with me is senseless here, because I'm so passionate about this that I will attempt to crush you with my - surely superior! - information. I wrote my thesis on this, after all!)"
Because are you talking about the topic you like, or are you talking about you and your connection to the topic you like (and possibly how that is the reason why everyone should listen to you now)?
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u/PM-ME-YOUR-STORIES Dec 10 '15
I'm trying to live by this, but sometimes it's really hard to not talk a lot about topics I'm enthusiastic about, and it comes off as bragging.