How to politely tell people off?

Question

Whenever I meet new people I'm usually very friendly, but when they start to talk to me more and I realize that I don't enjoy their conversation, I usually slowly withdraw from them and ignore/stop talking to them.

It has generally worked well for me, but there are a few people that do not get the message that I am not interested in talking with them.

This is a pain for me because it annoys me when they won't leave me alone. They think my silence is something that invites them to talk to me more or bug me more.

How should I approach them and tell them to leave me alone? If I say "leave me alone" they think I'm in a bad mood, but I'm not.

I just don't find their conversations interesting or intelligent.

Answer 1

Do like I do, talk in a mechanical manner, because if you talk like a machine then they will leave you alone.

Answer 2

Tell them you gotta go or be very boring.

Answer 3

Smile and say "It was so nice meeting you!"  Then withdraw.

Answer 4

Just say, "I don't mean to be rude but I have a lot on my mind and some of my own problems that I need to sort out."

Answer 5

Your question is an oxymoron, there is no polite way to tell anyone off, being told off is never pleasant no matter how politely you try do it. Next time go for the jugular, if the people are so uninteresting and unintelligent why do you care if they get offended? If they're offended it is more likely than not that they won't want to talk to you ever again.  problem solved.

Answer 6

Don't ignore them or try to leave, make general conversation, and put things in when their talking, like " Oh, that happened to me once." Be social. If they keep rambling on, say something like your dog has to be fed or you have a roast in the oven. Don't say the same excuse over and over again though, they will think you don't like them and are trying to get rid of them purposely.