Well, lets see. Preperation seems to be easy enough. The key to it all is gathering as much interesting knowledge/experiences as you can for you to share. Read lots of books/magazines, watch some good shows on tv, go out and do things you never tried before, stay informed of current events, anything at all can be discussed as long as you say what you mean and mean what you say.
However, I think you may be refering to mental preperation so you won't be shy/anxious when talking. In that case, yo gotta realize there's nothing to be afraid of when talking to people. As long as you're not trying to disrespect them they'll be receptive to your attempts. Understand that attention is the greatest gift you can give a person. People WANT to be approached and make friends/lovers. It makes them feel great for their presence is acknowledged by another, making them feel loved, appreciated, attractive, accepted, blah blah blah.
Its extremely common for a person to put their guard up when talking to other people. If you show them that you're relaxed and unafraid to be yourself, SO WILL THEY.
Talk to EVERYBODY too, get to know different kinds of people so you know how to handle all sorts of encounters later on. The more you do it the easier it becomes, you just gotta get yourself out there and JUST DO IT. Another thing, if your not enjoying yourself you're doing it all wrong. Convos are supposed to feel good or enlightening. Your either having fun with the person cracking jokes/telling stories or your learning something new.
Now go on and conversate you damn chatterboxes.
