Two people talkingEver had a conversation that goes a little something like this?Your conversation partner: “Have you been promoted recently?” You: “What? No? You know I’m self employ–”Your conversation partner: “I actually got promoted last week. I’ve become the vice-deputy manager-chair god-king of...” etc., etc..If so, I’m afraid you’ve been the victim of a “boomerask,” a portmanteau of “boomerang” and “ask.” The term refers to questions that only really exist to give the askers room to talk about themselves.The self-serving purpose hides under the guise of enquiring about the other person, which askers think leaves a good impression, a paper published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General says.It does not actually work, though; the research found most people know when the move’s being pulled. So, we spoke to etiquette expert Jo Hayes, founder of