Trending @Capgemini; Avoiding awkward 1:1s with manager

How do you guys avoid making 1:1s with your manager awkward? For the last couple of them, I haven’t had too much too add, and there’s just silences and random chat.

A typical 1:1 these days:

• 5 to 10 mins of random small talk
• 5 or max 10 mins of actual work related talk, most of which is a repetition
• And then a little bit of that typical what ‘extra’ you can do bs

These are hardly productive, and I feel anxious before stepping into one, cuz I barely have much to say. Wtf do you guys do in your catch ups?