Answer:
If you decide early on you really like the date, think of topics that will get your date to talk about him or herself a lot. They'll remember you the next day as a "great conversationalist". If you decide the date was a mistake, and you are NOT interested in further dates, dominate the conversation yourself, and talk about you, you and you. Either works perfectly depending on how you feel about the date once you're out with them, and both work perfectly for either gender.