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Мне стоит поговорить с коллегой после обеда.

Мне стоит поговорить с коллегой после обеда.
It’s worth talking with a colleague after lunch.

Breakdown of Мне стоит поговорить с коллегой после обеда.

с
with
мне
me
после
after
поговорить
to talk
стоить
to be worth
обед
lunch
коллега
colleague
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Questions & Answers about Мне стоит поговорить с коллегой после обеда.

Why does the sentence start with мне (dative) instead of я (nominative)?

Because сто́ит + infinitive is often used in an impersonal pattern where the person affected is in the dative: мне / тебе / ему / нам.
So мне сто́ит поговори́ть... literally frames it as it is worth/it would be good for me to... rather than I should....
You’ll also see the same structure in: Мне нужно уйти, Тебе нельзя шуметь.

What does сто́ит mean here, and is it the same as сто́ить (to cost)?

It’s the same verb сто́ить, but here it’s used in the meaning to be worth (doing) / it’s a good idea (to do).
Compare:

  • Это сто́ит 100 рублей = it costs 100 rubles
  • Мне сто́ит поговори́ть... = it’s worth / it would be good for me to talk...
Is мне сто́ит поговори́ть a strong obligation like I must, or a softer suggestion?

It’s usually softer: a recommendation, advice, or a self-reminder. It often implies it would be a good idea.
Stronger options:

  • Мне надо поговори́ть... (I need to)
  • Мне ну́жно поговори́ть... (I have to / I need to)
  • Мне сле́дует поговори́ть... (I ought to; more formal)
Why is поговори́ть used instead of говори́ть?

Поговори́ть is perfective, so it refers to a single, complete conversation (have a talk).
Говори́ть is imperfective and would sound like speaking in general / ongoing talking.
Compare:

  • Мне сто́ит поговори́ть с ним = I should have a talk with him (one conversation)
  • Мне сто́ит говори́ть с ним = I should speak with him (more general/habitual; less natural here)
Why is it с колле́гой and not с колле́га?

The preposition с meaning with requires the instrumental case.
So колле́га (nominative) becomes колле́гой (instrumental).
Other examples: с дру́гом, с сестро́й, с учи́телем.

Is колле́гой masculine or feminine here?

Колле́га is a noun that can refer to a colleague of any gender. The form с колле́гой (instrumental singular) works for both.
If you want to specify gender, you typically do it with context or an adjective:

  • с мои́м колле́гой (male colleague)
  • с мое́й колле́гой (female colleague)
Why is it по́сле обе́да—what case is обе́да?

По́сле requires the genitive case.
обе́д (lunch) in genitive singular becomes обе́да.
Same pattern:

  • по́сле рабо́ты
  • по́сле уро́ка
  • по́сле встре́чи
Can the word order change, and would it sound different?

Yes. Word order is flexible and shifts emphasis. Common variants:

  • Мне сто́ит поговори́ть с колле́гой по́сле обе́да. (neutral)
  • По́сле обе́да мне сто́ит поговори́ть с колле́гой. (emphasizes the time: after lunch)
  • Мне сто́ит по́сле обе́да поговори́ть с колле́гой. (also fine; keeps after lunch close to the verb)
Can I drop мне? When would that be okay?

Sometimes, yes—if it’s already clear who you mean (often from context). Then it becomes more like a general statement:

  • Сто́ит поговори́ть с колле́гой по́сле обе́да. = It’s worth talking to the colleague after lunch.
    Keeping мне makes it explicitly about your decision/advice to yourself.
Where is the stress, and what are the tricky pronunciation points?

Key stresses:

  • мне (one syllable)
  • сто́ит (stress on о)
  • поговори́ть (stress on и́ть)
  • колле́гой (stress on ле́)
  • по́сле (stress on по́)
  • обе́да (stress on бе́)

Also note that г in колле́гой is pronounced like g (not like English j), and unstressed о is reduced in speech (e.g., поговори́ть starts with a reduced по- sound).