Everything new starts with an introduction...

Everything new has a first; a beginning; an introduction. The other day I was reminded of how fast and important this can be. 

When he was out of earshot my father looked at me and said, "I like him. What do you think?"

It seems, as we stood there enjoying the day looking to buy some carpet, my father validated an article by Eric Wargo entitled How Many Seconds to a First Impression. Who would have guessed.

"A series of experiments by Princeton psychologists Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov reveal that all it takes is a tenth of a second to form an impression of a stranger from their face, and that longer exposures don’t significantly alter those impressions (although they might boost your confidence in your judgments)"
From the article "First Impressions" in Psychological Science

My father was right... Woody was an expert in flooring, honest with his appraisal and his assessment; it turned out there was no need for a new carpet. He said the existing carpet was very high quality, just needed to be re-installed, cleaned, and would be as good as new. We all wholeheartedly agree and liked Woody very much. 

Anything new will involve an introduction to someone, and most likely many "someones" - In this age of the avatar, we are becoming masters of image control, branding ourselves and managing the degrees of separation between ourselves and others; an inescapable fact though is that anything new, important, worthwhile and significant needs to be done face to face. Don't shy away from it.

If you want to practice your introductions, just introduce yourself to everyone you meet... start networking formally and informally. I can guarantee you will meet new and interesting people that will lead to new and interesting opportunities.

And you might as well just be yourself.

As per the research by Princeton psychologists Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov (and validated by my father), impressions will be made very quickly so you might as well be yourself up front. Don't assume people are so easily fooled... it's a survival trait we've picked up over the millennia.

Also, the reality is sometimes a person's impression of you will not be a good one. Like it or not, it is just the way it is. As they say, "You can be the ripest peach in the world, and there's still going to be somebody who hates peaches" - Sad but true; just respectfully move on.

It just dawned on me I have been remiss with introducing myself, "Hello, my name is Graham Paul Edwards" 

iamgpe

www.gpestratagem.com