Mistake #4: Unpleasant Handshakes

[Joyzfsddt66]

Believe it or not, there are rules about handshakes in most societies. They will vary from culture to culture so make sure that you are au fait with those of the culture in which you operate. By the way, the rules here also apply to women, who can be judged just as severely as men for any infraction. Issues to watch out for here include:

The damp, moist handshake. Say no more
Extending your arm straight out in front. This sends the message that you want to keep the other person at a distance
Shrinking the angle of your arm so that you are very close to the other person, possibly invading their personal space
Misjudging how firmly and how long you should shake the other person’s hand
What to do instead?

Before an interview, you are likely to be ncrvous. If it’s hot, arrive early and cool hong kong whatsapp phone number down somewhere nearby. Wipe your palm with a handkerchief or tissue.

Look the person in the eye as you shake their hand. Not only is it polite, it is clever as it means that you start to make a personal connection with them. It is much harder for someone to be critical of you once this connection has been established.

A few firm pumps of the hand are sufficient. Not so firm that you crush the hand of the other person, not so weak that you send a shudder down their spine.



Mistake #5: Poor Eye Contact
This is a very common way of ruling yourself out of a job. Classic errors are:

Failing to maintain eye contact when the other person is speaking. Your role is to maintain 100% eye contact as you listen to someone
When speaking, failing to hold eye contact for a sufficient period of time before looking away and then re-establishing contact
Looking down as you pause to construct your next response. The occasional downward glance is fine but if you do this regularly it makes you look quite uncertain
Flickering and fleeting eye contact. This is quite rare. It suggests extreme shyness and lack of confidence
Some people have clearly been told in their early years that they needed to improve their eye contact and they over compensate. When speaking, they maintain 100% eye contact so that it turns into a staring competition. This makes the listener feel very uncomfortable and means that they have to then break the rules by looking away
Failing to look at all panel members as you speak. Generally, you should devote more attention to the person who asked you the question, but also include all others in the room in your gaze