Speed Dating? Speed Impression Management?

Speed dating, speed networking – seems we just don’t have time to invest in making a good impression any more.  Get it right first time or you lose the opportunity!

Never before have first impressions been so important.  Singles looking for the right partner are speed dating.  Business owners and executives looking to expand their network of contacts are speed networking.  Time is precious.  It is all we have.  Money can be made again but time, once spent is gone forever!

It’s a relatively new concept that makes sense if time is precious, you don’t know which networking event to attend or you are a little on the shy side.  All you do is spend 5 minutes, the bell rings and you move on to the next person.

All well and good!  In a time span of 5 minutes you have the opportunity to talk about your business and how you may be able to do some business with the person sitting opposite you.  Business etiquette out the window!  Let’s get down to the nuts and bolts and see if a connection can be made.

The reality is that the minute we meet someone for the first time, we convey powerful first impressions.  We live in a highly visual world and our impression is either positive or negative.  There is no middle ground here.  How are you being perceived when you sit down in front of that new contact?

First impressions are broken into three categories.

55% is visual - relating to what they see when they meet you for the first time.

38% is auditory – relating to how you sound.

7% is based on what you actually say!

So if you don’t make a positive first impression real quick, you have to work hard to make it up.  You don’t have much time in speed dating or networking.  Give your prospect a chance – make your impression positive!

A business women I met recently attending one of these events and overall found it to be an intense and somewhat overwhelming experience.  She met a man working in a service based industry and decided on first impressions that he would not be someone she would work with.  The minute he spoke, her first impression was confirmed.  He sounded a bit too slick and she felt uncomfortable.  Do you think she listened to anything this guy had to say?  The answer is ‘no’!  Her perception was formed so quickly with the visual and reinforced with the auditory.  And then there was no time for him to make it up!

So before you head out the door to speed date or network, check in on what messages you are sending.