{"id":12,"date":"2008-09-24T09:26:00","date_gmt":"2008-09-24T09:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/career-advice\/good-handshake-key-to-interview-success\/"},"modified":"2024-06-26T01:24:19","modified_gmt":"2024-06-26T08:24:19","slug":"good-handshake-key-to-interview-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/good-handshake-key-to-interview-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Good handshake key to interview success"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"142\" height=\"91\" class=\"size-full wp-image-5422 alignleft\" style=\"vertical-align: baseline;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/11\/Good_handshake_key_to_interview_success.jpg\" alt=\"Good_handshake_key_to_interview_success\" \/><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_50 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\" role=\"button\"><label for=\"item-667bd031539a6\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><span style=\"display: flex;align-items: center;width: 35px;height: 30px;justify-content: center;direction:ltr;\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/label><input  type=\"checkbox\" id=\"item-667bd031539a6\"><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav>\n<ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' >\n<li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/good-handshake-key-to-interview-success\/#Imagine_this_scenario\" title=\"Imagine this scenario:\">Imagine this scenario:<\/a><\/li>\n<li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/good-handshake-key-to-interview-success\/#Six_tips_for_great_handshakes\" title=\"Six tips for great handshakes\">Six tips for great handshakes<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<p>Good handshake skills may predict the results of your next job interview. Recent research suggests that having a good handshake influences the opinion of those interviewing you.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Imagine_this_scenario\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Imagine_this_scenario\"><\/span>Imagine this scenario:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>On the way to a job interview you check yourself out in the elevator mirror. It\u2019s all good: your suit looks sharp and there\u2019s nothing green stuck in your teeth. You go over your patter in your head, rehearsing answers to questions you\u2019ll likely be asked. By the time the elevator opens, you feel ready to knock this job interview out of the park! Caution: you could ambush yourself when you extend your hand.<\/p>\n<p>Who would think a <strong>handshake could <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/interview-gone-very-bad-you-can-recover\/\"><strong>deep-six an interview<\/strong><\/a>? A recent news release from the University of Iowa cites research that shows <strong>handshakes matter more than we think<\/strong>. This study by University of Iowa business professor Greg Stewart is the first time researchers have quantified handshakes as part of the job interview process.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve always heard that interviewers make up their mind about a person in the first two or three minutes of an interview, no matter how long the interview lasts,&#8221; said Stewart, associate professor of management and organizations. &#8220;We found that <strong>the first impression begins with a handshake<\/strong> that sets the tone for the rest of the interview.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The press release described how 98 students participated in mock job interviews with business representatives. At various times during their interviews, those students also met with five trained handshake raters who subtly introduced themselves and shook hands, but otherwise did not participate in the interviews. The handshake raters scored each student on handshaking. Interviewers graded each student&#8217;s overall performance and \u201chire-ability\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The two group&#8217;s scores were then compared. The results? <strong>Those students who scored high with the handshake raters were also considered to be the most hirable by the interviewers<\/strong>. Professor Stewarts says, &#8220;The handshake is one of the first nonverbal clues we get about the person&#8217;s overall personality and that impression is what we remember.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Six_tips_for_great_handshakes\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Six_tips_for_great_handshakes\"><\/span>Six tips for great handshakes<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>There are some tried-and-true techniques to remember about a handshake:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Aim for firm, but not bone crushing.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid the \u201cfinger tips\u201d handshake; make web-to-web contact.<\/li>\n<li>Shake up and down. You wouldn\u2019t think folks would need this next bit of advice, but\u2014news flash\u2014the motion of a handshake is up and down. In our business we shake a lot of hands and it\u2019s surprising the number of times we get a left-right sideways handshake.<\/li>\n<li>Pump the hand three or four times \u2014 no more. Over shaking someone\u2019s hand feels odd to the other person.<\/li>\n<li>Manage the \u201cwet fish\u201d handshake, if applicable. This is a challenge because it telegraphs nervousness. There\u2019s a website for this problem, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.sweatmanagement.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">www.sweatmanagement.ca<\/a> but before you resort to something drastic, a worthwhile exercise to practice shaking more hands, more often, in less stressful situations. Go to a networking event and don\u2019t worry about anything except monitoring your handshake. After shaking hands with five people is your handshake drier? And by the tenth person, is it even better? If so, practice may make a difference.<\/li>\n<li>Make and hold eye contact with the other person. If you don\u2019t do that, it doesn\u2019t matter how firm and confident your handshake is. Lack of eye contact gives a powerful nonverbal clue, one that will set a negative tone for the interview. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.srmfre.com\/modafinil-legal-in-australia\/\">www.srmfre.com<\/a>)  Here\u2019s a tip: when you first shake hands try to figure out the color of the person\u2019s eyes. That way you will make eye contact, guaranteed!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Although your handshake and making eye contact may seem like small things, they actually have a huge impact on others. Hone your handshake as well as your other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/interview-basics\/\">basic interview skills.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Gayle Hallgren-Rezac is chief engagement officer for the Shepa Learning Company, a training and development company. She is co-author of Work The Pond! Use the Power of Positive Networking to Leap Forward in Work and Life (Prentice Hall) with Darcy Rezac and Judy Thomson. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">www.amazon.ca<\/a> Visit The Pond at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.workthepond.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">www.workthepond.com<\/a> to sign up for a free weekly Positive Networking\u2122 tip.<\/p>\n<p><strong> Related to job interviews<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/the-interview-is-over-now-what\/\">The interview is over \u2013 now what?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/interview-brainteasers\/\">Interview brainteasers<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/building-positive-energy-using-mirror-neurons-for-successful-networking\/\">Building positive energy<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Good handshake skills may predict the results of your next job interview. Recent research suggests that having a good handshake influences the opinion of those interviewing you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9749,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12\/revisions\/9749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}