I was speaking with the owner of a real estate company recently, shortly after he sent me an email that was composed by his administrative manager. He phoned me to discuss the contents in detail and alerted me to a spelling error. He wasn’t too concerned, he explained, “She has been with me for years and her performance is stellar.” I thought back to a time when a very similar error was made by another administrative manager who is no longer with the firm that she worked for. Perhaps the difference was her boss’ perception of her skill set and overall performance at work.
Travel Tryouts
I received an email this week from a mom whose son was not selected for the travel baseball team that he tried out for. Being involved with baseball as I am, I was privy to a list of those who were selected. The talents of her son are probably on the same level as many of those who were chosen. One difference is that her son’s skills have improved dramatically over the course of the past year and the other boys have played at a high level since they were very young. I wondered if the coaches’ decisions of whom to choose were based somewhat on the players’ reputation.
Longevity and Instincts
We’ve all heard that one never gets a second chance to make a first impression. Moreover, author Fred Charette once wrote, “Never hire anyone who is going to report directly to you who you do not intuitively just plain like from first impressions. If your instincts tell you you’re going to have a hard time working with someone, pass.” Simply put, first impressions have an overwhelming impact on other’s perception of us.
Front of Mind
In the business world this fact should always be paramount in our thinking. The initial contact with a potential client is crucial. So is your performance at the beginning of a relationship once you have acquired the business. Your goal is always to ensure that your client feels as if they have had a successful experience. You pave the way to accomplishing this with impressions first.
What benefits have you gained from making a good first impression?
Was there a time that you can remember a first impression changing?
Expand your mind, increase your business and receive your dose of “The Daily Tonic” everyday.* It’s always brief, informational and thought provoking.
Simply go to the top of this page or the home page of thedailytonic.com, enter your email in the navigation bar to the right and click “subscribe.” Of course your email address will be kept private.
