Step 2

Decide how you want to be perceived: using what you say and do to win over others

‘I acted like a superstar long before I ever was one.’

Noel Gallagher

It is possible to change the way that we are perceived by people we have known for a while, even our partners or our colleagues. To achieve this, take a second to think about meeting someone for the first time. What do you base your instant judgements on?

The magic numbers

Back in the 1960s, Dr Albert Mehrabian, a professor at University College of Los Angeles, provided us with some fascinating research which is continually cited whenever the subject of body language is discussed. He gave us the magic digits: 55, 38 and 7.

He found that first impressions are based on three elements ...

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