“Perhaps you’ve noticed all of these factors are observable traits. And certainly, you may not have much else to go on when meeting people for the first time. It takes time to get to know personality traits that really convey someone’s nature — compassion, patience, sincerity, humility, or good humor, just to name a few.

In other words, physical appearance really shouldn’t matter, but it often does — even when you don’t realize it.

When you first meet someone, your brain tends to zero in on a few specific traits, like their clothing and overall appearance, and quickly patch together a general idea of who they are as a person. The “halo” of this first impression can linger for a month, if not longer, and it can absolutely affect your interactions in the meantime.

With all that in mind, you might start to wonder about the first impression you leave behind. You want people to remember you, of course, but you want to feature positively in their memories.”

My Takeaways From This Article

1. First impressions have been shown to be very important in the realms of setting the tone of how a relationship will be approached for at least the first couple of months when meeting that person. The psychological phenomenon deemed the “halo effect” has been shown that positive impressions will render someone to be attributed to positive traits of that person and will persist throughout recurring meetings.

2. So what does this mean? The first impression can matter, especially when it's a business or professional setting; therapists are keen to set good first impressions to be able to establish a trusting and open relationship moving forward.

3. Of course, the first impression should never be about changing who you are and how you act, it’s how you emphasize the positives of who you are as a person to another person. The basics are: keep good hygiene, maintain engaged body language and dress appropriately to keep appearances. This can be done by all! When it comes to displaying who you are, make sure to reframe certain sentences to be more neutral and less critical, sure you may come across someone who shares the same views as you do, but equal chance of meeting someone who doesn’t.

4. At the end of your relationships, your personality will eventually shine more than your first impression. But getting these friendships or relationships (like an employee) is all about your first impression!

Full article is here!

What are some ways you can leave a great first impression to someone when meeting them for the first time? Do first impressions of others matter to you?

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