Page 188 - ConvinceThemFlip

convince them in 90 seconds or less
by age. If you’re making introductions in a group and you
encounter someone you don’t know, take the initiative—
introduce yourself and say, “My name is So-and-so. I don’t
believe we’ve met,” and then include this new acquain-
tance of yours in the stream of introductions.
Engineering Introductions
If you see someone you’d like to meet at a gathering, ask
your host or a mutual friend to introduce you. But don’t
leave things to chance. Instead, prepare your own ten-
second commercial ahead of time by telling your intro-
ducer what to say—your name, perhaps where you’re
from, and what you do for a living—whatever you think
would most interest the person you’re being introduced
to. An informed introduction will come off a lot better
than “Margot, this is Jamie. Jamie, Margot.”
If you really want to impress, ask your host to tell you
one or two interesting (but not too personal) things about
the person you want to meet before he or she introduces
you. Then, when you do connect, you can say, “Peter
tells me you spent last month cycling through Guatemala.
What was your biggest challenge? What inspired you to
go?” Knowing something specific and recent about the
person you’re meeting allows you to bypass small talk and
get to a more personal footing faster.
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