3 tips on how to build INSTANT and LASTING rapport

It's no secret that face-to-face networking is a valuable tool for building successful business relationships. With much of our business being conducted online these days our opportunities to meet with clients and contacts are fast reducing. So how do we make the most out of our brief face-to-face interactions?

Here's how to build instant and lasting rapport no matter the amount of time you spend with someone.

1. Observe: become an observer of human behaviour.
Start today by observing how two people communicate. Notice how they cross their arms, tilt their heads or nod their heads in time. Observe interactions which seem not as harmonious. Note how their body language is mismatched, perhaps one has their arms folded and the other is open. Or maybe one is leaning forward and the other backwards. Watch interactions in your workplace, arena and living room, in "reel life" and in real life. Notice how obvious it is now you've become consciously aware of this thing called "body language" that we do all day, every day.

2. Do: When engaged in conversation, consciously mirror the other person's body language, especially when they have very different ways of experiencing the world to you....  e.g. A visual communicator  with a Data Digital.

In my experience, most people will never see, feel or think you are doing anything unusual. Instead, they will see, feel or think of you as a confident and capable  communicator who is listening to what they are saying.

3. Practice: Consciously practice mirroring people, anywhere, anytime. Practice until it becomes innate, until you find yourself in a social situation where you then  become consciously aware of how you and someone else are completely in rapport. Almost as if you planned it...