Steps

1. Look people straight in the eyes - eye contact is important because it shows that
you care and also shows self confidence. Begin with "I'd like to introduce myself"
so that you have the other person's attention when you say your name.
2. Smile - it is important to keep a nice, bright smile (and fresh breath too). Your
smile is your icebreaker, it draws people to you because you will look like a
happy, stable person.
3. Handshake - a firm handshake, once again, demonstrates your self confidence, but
be sure you don't break the other person's arm or hand (try squeezing slightly with
your fingers and not your thumb). Just a squeeze and control hand shake, you will
definitely gain your confidence.
4. Say your full name and immediately ask for theirs - then repeat their name while
saying - "it's a pleasure to meet you John" or "nice to meet you Jane" - repeating
the person's name will help you remember their name and again, will also show
you care. Have a Great Conversation.Make sure you introduce with both first and
last names.
5. Giving a Nickname is absolutely ok, but never appropriate to say your name is
your nickname. It is an awkward joke if you consider it a joke. Always give notice
it's a nickname, i.e. "My name's Mike, but they call me 'The Stunner'.
6. You may tell a little bit of your background in order to start your conversation.
7. In your conversation, do not forget to talk on topics in which the other person is
interested in.

Tips
• Never criticize.
• Tell your positives but don't tell your negatives unless they ask.
• Keep a napkin or tissue nearby to avoid shaking with a sweaty hand.
• Keep your focus on the person you are meeting - give them the respect you would
like to receive.

Warnings
• Avoid eating anything that might stick to your teeth, like spinach.
• Take small bites of appetizers so that you never get caught with a mouthful.
• Don't speak when your mouth is filled with food.
How To Introduce Yourself to Someone You’ve Never
Met
Those first introductions can be the most difficult—and sometimes the most important.

People are making flash judgments every second. Every move you make is being
scrutinized.

But with the right introduction, a good personality, and some confidence, you have the
power to cement your good image in their minds and create an instant bond.

In my experience, there are two main parts to introducing yourself to someone new. The
first part is starting the conversation; going from standing around awkwardly to actually
interacting with them. The second part consists of what you say and how you say it.

How to start the conversation

1. The mutual acquaintance icebreaker

If your soon-to-be friend happens to be talking with or know someone that you
know, it can be a great way to leverage yourself into a conversation. If they’re
talking to that person, it’s really easy to just walk up and say hi to your friend, and
an introduction follows very naturally. If not, you can just confirm there name
“Dave Moneyfountain?” and mention your aquaintance “I know Mark
ReallyReputableGuy, he’s mentioned you a few times.” Then you can launch into
a discussion from there.
2. The compliment icebreaker
Giving a compliment is a frequently over-used tactic that is still used, because it
can work so well. They key, of course, is sincerity. Everyone uses the “I like your
watch” compliment nowadays—but since I happen to be a watch fanatic, I can
start talking about automatic movements and other things that make my
compliments truly sincere. Your best bet is going to be giving a compliment that
you truly mean and are prepared to talk about in detail.
3. Conversation by proximity
This can be a great way to jump start a conversation, if you happen to be close to
the person you want to introduce yourself to (close physically or in situation). If
you do find yourself in place where this might work, just make some seemingly-
intelligent or humorous remark about whatever situation you find yourself in (I do
this all the time waiting in lines). A hand-shake and introduction can follow
swiftly thereafter.
4. The direct approach
Once you realize that everyone else is also busy looking for excuses to come up
and talk to you, this approach becomes easier. Simply stroll up with a little
confidence, offer a hand-shake, and say, “Hi, Mike, I’m ________.” Alternatively,
if you’re approaching a group, you can walk up and say, “Mind if I join you?”
You might be amazed at this, but the direct approach works really well. People
 just don’t seem to say, “No, you can’t join us,” or, “Hi, actually, I’m busy and
don’t want to talk with you.”

Most of these suggestions are worded for usage in a face-to-face scenario, but in reality
they can apply to starting all sorts of conversations (emailing and calling were two others
that came to my mind).

What to say in your first conversation

How you start your conversation will depend a lot on what you want from that
relationship. If you want a personal relationship, for example, you might start with
different things than if you want a business relationship. For the purpose of this article,
we’ll assume your goal is to start a friendly business relationship.

Start with their name. It’s tempting to start with your own name, but if you know their
name it’s a really nice touch to address them by it. Once they’ve been addressed, then you
can throw your name into the mix.

Give yourself a history. If you have a mutual acquaintance, a specific reason for starting
the conversation, or anything that gives credit to you, it is good to mention that early on.
It lets them know you aren’t trying to waste their time. If you don’t have any back story
(at a business card exchange, for example), then it’s okay to skip this step. Also, don’t
speak too much on this—keep it to one or two sentences.

Ask questions about them. Ask them about what they do, what they like doing, their
history. Ask anything that’s appropriate to your conversation. In general, people really
enjoy talking about themselves, so the more you let them talk, the more they’re going to
like you. One caveat to this, however; don’t subject them to a rapid-fire interrogation!
Ask slow, thoughtful questions, and then give them a chance to talk for a while. A little
down-time can actually be a good thing for a conversation.

Listen carefully, and respond. You may have noticed that the best conversationalists
remember all sorts of little details about you and bring them up when the time is right.
Your goal in asking questions isn’t just to make them feel good about themselves, but
also to learn as much about them as you can. Be a good listener, and you’ll remember a
whole lot more of the conversation. Once you’ve fully processed what they said (again,
it’s okay to pause and think), you can respond with something thoughtful.

Answer their questions. Once they start asking you questions, it’s time to give them
more information about yourself and your company. This is also when you can give them
your small business’s marketing message. Be careful not to speak for too long, though,
it’s never a good idea to entirely dominate the conversation.

At this point, you’ll probably have been speaking for at least a few minutes and will be
well on your way to building a valuable relationship. It’s still good to remember some of
the basics, though, especially about listening and paying attention to what they say. Good
luck with your conversations, and feel free to start one in the comments section.

If you’re interested in more articles like this, check out some others in the Effective Small
Business Communication series.

First impressions count for a lot.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Don’t blow it. In this day and
age, where everyone is selling something, most of all themselves, mastering the art of
introductions across multiple channels and media surely has to be one of the great, unsaid
business skills. Whatever your style, background, personality, profession or purpose, I
remain convinced that a little thought and practice can yield incredible results.

If one looks at the various media typically employed for creating introductions, the
telephone and, regrettably, emails probably outrank others in terms of market size. First
the telephone. We’ve all had hundreds of tedious and almost insulting messages where
irritating salesperson leaves name and number with request to call back, and no reason at
all to do so. I ignore them. Best is a personalised, thoughtful message, which actually
motivates the target to call back. Research and preparation is clearly the order of the day
here – so don’t rely on what your mother tells you is your natural charm. If you have
trouble getting through, I’d recommend speaking with your suspect’s PA to schedule a
mutually convenient time for a conversation. (If you get through, skip to penultimate
paragraph).

Emails are increasingly used for that initial introduction, especially by the lazy. I believe
these will be ignored unless you have been given a personal introduction (“Matthew said
we should talk because…”). In any event, emails are better for follow-up after an initial
telephone conversation to establish contact and broad qualifying applicability. Waiting for
return emails is about as rewarding as expecting quality conversation with a pebble.
The email works as an information follow-up only when you know it’s going to be read.

By the way, I don’t recommend text messages. They’re better suited - I’m reliably
informed – to courting teenagers than to strategic B2B transactions, although I do believe
that at least one £100m acquisition in 2000 was initiated and closed with great text.

Other bricks and mortar opportunities to introduce yourself occur at industry events
(whether conferences, gala dinners or trade shows). There is always a premium on
focussed, clear approaches where the relevance of the contact must be qualified by
incisive questioning – you don’t want to waste valuable business time (your’s and their’s)
on fluff – unless, of course, you’re only there for the beer (not). Your objective should be
to qualify initial interest only and gain commitment to some kind of follow-up later on:
you’re not going to sign a contract then and there for your detailed and revolutionary
engineering nano-algorithms for that new irrigation plant. Besides, at least 50% of people
in black tie don’t carry pens (speaking of which, make sure you have one: a few notes on
the back of the card come in handy when you file that mass of cards you collected in the
past three months).

But what do you say? Keep it simple, clear and use the same thing over and over again.
Fill in the blanks: “Hello, my name is blank blank, I’m the blank at blank. My company
blanks (no more than 10 words – which should be on your website and in all your
promotional materials). My reason for calling you is blank (concise statement of what
your intent and desired outcome is).” Then, I’m afraid, you’re on you own, needing to
motivate your suspect to answer your questions and share valuable business information
with you.

Your introduction made and you’ve secured that all important first meeting with the
person who’s about (you hope) to become your biggest benefactor. The great temptation
is to go gung-ho on all that rapport stuff, per Tony Robbins. You could mistakenly
translate this into “make them laugh”, and tell them the worst possible golfing jokes (you
know, the one about Moses and Jesus and Arnold Palmer), never suspecting that they hate
the game with all the venom of a one wood from Tiger. Jokes don’t actually create
rapport. Yes, some social banter can work in the lift on the way up is necessary, but once
you’re in their office it’s got to be business. I was taught – yes, taught – to keep the first
five minutes identical.

Here’s what you do – and this may be close to the optimal meeting opener. Always carry
a briefcase (that transmits you’re “in business” and “professional”, even if just contains
your sarnies). Present your business card with seriousness (don’t flip it across the table
like a spinning top). Less usual, and very Japanese, but still effective would be the formal
two-handed exchange accompanied by a studied acknowledgement of the card’s content.
Make sure you check their naming convention (“should I call you Arthur or Art?”).
Follow the exchange with a polite request about how much time has been allocated;
clarify the purpose and rough shape of the meeting, as well as explaining the background
to how it came about. A nice touch is to ask courteously if you may take notes (how else
will you remember what was said?). When you finally get down to business, if you
haven’t met before, best practice dictates that instead of launching into your sales pitch,
you tell them a sufficiency about yourself and your company, suggesting that it would
help you to understand a little more about their issues or requirements before launching
into how you can solve them (how could possibly sell them if you don’t know what they
want?). Learn this routine and stick to it – that way you won’t bog it up. Remember that a
focussed, well-managed meeting has a natural life expectancy of about one hour, and that
attention levels start at about 90% and tail off rapidly as time passes.

When introducing yourself, as in all things, the more you practice, the luckier you get.
Oh, remember to dress smart and smile.

How to Introduce Yourself

Excerpted from The Art of Civilized Conversation: A Guide to
Expressing Yourself With Style and Grace

To introduce yourself to a new person, you can start with "Hello. My name is Sally" or
"I'm Sally (or Sally Suave)" or "I'd like to introduce myself. I'm Sally." In a group, a
handshake plus your name is acceptable.

People you don't know are not a big, amorphous crowd of strangers. Although in a group
they may seem like an imposing solid brick wall, it may be better to think of a crowd as a
wall of individual windows that can each offer you a different view of life. If you follow
the many tips and small strategies contained in this book, even self-introduction can be a
pleasure.

When you introduce yourself by saying your own name, don't use your title. Even if other
people call you Mrs. Murray, introduce yourself as Eleanor Murray or Eleanor. However,
with children who need help knowing what to call you, you can introduce yourself as
Aunt Eleanor or Grandma Ellie if you want them to call you that.

A teacher introduces himself to his students with the title he would like them to use—Mr.
Goodge or Dr. Goodge—but writes his whole name on the board: George Goodge. In
intellectual circles, an inverse snobbery restrains professors from injecting their titles into
introductions ("Hello, I'm Fred Mayhem"), though others may add them ("Hello, Dr.
Mayhem.")

You will be on safe ground if you address both current and retired military,
ambassadorial, clerical, and judicial people by their profession (Colonel Smith,
Ambassador Smith, Reverend Smith, Father Smith, Justice Smith) or simply "sir" or
"ma'am" until you are very sure of protocol in their worlds. When in doubt, ask.
Aristocratic titles may call for a quick check of the etiquette books.

After you have said hello and your name, you may wish to expand on your introduction
with pleasantries such as "Good to see you," "Nice to meet you," or "Nice to see you
again."

If another person is introducing you, just make eye contact and offer to shake hands when
you are being introduced. If your introducer has mangled your name, say it again clearly
for your new acquaintance.

If you aren't clear of the other person's name, as you say something along the lines of
"Nice to meet you," say the name again with an inquiring expression to let him or her
correct what you think you heard. If you want to start right in on a first-name basis, just
repeat your first name.

Once the other person has introduced himself, use the person's title and last name (e.g.,
Mr. Smith) until you are invited to be on a first-name basis.

to reintroduce yourself to a brief former acquaintance (if you do not remember the
person's name), say "Hello. My name is ___ ." Then the person will most likely respond
with his or her name. If not, you can say "I remember you, but I've forgotten your name,"
or "You may not remember me; I'm Rafik." Always reintroduce yourself to young
children who may have forgotten which one of the grown-ups you are in the interval
since they saw you last.

If you wish to introduce yourself to someone who is of greater status or age, simply use
good manners: "Good morning, sir. My name is Matt Frieberg; I'm your wife's student."

If you are the person with higher status, pay attention to the person who has made the
effort to introduce himself to you. You, too, should use your best manners and be
civilized. Don't let a seemingly unimportant person turn you into a snob. My English-
born father often told of a conversation he'd overheard: A humble young academic who
was visiting a hidebound English university skirted protocol and had the gall to introduce
himself to a professor at a gathering (rather than wait for a mutual friend to introduce
them). "Good afternoon, sir, my name is Eric Kincaid," he said as he extended his hand.
"Oh, really?" drawled the older man in his best upper-crust Etonian voice, and then he
turned away.

A truly great human being does not commit cruelty by being uncivil to a person with
lesser status. Give everyone you chance to meet at least three minutes of your time and
attention. Be kind.

How to Remember Names

A gifted conversationalist seems to remember every name, every time. With a little help
and some practice, you can too.

1. Gather your wits before you meet a new group of people. If you can, do your
homework ahead of time with a list of names that you will then connect to faces.
2. When you are introduced, pay attention to the other person's name. Say it out loud
as you make eye contact, say it at least once during the conversation, and say it
again when you part.
3. Say the name over a few times in your mind and link it to a visual image: if her
name is Mary Jane, imagine her wearing Mary Jane shoes. Or connect the person
with others who have that name; visualize the Ben Lincoln you've just met
standing next to Abe Lincoln.
4. Use rhyming: "Tall Paul" or "Nate the waiter." (Just don't say it out loud.)
5. Follow up. Reinforce your memory by looking at his name tag, asking him for a
card, and writing his name down as soon as you get home.

How to Introduce Others

A senator once took Will Rogers to the White House to meet President Coolidge. Inside
the Oval Office, the senator introduced the two men. "Will Rogers," he said, "I'd like you
to meet President Coolidge."

Deadpan, Rogers quipped, "I'm sorry, but I didn't catch the name."

—Steve Goodier, Joy Along the Way, 2002

Another way to initiate a courteous conversation is to be attentive to occasions when

introductions are in order. When you find yourself in a group of people who require
introductions, first say the name of the woman, the older person, or the higher-ranking
person. Repeat this rule over and over, and rehearse it with a friend if it is a stumbling
point: the lady, the elder, or the honored person comes first. For example:

Mom, this is my friend Matt Chang. Matt, this is my mother, Lynda Weber.

(Matt's response will be "Hello, Mrs. [or Ms.] Weber" or "Hello, Lynda [if you said only
her first name].")