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One of my dreams is to be able to equip college students with practical skills and know-how that will help them become better adjusted to their future careers. Last week, I was able to put the wheels of that dream in motion by conducting a talk with college seniors. We talked about the things I wish I knew when I was starting my career.

When making introductions, a simple “hi” won’t suffice anymore. We need to deal with handshakes and small talk.

We all remember those who pulled our hand aggressively or crushed our fingers during handshakes. We don’t want that kind of first impression. 

Here’s my recommended to-do list for your next handshake:

• Hands must be web-to-web.
• Look at the person and smile.
• Keep your back straight.
• Finish after 3-5 seconds.
• Remove rings on your right hand.

Extra Tip: If you have damp hands, discretely slide your hands on your pants or skirt before shaking someone’s hand.

Early in my career, I made a careless mistake that I thought would have been the end of my newly acquired job. I got into a passionate argument with my boss about politics and started trash talking a political figure. Later that evening, I found out that this political figure was a blood relative of my boss. From then on, I learned to avoid 2 topics in small talk – politics and religion.

How do we make small talk work?

• Listen. When was the last time you listened 100%? In your next meeting, put your distractions aside and just listen.
• Look the person up on LinkedIn and other social media sites. This is your ticket to instant conversation topics.
• Research on the company. Get to know the history, current developments, position in the industry, among others.
• Arm yourself with current events. You don’t need to be a news junkie. Knowing the headlines and trends go a long way.