First impressions take seven seconds
Carol Kinsey Goman has The Seven-Second Advantage in the April 2008 AMA Moving Ahead Newsletter that talks about first impressions and how to improve them.
In about seven seconds you've already decided whether you like the person or not. Sure, your opinion may change once you get to know him better, but that first impression will linger for a long time.
I've heard variations on the seven seconds time (5 seconds; 10 seconds), but the principle is the same. People do judge books by the cover, so my job is to make my own "book" appear pleasing -- assuming I want to get along with my acquaintances.
My first pass on this is always: make eye contact and smile! Even when I am just walking through the halls, a simple smile is so much lighter than a grimace or I'm-in-a-hurry-stare. (Or a I-haven't-had-coffee-yet glaze.) Having just attended my first company User Conference, I could see this seven-second principle in action. And I am sure it was happening with others.
Goman provides six tips to making a good impression in that first seven seconds. Read the full article to see her comments, and her thoughts on what to do after that connection is made.
- Adjust your attitude.
- Smile.
- Make eye contact.
- Raise your eyebrows.
- Shake hands.
- Lean in slightly.
I suspect this article is a lead-in to Goman's new book on the secrets of body language at work.
6 Comment(s)
said:
Thanks Carol,
I've heard others refer to this study before, and I've used the 11 items in discussion and presentations myself. But trying to trace the source of the study has left me with a dead-end. Anyone know who at NYU and when?
I'd appreciate the validation and reference.
Thanks
said:
Robyn- Thanks for dropping by. Try some of these web references in attempts to find the original work.
I found a reference to the "7-11 Rule" of first impressions (http://dhanecrowley.com/the-7-11-rule/) but no academic reference.
Jane Boucher makes the same reference as Carol - NYU school of businss. http://www.janeboucher.org/archives34.shtml
There are a number of potentially-useful links in this discussion thread: http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=295121
said:
Jack, Carol, Robyn, saludos! I am interested in determining the source of the 7-11 rule. To this end, I contacted NYU's graduate school of business. They are not aware of such research. I even did a search on their research database (BobCat) for "7 seconds" and came up empty. Do you have better information? Has anybody found the study or its source?
Minelson:
The cited source of the "7-11 rule" is Michael Solomon, PhD, Psychologist, Chairman, Marketing Department Graduate School of Business, NYU.
The research was most probably part of Mr. Solomon's PhD dissertation, and as such it might not be available for the wider audience, although I might be wrong about that. You should try to contact NYU for Mr. Solomon's contact info.
Excellent! Thank you, Csaba.
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Hi Jack,
I too have heard that it takes anywhere from 10 seconds down to 1/20 of a second (in some "thin slicing" experiments)to make that initial impression. One research study conducted at New York University found that people make 11 decisions about others in the first seven seconds. What really caught my attention was that among those 11 decisions are perceived credibility, believability, competence,honesty and trustworthiness.
Carol Kinsey Goman, author "The Nonverbal Advantage"