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Nov 04 2014

Six Introduction Mistakes to Avoid

Praveeni

 

Introducing yourself and others to key contacts is essential for building business relationships and networking effectively. However there are pitfalls that many professionals can avoid when making introductions.

Here’s a look at 6 introduction mistakes to avoid. This information comes straight from our program How To Be A Polite Professional

  1. Looking away: Looking away when you are being introduced to someone gives off the impression that you are disinterested and don’t care about who you are meeting. Always maintain eye contact when being introduced.
  2. Making overly personal comments: When introducing someone to a group you should give a piece of information about them. Avoid alluding to divorce, job loss, illness or any sensitive topic. Instead stick to their job title, where they work or what field they’re in. You can even indicate how you met them.
  3. Interrupting: Don’t break in to a conversation or simply force yourself into one. Wait until you are introduced to the group or brought in to the conversation.
  4. Deferring to one person: Avoid speaking only to one person and ignoring the others in the group. This behaviour is especially prevalent in groups of 3, and makes the person being ignored feel awkward. Make sure you engage with everyone in your group and at least make eye contact and acknowledge people you are not immediately speaking to.
  5. Overly enthusiastic introductions: It’s always nice to highlight something positive about the person you are introducing but keep it within reason. Don’t introduce colleagues or clients with superfluous introductions as these tend to embarrass people. Avoid using phrases such as “the smartest person at our firm” “the greatest” “ the most accomplished”  “ the most amazing” etc. These come off as unprofessional and a little immature.
  6. Making someone wait to be introduced: Introduce any newcomers to the group immediately, making people wait causes them to feel left out, embarrassed and awkward.

Praveeni Perera is the CEO and co-founder of Professional Edge Consulting a corporate training company based in Ottawa offering training and coaching services to clients around the world.  She can be reached via Website, Twitter, Facebook or her Blog.

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Written by Dwania Peele · Categorized: Praveeni Perera · Tagged: awkward, business development, Canadian Small Business Women, Deferring, embarrassed, Enthusiastic, entrepreneur, eye contact, How To Be A Polite Professional, immature, Interrupting, introduction, introductions, Looking Away, mistakes, networking, Personal Comments, Praveeni Perera, Professional Edge Consulting, Relationships, small business owner, small business owners, the greatest, the most amazing, the smartest person, unprofessional

May 04 2014

Business Meeting Etiquette

 

Praveeni

Business meetings are a great way to share information, regroup and discuss upcoming projects and initiatives.  Meetings are usually between 1-2 hours long (can be longer in some cases) so it’s best to be prepared and maximize the meeting time you do have.

Here are a few etiquette tips for a successful business meeting :

 

1. Schedule your meeting well in advance
Make sure you provide enough notice for your meeting so participants can make themselves available.  External meetings should be scheduled 2 weeks in advance. Internal meetings can be scheduled on shorter notice, 24-48 hours in advance. Try to choose a location that is convenient for all parties involved; a familiar place that is fairly close to everyone and has the same amount of travel time, if required.

2. Confirm your meeting ahead of time

Although you provide adequate notice for your business meetings, it’s always a good idea to confirm your meeting date and time. This should be done 24 hours before the meeting for external meetings, and 2-3 hours before the meeting time for internal meetings. If you’re a participant you can also contact the host or meeting chair to confirm your attendance.

3. Set an agenda

An agenda lets all participants know what to expect at the meeting. When participants know what will be discussed ahead of time they can prepare whatever materials they need for the meeting and optimize meeting time. Agendas should be sent out prior to the meeting (about a week in advance for external meetings and a day in advance for internal meetings).

4. Arrive early if you’re the host

If you are hosting or chairing the meeting arrive a few minutes before your co-workers or participants. This will give you time to make sure the meeting room is ready so you don’t take up meeting time re-arranging chairs or looking for stationary.

5. Power down

When you’re at a meeting your cell phone should be on silent and kept off the table. Resist the temptation to check your phone.  Texting, emailing or even accepting calls during a meeting is extremely rude and unprofessional

6. Don’t Chit-Chat

Although some meetings can get a little boring and mundane avoid engaging in your own private conversation with someone during the meeting. This is distracting to other participants and very disrespectful to the meeting chair or host. Maintain eye contact with whoever is speaking and give them your full attention.

7. Take minutes

Minutes help participants keep track of exactly what went on at a meeting. Having a designated minute taker ensures all meeting proceedings will be noted and tracked. Minutes should be distributed 24-48 hours after the meeting so it’s still fresh in the participants’ minds.

8. Follow up

You should always follow up with your meeting participants a few days (24-48 hours) after the meeting. This can be done via email or over the phone. Make sure everyone understood the purpose of the meeting, address any questions that may arise, and review delegated tasks or projects if any.

Praveeni Perera is the CEO and co-founder of Professional Edge Consulting a corporate training company based in Ottawa offering training and coaching services to clients around the world.  She can be reached via Website, Twitter, Facebook or her Blog.

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Written by Dwania Peele · Categorized: Praveeni Perera · Tagged: agenda, business development, business etiquette, business meeting, Business Meetings, Business Woman, Canadian Small Business Women, cell phone, chairing, chit-chat, confirm, early, entrepreneur, etiquette, external meetings, follow up, hosting, internal meetings, meeting minutes, meetings, Power Down, Praveeni Perera, Professional Edge Consulting, rude, schedule, small business development, unprofessional

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