I recently attended a career fair at OSU. I enjoyed my time and had an incredbile experience, but learned some valuable lessons as well. Career fairs are all about first impressions, and I learned that every first impression is essentially the same. There are six main phases that the natural first impressions go through, and I will share my wealth of information with you. I'm cool like that.
Phase 1: Acquire a target.
Before interacting with someone at all, pick someone who looks interesting. If you pick the wrong person for your first impression, none of the other phases matter.
Phase 2: The Smile.
It sounds cliche because it is cliche, but seriously. A smile makes all the difference in the world, especially when you're not feeling it. Without a smile, you look like a robotic movie villain. Don't be a robotic movie villain.
Phase 3: Find a Common Ground.
Once you've completed the smile phase of a first impression, scramble to find a common ground. This common ground is what the entire interaction is based upon, so make sure it's a good one. Example: "You're from Seattle? I'M FROM SEATTLE NO WAY."
Phase 4: Charm.
The fourth phase can be the hardest one and is the most important for a good first impression. Once you have smiled and found your common ground, use it to charm your target into liking you, at least temporarily. This usually takes the form of a few forced jokes about your common ground. Example: "The weather here is wet and rainy, but we're used to that from Seattle ha ha ha."
Phase 5: React.
The fifth phase is optional and depends on how much of a chatty Kathy your target was. If they do all the talking, react and respond in kind, generous ways that sound like you're interested. Example: "Haha yeah. Us Seattlites do know all about the rain."
Phase 6: Bail.
Phase six is one of the most satisfying. Once you have exhausted your common ground, bail as fast as humanly possible while still sounding polite. But be careful. If you bail too early, you look disinterested and if you bail too late, the whole venture is lost and you both feel awkward. Example: "Okay well this was fun, but I have some work I need to get to. See you later!"
Once you have a healthy grasp on these six stages of a killer first impression, you are able to wow at any career fair, meeting of the parents or any other new social engagement. Just remember to aqcuire a target, smile, find a common ground, charm, react and bail.
