Nicholas Boothman Shares “21 Ways to Make a Connection in Business in 90 Seconds”

Attendees at the GMC-PCMA March Education Program enjoyed an engaging and informative presentation from Nicholas Boothman.  After years as a fashion and advertising photographer, he is now recognized as a world-renowned leader in turning first impressions into profitable relationships.  During this program, Boothman shared his “21 ways to make a connection in business in 90 seconds”.

The number one predictor of success is the ability to speak up, and throughout the presentation Boothman encouraged audience participation to reinforce his message.

Boothman shared why it is important to make a connection and  be “liked” right away. When you say “I like you”, you are really saying “You are like me”.  You are recognizing that you have things in common with someone that can make a connection easier. When someone is liked, people look for opportunities to say yes to them.

In addition to speaking up, to make a connection, you also need to utilize:

• The five human super powers you were born with.
  • Enthusiasm, which gives you the “want” to learn.
  • Curiosity, which helps you to dig deeper to gain more knowledge.
  • Feedback, which helps you make things better by understanding responses.
  • Empathy, which is the key to connecting with someone.  You need to see the world through other’s experiences.
  • Imagination, “capture the imagination and you capture the heart.
• Five natural ways to make a trusting first impression.
  • Attitude. It’s important to have a “useful” attitude…not just a “positive” one.  Useful attitudes are reflective of such things like, smiling, welcoming, resourceful.  Un-useful attitudes would include being rude, bored, hostile, or appearing that way.
  • Eye contact. This implies that trust is underway and that you are paying attention to the conversation.
  • Smile. This portrays happiness and confidence.
  • Open body language.  This is done by exposing your heart.
  • Synchronize.  Body language naturally synchronizes when you have made a connection with someone you trust.  To help in making a fast connection, you can simulate the synchronization. For example, if someone smiles, you smile.
• Five Golden Rules for Simple Goal-Oriented Communication.  For these rules, conversation was defined as how you build relationships, but communication is goal-oriented; it’s how you get things done.
  • Know what you want in the positive.  This was a strong point shared by Boothman.  You can make subtle changes to your language to express what you want in the positive, which is more easily visualized and processed by the listener than negative language. An example given was after leaving a store with a purchase and saying thank you to the clerk, the clerk says “no problem” which leaves you with “was there a problem?” A better, more positive response would have been “it was my pleasure.”
  • Find out what you are getting.
  • Change what you do until you get what you want.
  • Tie it up with a few catchy words.
  • Attach it to an image or short story.

The above four were illustrated by a story to reinforce that the brain more easily remembers and connects when it can visualize the information.  “Facts and figures get forgotten, but once upon a time can last forever.”

• Appear Socially Smarter:
  • Wear great clothes.  You want to dress appropriately to express both authority and approachability.
  • Head for the middle. When at a social gathering, move to the middle of the room. The perception is that more popular people are in the middle of the room.
  • Move more slowly.  When approaching the middle of the room, walk slower than you may normally. This will make you appear confident.
  • Use the three second rule.
  • Use talk show questions.  Learn how to get people talking and keep them talking.  Start with a statement, followed by an open question and use physical and verbal feedback to show interest.

With the reception at Kitty O’Shea’s immediately following the presentation, how did you use your new skills?