When I go in for an interview, I know immediately if the interviewer doesn't offer me a fist bump that it is not a place I want to work.

Seriously though, it has nothing to do with the other person consciously weighing the strength of your handshake against other people's. Like other people have said, a firm handshake is generally taken as a sign of confidence without any conscious thought involved. If people think you're confident, even if they don't know why they think that, they're more likely to want to hire you or do business with you.

That's all.

I don't see how trying to give a good first impression is elitist bull****. The way you're talking Mort, you seem to think that we're saying a handshake is the #1 way to get a job. If you're a strong/respectable person, you present yourself as that. A handshake is just part of that I think.If you're a dick and refuse to shake someones hand, that comes off as rude

You're an intelligent one.

...oh, wait.

C'mon, dude..seriously? Are you really this out of touch with the world?

i originally thought this thread was about HDMI troubles

Firm handshakes are also good when you are meeting your girlfriends dad for the first time

I think what will help Mort is a pie chart showing the relationship a good handshake has to how likely it is they will be successful as a percentage of all of the other variables that go into the probability of success.

BTW, there are hundreds of articles like this one:
http://www.bcjobs.ca/re/career-advice/career-advice-articles/interview-advice/good-handshake-key-to-interview-success

fixed!

seriously though. No, of course getting hired is not going to be dependent solely on your handshake. But, you are incredibly naive if you REALLY think that a poor hand shake does not often reflect poorly on your character. This may only be true in the U.S. i dont know. i have never tried to get a job outside the country.

i think some pie would help a lot of us... yum...

give em the spit-shake.

The point => .




You =>

mort wins at life.

This.

And apparently, Mort, the phrase "All else being equal" is completely lost on you.

Furthermore, "qualifications" in terms of education and so forth only mean so much out in the real world. Being educated in a subject does not equate to a person's ability to excel in a job in the same field.

Right, so qualifications are some vague abstraction that only show your ability to commit and do hard work in a particular field. Oh, but a handshake, that truly shows your character! You guys are ****ing ridiculous.

or maybe you are blowing this **** way out of proportion because you are the type who has zero confidence in himself and is extremely worried because he has a limp wristed handshake

Ooooh, zing! How clever of you! I don't dispute that confidence, strength of character, intelligence, and experience are important factors, in life as well as business. Reading all of those things from a second-long ritual is ****ing ridiculous, and believing that you can read confidence, strength, and intelligence from such a ritual is proof that you're lacking in all of them. But make up for it with a firm handshake!

If you're the sort of person that reads this and gobbles it all up, I'm sure as **** not going to employ you. You may well invest in something based on your astrological forecast.

I was gonna say something to this effect.

Well at least we all know if we ever meet Mort we can offer a handshake and he'll run off. Apparently the word "marginal" doesn't enter into his vocab.

Often times you will have similar, if not too similar, qualifications with someone. Someone who appears confident and focused (which you can gather from a firm handshake, because it shows extra, albeit minimal, effort) will stand out. The fact that you do something so simple as a firm handshake shows that you are trying, and making sure you make a good impression.

Maybe you'd prefer to be hired based on skin color all other things equal?

It's part of the overall impression.

You appear to be too dense to comprehend this, so I'm not going to waste any more time explaining it to you.

Do you understand the meaning of the phrase "All else being equal"?

You take two people with equal qualifications, but person one exudes confidence, which includes a firm handshake, making good eye contact with the interviewer, etc, vs person so who awkwardly offers a weak handshake and can't maintain eye contact, the first person in going to be chosen every single time.

No, it's not. It's simply *one* small aspect of your persona. You can't go in with a good handshake and then mumble and stare at the floor through the rest of the interview. It just one small thing to think about that has a good time/benefit ratio. If you make it awkwardly it gives you a bad start for your interview. Awkwardness is bad at any point.

You need to seriously start shutting up. In arguing about this, you've given the issue way more thought than any person would ever give to the subject, and it's all because you can't freaking back down. You're clearly too egotistical to let any issue go, no matter how small, because you're too insecure to admit that you could ever be wrong in any way. It's embarrassing.

Right. Giving an issue thought is clearly a terrible thing.

This thread became really entertaining.

Lol.

I'm done with this this thread, you've shown more about yourself then I could ever hope to reveal by arguing.

I hope you stay firm in your ways, it will minimize the chances of me coming in contact with you in a professional environment.

That was pretty much your position on the subject from the get-go. I was just pointing out the hypocrisy.

.

I'm guessing you superficial ****s would never have employed any of these guys

No, you fail at reading comprehension, sorry. We're not saying that a handshake has anything to do with ones qualifications (other then perhaps confidence).

...and "qualifications" (ie, pieces of paper with pretty writing on it) have NOTHING to do with "your ability to commit and do hard work in a particular field." Only ones experience can show that. I've learned that self-educated individuals are often times far more qualified then those who went to the best institutions.

These days, certificates and diplomas mean very little in the real world as our generation starts to emerge in management/hiring positions. Many of us have learned first hand that experience is far more valuable then anything learned in a class room or laboratory.

Like it or not, a bad handshake is a strike against you in most companies during the interview process. Largely because of what it says about your personality but also because they wouldn't want you shaking customer hands with a bad handshake.

Believe me, we all understand your stance on this and believe it or not, we agree that a handshake probably shouldn't have any affect on ones employment. But unfortunately it does, which is in responds to the original question posted in this thread.

You have absolutely zero understanding of what it entails to get yourself hired in the real world. Seriously.

And again, you're taking the ridiculous stance that the handshake is the one thing that employers are going to look at.

I bet they had good handshakes.

Bill Gates said that one of the qualities he looked for in his employees when he was first putting Microsoft together was a good strong handshake. I guess that worked out pretty well for him.

My God, Gates doesn't look like he would survive the winter in that photo...but who am I to take a shot at Bill Gates when he could buy my family for the next 50 generations...

To an extent I agree with Mort, but I'm quite happy to jump through any hoops in order to get a job offer. I can decide after I have the offer whether it's the kind of place I want to work.

but giving it too much thought and throwing an e-fit over it is

omgevil!

what if your dick is your hand
what are you supposed to do theN?

go around slapping girls.

This whole thing is completely ridiculous. Mort-Hog, you are throwing off defensive "I have no social skills" vibes all over the place. And I don't care what your qualifications are if you don't have good SOCIAL SKILLS. And by social skills I don't mean "I have friends". I mean you have to communicate effectively and work with people. A handshake falls into the "social skills" category, and without good social skills (in general!) you are not going to be as effective in many jobs, no matter how much you know. After all, part of your job is probably going to be using what you know to inform others, OTHERS being the key word there.

Anyway, the point is, the handshake is not the be-all end-all gauge of a person's personality, but it's part of it. People who spend all day practicing their handshake are missing the point. BE a capable, confident person, and you will come off as one.

When someone tries to shake my hand, I grimace slightly at the thought of touching another person, wait for them to feel awkward and lower their hand, and then bow lightly. I get away with this, because my handlebar moustache commands respect from my peers and superiors.

Yeah, but I guess that makes him a misguided **** who doesn't know what to look for in his company. I guess he's a "Dave Brent" employer

He didn't actually say that, I was just giving Mort a hard time.