91. Be brave and start from now! (cont.)

Talk about what others like to hear, not what you like to relate. Choose the right topics (19) Be kind at the first meeting It was the habit in some rural areas of old Egypt that a groom before his wedding night would hide a cat in his room. On the wedding night, when alone with his wife, he would move a chair slightly to so as to free the cat. He would then demonstrate his might to his wife by getting hold of the poor cat and strangling it to death! Why? So that the first impression of him imprinted in the mind of his wife would be one of awe! When I graduated from university and took up a position as an instructor at a college, a senior instructor advised me, saying, “Be stern with the students during your first lesson and stare at them with furious eyes so they will be in awe of you from the very beginning.” I remembered this as I was writing this chapter and realised that one thing everyone would agree upon is that the first meeting imprints 70% of an impression on one’s mind. This is referred to as the “first impressions.” A group of officers once travelled to the USA to attend a training program on interpersonal skills in the work environment. On the first day, they arrived early to the classroom and began chatting in order to get to know one other. Suddenly, the instructor walked in and they fell silent. The instructor’s eyes fell upon a student who was still smiling. “Why are you laughing?” He screamed. The student replied: “I’m sorry, I wasn’t laughing.” “You were!” screamed the instructor, and chastised him further, saying, “You are not a serious student! You should return to your family on the next available flight! I cannot teach your likes!” The poor student felt embarrassed and gazed at the instructor and then at his colleagues in confusion. The instructor then frowned at him, pointed to the exit and said, “Get out!” The student got up frightened and left the room. The instructor looked at the rest of the students and said, “I am Dr. So-andso. I will be teaching you such-and-such a subject. But before I begin, I would like you to fill in a questionnaire without writing your names on them.” He then distributed the questionnaires to the students.