3 Secrets – Standing Out in a Crowd

Author: Angela Craig

The secret to standing out in a crowd and influencing others is to make others feel like they are the center of attention.

Here are some quick tips you can apply today that will make you a success at navigating small talk and winning others attention during any meeting or event.

Travel Light

Set yourself up for success by traveling light. When you enter a room, enter with confidence and ready to greet people. If you are weigh down by computer bags, notebooks, a briefcase or even a coat, you will find it awkward and cumbersome to extend your hand, or even a simple smile of acknowledgement to the important people in the room. Arrive looking as if you belong.

Body Language

At your next office meeting or event, ask someone you trust to evaluate your body language. Do you fidget when you are nervous? How is your posture? What about your eye contact and your smile?

A few years ago, I asked my team to evaluate me in the area of body language at a conference we were hosting. Their feedback was hard but valuable. They said that when I was contemplating something, I looked disengaged and I had a frown on my face. Being disengaged from the people I was leading and hosting was NEVER my intention. Being aware of my “thinking face” was the information I needed to make a change that reflected what was in my heart.

I highly recommend Amy Cuddy’s TedTalk – Your Body language Shapes Who You Are.

As Amy Cubby says in the video: It could significantly change the way your life unfolds.

 

Conversation: The art of being interested not interesting

Your goal in conversation is to make the other person feel intelligent and understood while creating common bonds of interest. Try adapting the two most commonly asked questions. Instead of asking: Where are you from? OR What do you do? Ask: How do you spend most of your time? OR What do you like to do outside of XXX? (X is whatever work or event you know them in.) The secret to achieving the art of being interested and not interesting is to keep asking questions about the person’s answers. For example: If the person says they like to ski in the winter, ask them, what has been their favorite ski experience.

Use these three tips for standing out in a crowd and watch your influence grow!

For more resources on how to stand out in a crowd, I recommend, How to Talk to Anyone – 92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships by Leil Lowndes. You can download it free at the link I have provided or reserve an audio-ebook at your local library.

In life and leadership,

Angela Craig

PS: I would love to hear your thoughts on, The Top 3 Secrets to Standing Out in a Crowd! Please don’t hesitate to share your stories or comments below.

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