Good news! Chevy has discovered the secret behind the perfect handshake. Bad news! The secret is a nearly unintelligible string of arithmetical mishmash:
The British division of Chevy (also known as Chevrolet) commissioned a professor at the University of Manchester to come up with the formula. I like to think of his formula as the “model” handshake.
Handshakes are part and parcel to everyday life in many places around the world. Keith Murnighan, a professor of management and organizations, said that’s because “touch is powerful. A handshake is an active movement that invades a person’s personal space in a socially acceptable manner. But it’s still an increase in intimacy, however slight.”
Though the press release trumpets the mathematical model’s ability to pick out a bad handshake’s deficiencies, Murnighan said the best way to improve the experience would be to work on people’s sincerity. “Trying to fake it requires real skill that most people do not have.” Chevy would be better off hiring “people who believe in the product they are selling and who really do like people,” he said.
So what’s a salesperson (or any regular Joe) to do if all they can proffer is a limp noodle? “The key is to be sincere, and have all of your actions follow that feeling,” Murnighan said.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Kellogg School and Megan Washburn, MBA Game Plan. MBA Game Plan said: RT @KelloggSchool: #Kellogg Prof. Murnighan discusses the real secret behind the perfect handshake in Expertly Wrapped: http://bit.ly/aCpb2D […]
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