Read The Definitive Book of Body Language for Free Online Page B

not be appropriate for you to initiate a handshake. Considering that a handshake is a sign of trust and welcome, it is important to ask yourself several questions before you initiate the handshake: Am I welcome? Is this person happy to meet me or am I forcing them into it? Salespeople are taught that if they initiate a handshake with a customer on whom they call unannounced or uninvited, it can produce a negative result, as the buyer may not want towelcome them and feels forced to shake hands. Under these circumstances, salespeople are advised that it is better to wait for the other person to initiate the handshake and, if it is not forthcoming, use a small head-nod as the greeting. In some countries, shaking hands with a woman is still an uncertain practice (for example, in many Muslim countries it would be considered rude to do so; instead, a small head-nod is acceptable), but it's now been found that women who initiate a firm handshake are rated—in most places—as more open-minded and make better first impressions.

How Dominance and Control Are Communicated
     
    Considering what has already been said about the impact of the Palm-Up and Palm-Down gestures, let's explore their relevance in handshaking.
    In Roman times, two leaders would meet and greet each other with what amounted to a standing version of modern arm wrestling. If one leader was stronger than the other, his hand would finish above the other's hand in what became known as the Upper-Hand position.
    Let's assume that you have just met someone for the first time and you greet each other with a handshake. One of three basic attitudes is subconsciously transmitted:
Dominance: “He is trying to dominate me. I'd better be cautious.”
Submission: “I can dominate this person. He'll do what I want.”
Equality: “I feel comfortable with this person.”
    These attitudes are sent and received without our being aware of them, but they can have an immediate impact on the outcome of any meeting. In the 1970's we documented the effect of these handshake techniques in our business skills classes andtaught them as business strategies, which, with a little practice and application, can dramatically influence any face-to-face meeting, as you will see.
    Dominance is transmitted by turning your hand (striped sleeve) so that your palm faces down in the handshake (see below). Your palm doesn't have to face directly down, but it is the Upper Hand and communicates that you want to take control of the encounter.

     
    Taking control
     
    Our study of 350 successful senior management executives (89 percent of whom were men) revealed that not only did almost all of the managers initiate the handshake, 88 percent of males and 31 percent of females also used the dominant handshake position. Power and control issues are generally less important to women, which probably accounts for why only one in three women attempted the Upper-Hand ritual. We also found that some women will give men a soft handshake in some social contexts to imply submissiveness. This is a way of highlighting their femininity or implying that domination of them may be possible. In a business context, however, this approach can be disastrous for a woman because men will give attention to her feminine qualities and not take her seriously. Women who display high femininity in business meetings are not taken seriously by other business women or men, despite the fact that it's now fashionable or politically correct to say everyone is thesame. This doesn't mean a woman in business needs to act in a masculine way; she simply needs to avoid signals of femaleness such as soft handshakes, short skirts, and high heels if she wants equal credibility
    Women who show high feminine signals in

a serious business meeting lose credibility.
     
    In 2001, William Chaplin at the University of Alabama conducted a study into handshakes and found that extroverted types use firm handshakes, while shy, neurotic personalities don't.