First Impressions

Introduction

As we run busily through our days we unconsciously form opinions of those who cross our paths. These opinions might be right or they might be wrong but, nonetheless, we have formed those opinions. At the same time, others are forming opinions about us–rightly or wrongly. We have some control over the impressions we make on others. We also have a responsibility to be conscious about the opinions we form about others. Opinion-forming is a two-way street. 😉

To bring this point home, give these two quick experiments a go:

Experiment 1: People watching

Head out to a busy place–maybe a coffee shop–and spend about 15 minutes guessing what jobs people have by how they present themselves. Observe how servers/baristas and other customers interact with different individuals. What do you notice? What opinions have you formed? How did you form those opinions?

It doesn’t matter what their jobs actually are, because you have already decided what they do based on their appearance, mannerisms, words they use, computers they have, and their attire.

Consider how the “environment” responds to different people. Does it reflect how the individual turns up in that environment? Sometimes how people turn up in an environment has an effect on how they are treated in that environment. People may be treated by others in ways that reflect the judgments people have made and opinions they have formed based on what they see and hear. Judgements made in the moment (and stereotypes that are often shortcuts used by our brains) impact both how we treat others and what we expect from them. By running this experiment you might find out about your own biases and preconceived notions about others.

Experiment 2: Change YOU

In healthcare, we know that patient outcomes often involve a myriad of factors, some that cannot be “manipulated” (i.e., non-modifiable characteristics such as genetics, chronological age, etc.); whereas some factors can be manipulated (i.e., modifiable characteristics such as lifestyle habits, medications, etc.). In this experiment we invite you to “manipulate” your appearance and head out to a new place.

Experiment by changing your appearance or/and your attitude (aka: level of friendliness and approachability) and head out to a place that is new to you. See how the “world” responds to this altered version of you.^[1]

Reflect on the changes you made and the responses you experienced.

Making impressions – unintentionally

We all like to believe that we are conducting ourselves professionally all the time. But are we?

How you present or conduct yourself makes an impression^[2] on how you are perceived by others–strangers, colleagues, peers, those you are caring with, instructors, etc. First impressions are formed in milli-seconds, often lasting far beyond any new facts that come to light later in the interaction. Some examples: A person who is late for the first meeting is judged as a person who comes late. A person who is unprepared might be labeled as a slacker. A person who doesn’t want to make the time to meet can appear stuck up or snooty.

Let’s focus for a moment on the impressions you might be making with team members in IPE events if you:

• Ignore emails from an IPE team member; or you receive an email from an IPE team member and you don’t reply promptly
• Are strapped for arranging meeting times and others have to work around your schedule
• Don’t show up for a team meeting
• Turn up late and unprepared for a team meeting
• Keep your camera off during the meeting
• Contribute minimally
• Appear distracted. People might assume you are checking your watch, your email, your social media page as people share their experiences
• Rush the team experience
• Tell others you don’t really have time for this; you are way too busy!
• Promise you will get your part done but you don’t come through
• Let the team pick up the work that you were supposed to do

What impression do you think you make when you act or behave in such scenarios? It is quite likely that you leave the impression that you view others as less important than you are or that you are unprofessional or not conscientious. Yikes! 😳

Let’s flip this. Consider the impression you leave with team members if you:

• Initiate the team email
• Reply promptly to team emails
• Are prepared for the team tasks
• Listen attentively, respectfully, and with interest to other team members
• Catch up with team members (if you miss a meeting) and contribute
• Start conversations
• Do your fair share
• Loop in colleagues if they happen to miss a meeting
• Speak up about completing activities professionally

What a different set of impressions!^[3]

Making impressions – intentionally

Look into a mirror. Who do you see? How do you think others see you? We know we have some control over this as we experimented with earlier. A good approach is to act-as-if: “By immersing oneself in the character of the person they want to become, individuals can better understand and internalize the attitudes and behaviors required for success.”

In IPE events you have the perfect opportunity to take the role of a member of your future profession and “act-as-if”, always remembering that what we do does not only reflect ourselves but how we act also reflects on our program and our profession so don’t wait until to graduate to be professional.^[4] Now is the time to act professional and in alignment with your profession’s code of conduct. Now is the time to be respectful and effective as a team member–a person who others can rely on and want to work with. Be professional and make a good first-impression from Day 1 of your program. You never know when you will encounter team members again–as colleagues or patients. Make sure that you have made the best first impression you possibly can.^[5]

You have control over how you present yourself to others. Getting into the habit of being professional now will make it easier to be professional when the stakes are higher–patient care rather than patient care plans–and time pressures are greater. It takes more than a license to be deemed a professional. In order to be that professional or version of yourself that you aspire to be, start exercising self-reflection. Work on what needs to be worked on–starting today because the impression you make reflects not only on you but also on your program, your college, your instructors, your institution, and your profession.

Acknowledgements: Thank you to Chantal Lécuyer for reviewing this post.

^[1] Sheryl has found that by changing her hair color, the world changes how it appears to respond to her. Schroder has found that going to a coffee shop dressed “casual” elicits a different level of service than going in dressed as though she is heading to a high-powered meeting.

^[2] *an idea, feeling, or opinion about something or someone, especially one formed without conscious thought or on the basis of little evidence.

^[3] Check out Team Skills Series. Post 1: The Effect of the Butterfly for some practical tips..

^[4] By then bad habits might have formed! We occasionally hear that team members want to cut IPE corners and rush through activities because there is so much to do! But here’s the thing…There is never going to be more time or fewer things to do. The pace only picks up! A habit of racing through and cutting corners is often what leads to clinical errors. Show how thorough and careful you are in everything you do–even IPE events. 😉

^[5] Make a good first impression: Expert tips for showing up at your best (~17 minute read) You Never Get A Second Chance To Make A First Impression (~2 minute read)