6 ways you should NEVER shake hands

(Editor’s note: This was one of the top viewed stories of 2014. We’re rerunning it as part of a look back at the articles that captivated our readers the most.)

You meet someone, you shake hands. But instead of the solid, firm and confident handshake you expect, you get a limp fish, a crushing gripper, or a sweaty slip.

Getting your handshake wrong is a surefire way of making a horrible first impression. Some common handshake mistakes are:

1. The sweaty slip. Some people have sweaty hands, and many get them when they are nervous; that’s just normal. It can make shaking hands tricky in stressful situations such as job interviews. However, there is no excuse for a wet handshake. When I get sweaty hands, I simply dry them on a piece of clothing before shaking someone’s hand.

2. The limp fish. Not gripping the other person’s hand firmly enough and then shaking from your wrist is a big mistake because it sends negative messages: “I am not confident,” or, “I am a pushover.”