First impressions are extremely important in establishing credibility and shaping someone's perception of us.

But if you mess up a first impression, all is not lost! The good news is that while first impressions matter, last impressions matter too. So you can always recover from a poor first impression by making an effort on how you end the interaction .

It's based on our tendency to place more weight on things that happen at the beginning and end of an 'episode', which could be a list, a movie or even an interaction (this tendency is called Serial Positioning Effect, coined by Ebbinghaus in 1964)

All the same principles apply as with the first impression:  

          1. Eye contact (although this varies by culture, so know your cultural norms) 

        2.Warmth demonstrated through open body  language 

        3. Smile if appropriate 

       4.Use the person's name 

       5.Be present 

       6.Deliver an optimistic parting message

Have you ever bombed a first impression and then felt that you recovered throughout the interaction? I'd love to hear your experiences.