Put Your Best Foot Forward: Make a Great Impression by
Taking Control of How Others See You
by Jo-Ellan Dimitrius PhD and Mark Mazzarella
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First published 2002
Simon and Shuster
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People are always judging you. Whether you are in a meeting,
on a date, in a classroom, or on the telephone, others are constantly forming
impressions of you -- often drawing conclusions from traits you never knew you
had or didn't know influenced others. This books helps you understand how
impressions are made and how to accentuate those positive qualities that appeal
to others, and eliminate the negative ones. Written by Jo-Ellan Dimitrius,
America's best-known jury consultant, and Mark Mazzarella, a seasoned trial
lawyer and lecturer, Put Your Best Foot Forward is an insightful guide
to help you enhance your mental, emotional, and physical attributes by
understanding the true impact of how you look, what you say, and how you act.
Filled with perceptive insights and shrewd advice and based on extensive
research and experience, it is a primer on what Dimitrius and Mazzarella call
impression management. It focuses on how to project what the four ‘compass qualities’
that are the foundation of every great impression: Trustworthiness, Caring,
Humility, and Capability, and on how to paint a positive picture of yourself
with the ‘seven Colours’, or key areas, of impression formation: Appearance,
Body language, Voice, Communication techniques, Content of communication,
Action, Environment. Drawing from their own experiences as well as data
collected from thousands of participants in their own and others' research and
surveys, Dimitrius and Mazzarella describe how each quality and colour affects
what people think of you and how you can affect others' impressions of you by
modifying these traits. They have pinpointed magic pills, which can always be
used to create great impressions, and toxic traits, which irreparably damage
your good name. Drawing examples from real life, relationships and cyberspace,
Dimitrius and Mazzarella explain that you can improve the impressions you make
-- anytime, anyplace.