Comments on: Unconscious Personal Branding

By: Vladimir Hrouda

Vladimir Hrouda — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 08:06:26 +0000

When you smile in Czech Republic or Slovakia people are like mirror – you cause a smile on their faces

By: Katie Konrath

Katie Konrath — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 02:42:25 +0000

@Torley: I’ve been in countries like that, and it’s so hard for me to get into haggling. I just want to ask the price, then decide if it’s worth it or not. I’m starting to get the hang of it, because it’s a big part of the experience and I know I have to do it to get a fair price. First time I ever enjoyed haggling was when I actually didn’t want a scarf and kept trying to leave. Managed to get it down from $40 to $5… at which point, I bought it as a gift. Even though I didn’t have fun while haggling, I walked away thinking “Ok, that was kinda cool!” So now I know how people in those cultures feel when they haggle well, and I try to give it some more effort. (After all, a penny saved…!)

@ Tom: Since we Minnesotans pronounce our “outs” the same as Canadians, I’m going to speak for them and say: Don’t worry, the friendliness is harmless! We’re not waiting until you finally put your guard down… so we can attack! Or are we…? What’s really behind our ready smiles?

@Kelly Glad you liked the post! I’m not an expert on psychology, but I’ll keep trying to incorporate it. I mostly write about things I observe, or experience myself – and why I think people act as they do. Since I like knowing about how the brain functions, I do tend to pick up some psychology!

It’s really hard trying to get rid of that eye contact and smile, isn’t it? I still have a problem with it, and I spent a couple years in Europe!

By: Kelly Giles

Kelly Giles — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 21:47:56 +0000

Thanks for the great post, Katie! I love how you tied psychology into personal branding. A few summers ago, I went to London for a week before studying in Florence, Italy — talk about culture shock. It was very strange (and difficult) to uncondition that “look up, make eye contact and smile” response that’s so ingrained in the States.

I hope you’ll keep posting about the link between psychology and personal branding. I love evolutionary psychology, and I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how those ideas can tie into creating a personal brand. Anyway, looking forward to reading more of your posts!

By: tom_h

tom_h — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 19:14:10 +0000

I grew up and worked in London, but since moving to Canada I’m still finding it hard to break the years of conditioned defensive response to strangers.

By: Torley

Torley — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 16:04:39 +0000

GLAD you brought culture up, Katie!

A fine example I can recall from my own experiences are certain pockets of Thailand and other Asian countries, where merchants EXPECT you to haggle. If you don’t, they don’t get fun out of the transaction — it’s not just about making money, it’s the choreography of being a canny negotiator.

This is also true for non-traditional cultures which have been more recently created, like BDSM lifestylers and transhumanist groups, each of which have their manners & mores. If you want to succeed within, then you cannot be without being like them.