Why Are They Important?
Every professional needs to present a strong personal introduction. Your introduction may be the first impression people have of you and it is important for your career growth, personal brand and it is a reflection of your leadership. A good introduction is the gateway to new clients, sales, a new job, or other professional opportunities.
Whether you introduce yourself or someone else does, it is a simple way to make an impression.
First, What Your Body Language And Attire Says About You
When you are introducing yourself or someone else is, remember that people aren’t just listening to the words you say. They are looking at your body language, your attire, and whether you are friendly and open, so pay attention to your nonverbal presentation as well as your verbal one.
Body language speaks louder than words. Nervous habits have a way of showing themselves under stress, for example, tapping your fingers or feet, avoiding eye contact, swiveling from side to side in your chair, rocking, resting your head on your hand or crossing your arms. Pay attention to your nervous habits and corral them so they don’t distract from your strong introduction and diminish your leadership presence.
On the other hand, making appropriate eye contact, nodding along, smiling, and sitting upright shows interest and reinforces your leadership presence.
Attire: Your attire is a part of your brand. Dress to be taken seriously, even if you are working from home. Dressing appropriately is a sign of respect for yourself and others in the meeting, and reinforces your brand.
Self Introduction
Whatever meeting you attend requires an introduction. If you introduce yourself, and are like me, you may think that it will come naturally-it may or it may not. There is stress associated with introducing yourself because everyone is looking at you and it can be a distraction to giving a good first impression, so prepare yourself by practicing your introduction.
Self introductions at a meeting or professional event are tricky. Some people have nailed their introductions, they are short and packed full of useful information. Others are short with no information or long winded with too much information.
Introduction By Others
If you have been invited to speak at a meeting, it is likely that someone will be introducing you. Although you won’t have the anxiety of self introductions you will need to prepare a script for the speaker to introduce you.
Tips
Below are some tips on how to prepare a strong introduction whether you introduce yourself or someone else does. These examples are best suited for meetings. If you are professionally speaking or going for a job interview, more and different information is required and isn’t covered in this post. Remember that meetings are time limited and lengthy introductions cut into valuable agenda time.
- Keep the introduction short-1 minute at the most (50-150 words). Any longer and you may lose your audience.
- The introduction should provide the following information:
- Your Name
- Title, organization, experience, or expertise
- Your why-who do you serve?
- Your successes that make you a valuable member at this meeting/event
- Tailor your introduction to your audience/meeting focus
- When someone is introducing you, write your introduction in the third person.
Below is a sample template of the basics of an introduction, and examples of what a self introduction and being introduced by someone else might look like.
Sample Template with Examples
| Template Basics | Sample 1: Self Introduction (first person) | Sample 2: Introduced by another (third person) |
| Name | Hi, name is Donna Bing and | |
| Name/Interest/focus/ experience/expertise | I have a passion for simplifying the end user experience. I have a bachelor’s degree from the Computer Science University of … and over 8 years experience in this area. (Interest, focus, why and experience) | Jane Cross is the manager of the sales department at Wyndham Mills, Coaching and Consulting. Her role is to find leads and strategize about how to expand the company presence. (Name, company, why) |
| Your Why: Why were you chosen for this topic | (see above) | Jane is passionate about marketing, it has been her focus over the last 12 years. In the last three years, Jane and her team have successfully developed a marketing strategy for a strong social media presence. (Experience focus, why, successes) |
| Your successes: you successfully: implemented, led teams, assessed, evaluated, coached in this area. | Through my analysis and evaluation of processes to improve product “J”, customers indicated that they were pleased with the changes and had a better customer experience. (62 words) (Successes) | Jane has been providing workshops on social media marketing. She will share some tips on how to generate leads. She will also discuss common questions raised about social media marketing. (93 words) (Expertise, why) |
These examples show how the template can be modified to an individual’s experience while meeting the basics of an introduction.
Takeaway
Your personal introduction shows your leadership and brand. A good introduction is the gateway to more opportunities. Take the time to prepare your introduction, keep it brief packed with the right information and practice saying it.
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Leadership Mindset 