Hug vs. Handshake
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Hug vs. Handshake
1–10 of 167 posts
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#2Thank god I'm not the only one who worries about this.
What I do is imagine I'm going for a handshake, if their arm extends it's likely they're looking for a handshake, otherwise turn it into a soft hug!
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#3Hug more people imo, geez
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#4This reminds me of the awkwardness of seeing someone you sort-of know in passing and deciding whether to stop and chat with them or just say "Hey! How ya doing?" and continue walking.
The "stop and chat" dilemma immortalized by Larry David: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5f2LJXz-l2k
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#5I hug all my friends, male and female. If they seem uncomfortable, I just make a mental note to shake their hand instead in the future.
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#6Hug more people imo, geez
Many people appear to be offended and creeped out by that, at least in some cultures. And especially females if you're a male.
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#7Hug more people imo, geez
GERROF
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#8To make it even more complicated, people from different counties react differently to hugging. Taiwanese, for example, often seem be quite uncomfortable with it.
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#9I don't like shaking hands (business handshakes are fine) or hugging unless it's a loved one or someone you are really close to and generally want to feel the embrace from the hug. Otherwise I think it's just pointless touching to signify some non-existant closeness.
What's wrong with just saying "hi"? Or a friendly fist-bump if you want to do something more fun?
I especially hate meeting a new group of people and having to shake every hand. It's so stupid.
As an American now living in Germany I always have to hug every single friend I've met more than once. I do it just because it's the expected behavior but I don't necessarily enjoy it.
FWIW I do feel like I'm a real life Larry David sometimes.
Re: Hug vs. Handshake
#10This has been bothering me for a while, and I generally come down on the side of hugging. Hand shaking with a woman always seems to me like I'm forcing a male to male ritual on the situation. No matter how formal the meeting is, it always seems off. Now, granted, I'm not going to hug the female CEO of a company I'm doing business with at the first meeting, but even so, a handshake still feels off.
My general rule of thumb is – if I'm comfortable with the person and she's a woman, it's a hug. If I'm not comfortable, it's a handshake and a small inner sigh at the inadequacy of it. I don't consciously think about if it's work or not work, but I do of course tend to feel less comfortable with work contacts than I do with other social contacts, at least for the first few meetings.