It was ABRAHAM LINCOLN who said,
"If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend."
Obviously, he knew the value of building rapport with people.
What is Rapport
“Rapport is the ability to enter someone else’s world so that they feel that you understand them, that you have a strong common bond. It is the ability to go fully from your perception of the world to theirs. When this sympathetic relationship or understanding is established, then an environment of trust, confidence and participation is developed.
Given that Rapport is so important, how do we build it ?
Well, there are a number of ways.
In general, people who are alike, like each other, instinctively ... This is natural. Often trust follows. Put another way. People listen to those they trust, people trust those who they like, and people like those who are like them. So, to establish Rapport we emphasise the similarities between our prospect and us and minimise the differences.
The Importance of Rapport Building
Rapport building can be done by matching and mirroring a person’s expressions such as physiology that includes breathing, gestures, posture and facial expressions; tonality that includes quality, speed, pitch and volume; and words that comprise of predicates used.
Rapport building skills can be used in any area of your life and on any person. Rapport building might be required within your family, for your spouse or children. You can avoid conflicts with your spouse or better understand the thought processes of your child once a good rapport is developed. It is very important in professional life as well, for getting along with superiors, teammates and subordinates. Rapport building is vital to group meetings, discussions or decision-making, where a good rapport can avoid conflicts, misunderstandings and arguments.
After a strong rapport is built, you can better express your ideas and viewpoints to the