In Daniels H. Pink’s book, To Sell is Human, there is an observation game at the very end of chapter 4 that I wanted to test out. It is called mirror, mirror and it is supposed to reveal how observant you are to minor details. The rules are this:
1. Find a partner and stand face to face with that person for 30 seconds
2. Then turn around so that you’re both back to back with your partner
3. Once turned around, each person change one aspect of his or her appearance- wait 60 secs
4. Turn back around and see if you or your partner can tell what has changed
5. Repeat this twice more with the same person, each time altering something new about your appearance
I made a few adjustments after the first rounds figuring out that I make a lot of noise doing absolutely anything. To up the pressure we looked at each other for minute, went to different rooms and had a minute to alter our appearance, then rejoined and had another minute to make one guess and one guess only. I grabbed a multiple friends from my hall to work through this test and these are the results.
Jaime, first round- added silver neckless
Katie, first round- rolled up jeans
RESULTS: Both went unnoticed, we focused on the face
Jaime, second round- changed earrings from silver hoops to gold hoops
Katie, second round- pulled my hair half up with a clip
RESULTS: I noticed hers and she did not notice my change
Jaime, third round- removed eye-makeup
Katie, third round- changed shoes
RESULTS: we both noticed the changes
Erin, first round-put on lipstick
Katie, first round- added a bracelet
RESULTS: both noticed the changes
Erin, second round- added a small scarf
Katie Second round- painted nails alarmingly fast
RESULTS: both noticed the changes
Erin, third round- took off belt
Katie, third round- tucked in shirt
RESULTS: neither of noticed the changes
I found that it was easier to notice changes around the face area more. When we were observing each other almost half of our time was on the face alone. This experiment definitely changes the way I will interact with certain people in the future. Being extra vigilant can help notice small changes and noticing those details can impress people. It shows that you are observant and it can act as a great conversation starter.
BoweryJE22
Gosh, Katie! Your posts are on fire! The experiment you did is SO neat! I would never expected you and your friends to notice the changes that you did and the ones that you didn’t. I think I might have to go try that same experiment on my friends and see what they notice. So neat!
Something like this is important for sizing up a scene when entering a networking event. Picking up minor details about how the way people are interacting with each other can give you the upper hand when it comes to connecting with others.