I give a brief nod to acknowledge their existence and then move on to more important things.

If it's someone I met then I just smile at them and say hello but if it's a really good friend of mine we always hug.

I wouldn't hug on the first meeting.

first meeting? handshake
unless ur my friend no hug

i hug my FRIENDS all the time, but when you meet someone, a handshake always!!!! i can't imagine a stranger hugging another stranger!

I had an awkward experience where I was meeting my boyfriend's friend's girlfriend for the first time and was told that if she didn't like you, she would let you know. So I was a bit paranoid and was under the impression she would be b*tchy. When we were introduced I started to put out my hand, then quickly noticed that not only was she going in for a hug... but a hug and a kiss on the cheek!!

I have hugged people on the first meeting, but because I kind of saw what they were going for It really depends on how 'happy' they seemed and their body language. It is a little tricky though. But I usually would go for a safer approach especially if it's an environment I'm not familiar with.

Where i grew up we always kiss, and I hate the handshake here in the US (whenever it is not about work), it is so cold, but again now I know people here do not care about others.

In general I totally agree with you about the relative coldness of the culture here, gabiushka, but as far as demonstrations of affection on a first meeting, I've got to disagree. I'd rather not hug or kiss unless I do really feel affectionate towards the person, and that's not going to happen the first time we meet.

The second time and on, yeah.

I hate hugging my friends so I'm definitely not getting a hug from someone I just met. I don't shake their hands either unless it's someone important or a guy. Do girls really shake each other's hands? Neither make me comfortable I'd rather just talk.

When being introduced, I go for a handshake. If we're in a group and too far apart to shake, I sometimes just do a little wave.

Hugging strangers is weird. I hug my family, that's about it. I never really hug my friends. We're just not like that. I've had friends that were huggers though and it never bothered me.

Handshake!

I had the most awkward experience though trying to hug a friend's girlfriend. I had just really enthusiastically hugged an old friend after not seeing him for a year, and I had only met the girlfriend once before. I don't know why, I just felt so compelled to hug her because I had just hugged like three people, including her boyfriend, and I really liked her the first time I met her.

So. Awkward.

Wow popgoestheworld...that is really cold and unfriendly...

i felt pretty awkward once, because i am a hugger, and whenever i would say goodbye to my friends at university at a holiday when i wouldn't see them for a month or something, i would give them a hug

well i lived in the same building as one girl, and i hugged her goodbye once, and i also hugged her to say thanks for a christmas gift once...and then i found out like 6 months later that she HATES hugs and they make her really uncomfortable, and i had to be like, "uh sorry, i've hugged you before haven't i?" and she was like, "um, yah, you have," like it totally weirded her out

Definitely handshake! My fiance comes from a hugging family, very Full House (the TV show)..they hug all the time..haha, and I definitely am not like that. It was hard to get used to being expected to hug everyone when you first met them.

Funny this post came up. I just sold my dishwasher through my company website to this lady I have never met, and when she gave me the money she hugged me! So weird, but I don't mind it. I'm a hugging kind of girl...

I am by nature not a hugger, and the first time I went down to Austin to meet my bf's family, I actually got a lesson on how to hug properly! I didn't realize I had been doing it incorrectly all of these years...

snowbunny, I agree with you... it was just a joke. I would never behave that way in a million years. I am feeling snarky today for some reason, but it doesn't always translate well into text. And even if it does transalte well, it's possible it's not funny at all

On to a real post... I was actually just discussing this with friends. The conclusion I came to is that if someone "new" hugs me, I'm happy to hug them. But I don't initiate hugs upon first meeting unless I've spoken to them on the phone many times or feel close to them for some other reason.

The comment I actually am offended by, unless it's snarky also, is this one:

"Where i grew up we always kiss, and I hate the handshake here in the US (whenever it is not about work), it is so cold, but again now I know people here do not care about others."

I personally care very much for many people, and am appalled at your broad generalizations of our society.

As for handshake vs. bow vs. kissing, much of it is just custom and it's how we grow up.

What if I just started bowing during introductions? I bet I'd get some stares, right? Yet that is the custom elsewhere.

I think people try to keep to custom specifically BECAUSE we do care about others. We want to make them feel comfortable and welcome and randomly smooching them, if they aren't expecting it, isn't going to do that.

I only hug when I know the person better-not on a first meeting though.

Handshake-I'm not very touchy-feely.

Neither.

Well, I'll take hugs if someone tries to hug me, but for some reason handshakes have always made me EXTREMELY uncomfortable (and I can't figure out why). So, I'll shake someone's hand if it's work related, on a professional basis, etc., but in terms of just plain people, when I am offered a handshake I politely explain that I don't shake hands at all, and move on.

Now that I think of it, I do a dorky little wave. Someone introduces me and I'm like "hi!" and wave.... Really dorky.

Definately a handshake upon introduction. I'm not much of a hugger unless I know someone really well. I'm not big on touching.

First meeting? Handshake.

I shake hands. In a social setting quite a number of people seem to find even that a bit strange though. Standing back and doing nothing but an awkward smile and wave seems too impersonal to me, so I'll always shake their hand if its practical. I work as a professional so it comes naturally to me when meeting someone.

It bugs me when a guy is being introduced to the group and will shake other males' hands, but bypass the females. I always get up and make sure to give them a good handshake!

When I lived in Brazil it took a while to get used to everyone you meet swooping in for a hug and multiple kisses! When in Rome.

Oh, for my close girl friends I'll usually give them a quick hug and maybe peck on the cheek when I see them. We don't go overboard though - this is only if it 'flows' naturally, if that makes sense.

Definitely the handshake on the first meeting, maybe even the 3rd and 4th one too. Im not much of a hugger really, and when I do hug someone its usually pretty short and light. It may seem like I'm a cold person but I guess I'm the kind of person who really likes hugs ..

*dosen't like hugs

whoops!

I prefer hand shakes. Respectful and diplomatic. Hugs on the other hand are very personal. I gotta put a lid on it where some people are concerned.

OH, GOD. Handshakes are what sorority girls do during rush. EEK. I don't think I've ever done that to greet someone. When I meet a stranger, I'll wave and say hi, but yes, TidalWave, I've known people to also lean in for a hug and a kiss on the cheek. When my friend's friend gave me a kiss on the cheek, I sort of stiffened up and looked awkward, so she just laughed at me and explained the tradition.

I think people who give hugs when they first meet are so sweet and so adorable. When I went over to my boyfriend's grandparents house, they didn't give me a hug as I went through the door because of the introductions, but when we all left, his grandmother insisted on a hug from me, too. Adorable!

Handshake. Always.

I'm a hugger with friends but never the first time I meet someone. I do always offer a handshake though.

Definitely handshake..

I would never hug a stranger upon first being introduced!

I dont like being touched very much by people I know, let alone people I just met. I would be ruffled by a hug for sure. It makes me uncomfortable.

I usually do a handshake but I feel manly when I do it. Sometimes I just give a nod and a smile.

I dont do the hugs and dont get it - but being Puerto Rican, I greet everyone with a kiss on the cheek.

Perfect example - I recently met my boyfriend's friend's wife - she put her hand out to shake mine, I shook it and gave her a kiss on the cheek hello - and she was totally fine with that.

I do it saying hello and goodbye.

Neither. I don't like handshakes unless it's involved with business. If it's someone I'm meeting for the first time I just nod and say hi, I may give a little wave if it's from across the table or something.

I am so not a hugger...unless I've known the person a long time and am close to them.

It makes me feel awkward when people I don't know that well try to hug me. Yuck.

HUGGGGGGGGGGSSSSSSSS, ALWAYS.