Rapport is the foundation for any meaningful interaction between two or more people – be it related to consultations, sales, negotiation, providing information or directions to a co-worker, subordinate or boss, a conversation with a family member, training, coaching, … .
Rapport can be explained in a number of ways. For me, rapport is about establishing an environment of mutual trust, understanding, respect and safety, which gives a person the freedom to fully express their ideas and concerns and to know that they will be respected by the other person(s).
Rapport creates the space for the person to feel listened to and heard and it doesn’t mean that they have to agree with what the other person says or does. Each person appreciates the other’s viewpoint and respects their model of the world (different models of the world is one of the precepts of NLP).
When you are in rapport with another person, you have the opportunity to enter their world and see things from their perspective, feel the way they do, get a better understanding of where they are coming from; and as a result, enhance the whole relationship.
Using your body language to match theirs is a simple, easy step that you can use to start building rapport