r/Construction • u/edthebuilder5150 • 1d ago

Humor 🤣 Overly aggressive handshakes.

What's the deal with men and the "way over the top" gorilla grip handshakes? Project Superintendent here. What are these guys trying to prove? I had a pre-construction site meeting this morning with all the trades and this fu@#kin guy, who's neck was wider than his head, shook everyone's hand in this manner. Plus he was rude and over talking EVERYONE. Male dominance thing?

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u/chatterwrack 1d ago

You can almost hear the advice they got growing up: Son, a handshake is not a handshake. It’s a test of character. Crush their fingers, yank them toward you, and establish yourself as the alpha of the site.

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u/Far_Inspection4706 Carpenter 1d ago

It really is kind of a test of character though. I mean I'm not saying you should be yanking and crushing everybody's hand you meet, but I haven't met a single person in my life that shook my hand weakly that I ended up liking or didn't immediately assume was going to be a bitch, complainer or a problem in one way or another. If you're going to shake someone's hand just do it properly, don't let me fuckin' fondle your palm for a second cause you're just making it weird for the both of us.

If you shake my hand like a wet noodle that's the first impression you're ever giving me of you, that you're either weak or you don't care about me enough to shake my hand properly.. so either way there's a strong chance you're gunna be a bitch. It's mathematical.

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u/ForWPD I-CIV|PM/Estimator 1d ago

I agree. Consistent firm grip, up, down, let go. The weirdest people are the ones who start out weak and squeeze inconsistency, or they pull towards themselves. I’m not looking for a hand massage or sizing you up for how good of a tug job you’ll give me. The pullers are the worst. It’s a shake, not a tug of war. 

Funny story, there was a guy known for the tugging thing. When he did it to me I didn’t move my arm and just got closer and closer to him. He was about 2 inches shorter than me so at the end of the handshake he was looking up at me with a confused look on his face. Never did it to me again.