<p>Another female engineer handshaker here. I always offer my hand and would be pretty offended if I saw the other party race off to wash their hand :-). I SO much prefer handshaking to DH’s awkward hugging with cheek and/or air kissing extended family. They used to even kiss strangers at church during the “peace be with you” part of their Catholic Mass.</p>
<p>Another handshaker. This makes me think of teaching my kids and the Red Grammer lyric which says to “Look em in the eye and say “Hi!”” :)</p>
<p>I am a doc and I shake hands with my patients. I also make a point of washing my hands in the patient’s line of sight immediately prior to shaking hands and upon leaving the bedside. Hospital practice requires handwashing before and after patient contact. (There are audits, scorecards, video cameras and wrist-slapping to enforce compliance.)</p>
<p>The strongest handshake I remember came from a female orthopedic surgeon I met several years ago.</p>
<p>And another female engineer who handshakes. Always seemed the normal thing to do to me. I do not want a hug from female or male coworker, boss, vendor, etc. I reserve hugs for family and close friends.</p>
<p>My Dr. (general practitioner) is a woman. She always shakes my hand when she enters the exam room where I’m waiting. I think it’s a nice touch.</p>
<p>I’m also a 50 something woman, have worked my entire career in healthcare.
I easily extend my hand and it never seems awkward. I think that it does not seem so natural with younger women in the workplace?</p>
<p>Our kids also learned eye contact, firm handshake and “nice to meet you”, even our challenging special needs D. It has served D and her brother well.
Almost a lost art it seems.</p>
<p>I often shake hands with others. I would never hug someone I didn’t know really well, and would be uncomfortable if someone I didn’t know or barely knew tried to hug me.</p>
<p>I’m not a fan of air kisses at all, much less from someone I don’t know well, and even less from someone to whom I’ve just been introduced.</p>
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<p>Shaking hands is an assessment tool to determine if the patient is nervous ( sweaty palms) or potentially has circulatory problems ( cold hands) or has muscle weakness. The doctor is doing an examination of sorts without the patient ever realizing it.</p>
<p>50 years old - I’ve picked up handshaking over the years at work and at church, it’s no problem for me and I’m NOT an engineer or doctor. I often offer first but not always. Cheek kissing would freak me out! I’ve only seen it on tv - or maybe an occasional person on the street. No one I know does that. I wouldn’t even know what to do - good thing I’m not in Hollywood.</p>
<p>Mid- 40’s professional business. I always shake hands in a professional setting and I extend my hand first to the men so they know what to do. I’m from NJ, but I don’t want to be kissed at work. </p>
<p>My kids grew up going to a school where from as young as Kindergarten they were greeted at the door every morning and every afternoon shaking the head of the school or some other representative’s hand, looking them in the eye and saying good morning and some other greeting. Both are completely comfortable meeting adults and shaking hands. Lots of practice makes you feel less awkward.</p>
<p>Please, no cold fish limp handshakes and don’t try and break my fingers either.</p>
<p>My mother once held a party for my father’s colleagues. Instead of a fabric towel, she had these fancy paper towels in the bathroom. At the end of the night, she found that none of them were in the garbage can and that it looked like they hadn’t been disturbed.</p>
<p>After that, she said she didn’t want to shake anyone’s hand anymore.</p>
<p>I’m not a handshaker and definitely not a hugger. But I don’t mind participating if the other person initiates.</p>
<p>I do shake hands, and I am a female. However, in this area, you shake hands the first time you meet, it seems and then it’s hugs and air kisses.</p>
<p>I do shake hands when I meet someone. What I don’t like to do is to kiss. Unfortunately I was at a country for 2 years where people kissed each other regularly, even at work. At every meeting, the first 15 minutes would be spent kissing each other. I was kind of ok with it, but when I was seeing the same people at meetings and they wanted to kiss every time, I told them that only one kiss a day.</p>
<p>I’m not an engineer, but I do shake hands with both men and women I’m introduced to. I have noticed that men generally extend their hand first or at least fairly quickly. Usually with women I’m introduced to I’m the one that reaches out to shake hands.</p>
<p>I’m a 61 year old professional woman and I made it a habit many years ago to shake hands just as men have always done.
I hate it when a male politician seems compelled to HUG a female politician. WTH?</p>
<p>If our county was serious about lowering health care costs, we would ban hand shaking. It’s a stupid custom that only promotes germ sharing. Hand shaking should be avoided as much as possible.</p>
<p>Razorsharp, you are worried about handshaking? What about the hug and kiss?</p>
<p>Razorsharp, practice safe shake. 
Carry Sani-hands or Purell with you always.</p>
<p>Hugging and kissing is for family only, not co-workers, etc.</p>