On a Monday morning in Mumbai, Catherine Molloy gives out the most enthusiastic handshake. So, it is easy to believe that she has written a book about handshakes.
Her fascination began when she was 16. After being orphaned twice, she left school and started work at Westpac Bank, one of Australia's leading banks. "I watched how people would negotiate. They all shook hands. Some people made a great connection and some left in tears. It was really interesting to watch and since the bank had some videos on body language, I started to study it. Then I became the top salesperson in Australia for our bank," she shares, when we meet at a five-star at Nariman Point.

Molloy's book The Million Dollar Handshake (Hachette India), which was released last year in Australia, is now available in all Commonwealth nations including India. But that's not all; the Queensland resident informs us that publishers in Taiwan and Vietnam have just picked up the title. "Everything has changed with technology but the way we communicate with others is still the same. Our behaviour has a domino effect. What you think isn't always right. So many businesses close down because they don't communicate well with the staff or their customers," she says, while demonstrating how the way you sit affects the way you think — sitting upright is the best way to feel good. "When you're sitting hunched and you tell a person 'I'm fine', your body language isn't saying that. If we can think about our reactions before they happen, only then can we make a difference in our communication," Molloy says.