Your body says more about you than you think, and if there's ever a time when you want your body to be saying the right thing it's when you're out there networking, surrounded by opportunities to make a good first impression.

That's not all. More confident body language can make you more attractive to the opposite sex (or the same sex, if you're into that) and just make you feel better generally. That's because it isn't just that a good mood causes good body language -- the cycle goes the other way too.

So, how about those 9 ways to improve your confidence?

1. Have a strong firm handshake

Nothing conveys confidence like a robust handshake, and yet it's something that many people have trouble with, whether overseas or in China. A good handshake should be firm, dry and not too long.

• See our article, Have a handshake you can be proud of for more details.

Keep reading to find out the 8 other ways to look more confident...

As we mentioned in You Don't Have to be Talkative to be a Great Networker, knowing what to say is not the be all and end all of networking, and listening is important above all else. However, sooner or later you've got to hold up your end of the conversation. To keep a conversation going, and to keep the other person interested, there are two strategies to help you along:

Strategy 1: How did you____?

This is easy, and it's such an open-ended question that it can get the other person talking ad infinitum. Simply ask a question about how they got to be where they are today. For example:

• How did you end up in China?
• How did you end up coming to Shanghai?
• How did you get into the fashion industry?
• How did you find out about tonight's event?

Keep reading to find out strategy number 2: the parrot strategy