People decide within seconds of meeting you whether you are confident, friendly, or nervous. And they make a subconscious decision whether to trust you and believe you within minutes of meeting you. Those subconscious decisions are made mostly on the basis of body language and tone of voice.
Studies in the College Journal reports that “Body language comprises 55% of the (impact) of any response, whereas the verbal content only provides 7%” the rest is determined by the tone of voice.
Basically what you DON’T say is more important than what you do say.
Proof:
Let’s say you give a friend a present and they say that they loved it. Yet, you notice that their facial expressions twist and their body contort and their tone of voice quiver.
Would you believe them? Of course no.
Just like you can pick up on the body language of others, others can pick up on yours.
The good news:
Body language is learnable just like any regular language; In fact it is easier to learn body language than any other language. If you want to convey that you are friendly, confident, and believe what you talk about follow these simple tips.
To come across as open and warm:
• Smile with an open lip
• Open hands with palms visible when you speak
• Unbuttoning coat upon being seated
To come across as confident:
• Maintain eye contact
• Have your head up
• Use hand gestures while talking
• Walk with a purpose and have an upright posture
• Have a “firm” handshake
To avoid coming across as nervous:
Move away from
• Fidgeting
• Waffling with your answers
• Using the same phrases
• Coughing
• Yawning (believe it or not)
• Touching your face/hair
• Moving feet or twiddling thumbs
To avoid coming across as defensive:
Move away from
• Folding your arms
• Head looking down
• Closed body language
• Rolling of the eyes
• Touching your face while talking
• Frowning
• Tight-lipped grins
These hints should get you started and put you ahead of most people when it comes to having an effective body language.
Leave a Reply