Body Language tips

by Jen (April 30, 2007)

It’s not fair. People interpret body language as if it means exactly what it says to them. They don’t take into account that you may have gotten body language habits from your parents or somewhere you’ve lived that you use even though you don’t feel the way those gestures make it look like you feel.

The thing is, though: when you project something, and people then treat you accordingly, it can become your reality. There are ways to consciously change your body language, which changes how people perceive you, which changes your life at least a little.

You can find eighteen great tips at the above link, but here are some of the ones I’d never heard of:

9. Don’t touch your face – it might make you seem nervous and can be distracting for the listeners or the people in the conversation.

14. Lower your drink– don’t hold your drink in front of your chest. In fact, don’t hold anything in front of your heart as it will make you seem guarded and distant. Lower it and hold it beside your leg instead.

16. Don’t stand too close–one of the things we learned from Seinfeld is that everybody gets weirded out by a close-talker. Let people have their personal space, don’t invade it.

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of #16 for men interacting with women. Standing just a shade closer than you would with a man can come off as flirtation (which is fine, if that’s what you intend and the woman welcomes it), but there’s a certain way some men have of looming over women that comes off as creepy and insecure. Particularly if you’re much taller than the woman you’re talking to, this is something to watch.

Via DumbLittleMan.

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