Body Language II

Advanced

Dr.V. Veera Balaji Kumar

Soft skills Trainer
Cygmax institute of management studies
Body language in communication
What is body language?

Body language is the

communication of personal
feeling, emotion, attitudes and
thoughts through body
movements.

In other words it is the way

people unconsciously show
Why learn body language ?
• Our ability to use body language in a
positive way and to read other
people's minds through their body
language can boost our
interpersonal skill.
• and can be a powerful tool to our
overall personality development
 Reading others like a Book

• Suggesting Interest
• Indications that they're more open to
agree with you
• Indications that they are thinking
• Indications that they are frustrated/
dismayed
• Indications whether they Are Action-
Oriented
 Reading a person contd…
• Indications that they are
defensive/hiding something
• Indications of boredom
• Signals conveying excitement or
interest
• Signals exhibiting
confidence/authority/power
• Signals of anger/resistance
 Reading a person contd…
• Signals of nervousness/tension
• Signals made when they are
doubting/suspecting you
• Signals made when they need
reassurance
• Indications of pride
• To know when they are lying
Gesture
• Yawning
• Tuning up the nose
• Crossing the legs above the
knee
• Sitting on the wedge of the
chair
• Scratching the head
• Crossing the arms at the chest
• Biting the lower lip
• Tapping the foot
• Clenching the hands
• Rubbing the eyes
• Placing hands on the hips
Yawning Yawning is a response to a wide
variety of response to a wide
variety of stimuli, including
sleepiness, awakening hunger,
boredom, nervousness and inter
cranial diseases.
 
There are several  causes of
yawning:
Psychological, including boredom,
drowsiness, fatigue, separation
hormonal,  due to the actions of
ACTH and MSH;
neurological, as a result of
various brain pathologies,
psychiatric, for example,
schizophrenia, psychosis,
depression and withdrawal;
general pathologies, including ear
disorders, gastric and biliary
disorders and motion sickness;
drug overdose such as naloxone,
Scratching the head
Indications That They Are
Frustrated/ Dismayed

This gesture clearly indicates that the

person is frustrated by some loss or
disappointed.
Mouth covering
• He may be lying
• He may be unsure
of what he is
saying
• He may want to
suppress a feeling
• It is just a habit
and doesn’t mean
anything
 Arms

• Cross or folded
arms
• Arm gripping
• Arms behind
the back

Hiding something they don’t want

others to find out
Eye contact
Eye contact shows our self confidence
and any of our personality traits.
o Types of looking
Direct look
The sidelong glance
 The concentrated
gaze
 The blank stare
 Blinking
Hand signals

• Limp hands
• Relaxed hands
• Restless hands
• Clenched hands
Finger movements

• Pointing the index finger

• Steeling
• Thump gesture
• Cracking of knuckles
 BODY LANGUAGE - II
Different gestures and postures
Our face is the most expressive part of our
body. There Six universal facial expressions
are
HAPPINESS, SADNESS,
SURPRISE, FEAR, ANGER
AND
Each of this DISTRUST.
expression is accompanied
with a combination of recognizable mouth
and hand gestures
The  face
• Smiling and frowning are the two major
facial expressions.
• Different types of facial expressions
• Indicate our respect for others
• Reflect our interest in someone or
something
• Transit out positive attitude about people
and things
• Convey our ambition as professionals
• Express our compassion for our co-worker,
family and friends.
• Reveal the kind of personality we possess.
Which is which ?
Which smile is genuine ?
Disgust
Distress / Pain / Suffering
• Putting object in the mouth (under pressure, taking his
time, wants more information)
• Touching the lip (relieve anxiety, boredom, excitement, fear,
horror or uncertainty)
• Scratching the neck (psychological discomfort, )
• Rubbing the eye (doubtful or telling lie)
• Rubbing the nose (hiding the truth)
• Putting the hand on the cheek (Deep thinking, attention /
interest)
• Stroking the chin (during decision making & evaluating
process)
• Head in hand (despair / loss / prolonged thinking / boredom)
• Hands behind the head (Feeling confident / superior about
something) “associated with professionals”
• Hands on hips (Readiness / ability to do a job) “associated
with achiever”
Handshakes (gesture of welcome)

Three main attitudes

depending on the
approach.
• Dominance
• Submission
• Equality
Styles of hand shake

• Firm hand shakes

• Glove hand shakes
• The knuckle grinder hand
shakes
• The stiff arm hand shakes
• The arm pull hand shakes
• The double handed
handshakes
Double handshake
How to shake hands

• Shake hands
firmly
• Never hold
longer than
few seconds
• Wipe your
hands so
that they
are not
Gestures to be avoided

• Pointing at others
• Touching others to
emphasize a point
• Being too familiar
• Invading people’s personal
space
 Styles of sitting
• The Lincolnesque position - Sitting in a chair with both
feet planted firmly on the floor and apart, and arms resting
flat on the arm of the chair signifies a open mind
• Sitting on the edge of the chair - Compromise, co-
operate, agree or accept
• Leg over the arm of the chair - Relaxed, open, co-
operative and informal
• Straddling the chair - Dominance or aggression
• Rocking or swinging in the chair - Full control of the
situation and confident that situation will favor him
• Fidgeting - Move restlessly
• Upper body - Show of self confidence
• Lower body - It sends a message of I don’t want to be
here.

CORRECT POSTURE - It is important to lean slightly

towards a person in order to show that one is
Crossing the legs above
the knee
Indicate
Defensiveness
The Boss (Bore) and his
victim
The buyer and the seller
Sitting on edge of chair leaning
forward : Eagerness
Superiority feeling
Indifference or Casual
approach
• Can be seen as a
mark of disrespect.
• Dominance or
aggression
• Arrogant attitude
(sometime)
 STRADDLING A CHAIR
Shows that a person is feeling safe, and is
self - confident. Can also show leadership.
Arms firmly gripping the chair crossed
legs and stiff face.
 Lincolnesque position

Signifies a open mind

Walking styles

• ARM SWINGING - Goal oriented and on a definite

mission
• HANDS IN A POCKET - Critical and secretive, they
often criticize others
• HANDS ON HIPS - Move without wasting time. Use
sufficient means to fulfill their goals in their shortest
possible time.
• MEDITATIVE WALK - Thinking about some problem
may walk at a slow pace with their heads down and
hands clasped behind their back
• CONFIDENCE WALK - The person walked with their
chin raised, arms swindling wildly, legs a bit stiff and
the pace somewhat deliberate this style gives off
confidence.
• LEADERSHIP WALK - They walk with deliberate steps,
clearly showing that they ate headed towards
 Arms behind the back

Contemplation
 HANDS ON HIPS

Move without wasting

time.
Use sufficient means to
fulfill their goals in their
shortest possible time.
 MEDITATIVE WALK - Thinking about
some problem may walk at a slow pace
with their heads down and hands
clasped behind their back
STRUT: to walk somewhere with big
steps in a proud way

CONFIDENCE WALK -

The person walked

with their chin raised,
arms swindling wildly,
legs a bit stiff and the
pace somewhat
deliberate this style
gives off confidence
BODY LANGUAGE to be interpreted as
positive and genuine
• Most important to be NATURAL – Always stand erect
and walk with shoulders back and stomach in making
people to recognize self-confidence, awareness and
enthusiasm.
• NON-VERBAL behaviors to be avoided. If you do not
wish to show lack of self confidence, such as
 Hunching the shoulders
 Slouching in a chair
 Leaning forward with the
head resting on one of the
hands
 Constantly shifting position
while sitting or standing
Positive and Negative Traits

Positive Traits
 Arms relaxed – Sign of openness
 Gesturing warmly / talking with hands -
shows involvement in the conversation and
openness to the other person
 Good eye contact – shows interest
 Leaning closer – shows interests are up and
barriers are down
 Nodding agreement – show there are no
barriers to communication
 Smiling / adding humor – signals a warm
personal relationship.
 Negative Traits
 Arms behind the head / leaning
back - shows desire for control
and power
 Arms folded in front – creates
barrier and shows resistance to
conversation
 Blank stares / flipping through
literature without reading –
shows distraction
 Fidgeting or moving restlessly in
 Negative Traits

 Hand on face / leaning on elbow with

chin in hand / Yawning / Chewing gum
– shows boredom
 Trying to interrupt the speaker by
opening the mouth to speak – shows
impatience
 Leaning away – avoiding moving
closer is very negative
 Shaking the legs – shows
restlessness
 To Convey Positive
Messages
• Avoid closed gestures
• Avoid fidgeting or letting your eyes
wander
• Maintain eye contact
• Maintain good posture
• Nod agreement and occasionally
express it verbally to reinforce the
nods
• Smile
 To Convey Positive
Messages
• Keep your fingers and hands away
from your mouth while speaking and
listening to others
• Do not tap your fingers on the table /
any surface
• Start and end your day with positive
attitudes
• Display confidence and enthusiasm
in your movement gestures and
postures
 Don't Jump to
Conclusions
• Be aware of the body language, but
also combine your observations with
the spoken words to get more hints
regarding the inner feelings of
another.
• Constantly touching the mouth may
indicate lying, although the real
reason might just be that the mouth
is itching
• Judgment based more than two
gestures can be dependable