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The power of non verbal communication (NVC) is more important than your verbal skills. Think about that statement for a minute….. Do you agree or disagree? I am really a big believer in reading non verbal signals, I think that once you learn to read them properly they give you a more clear signal as to what the person speaking to you is really trying to say and if they truly believe in what they are telling you. A persons posture, facial expressions and eye contact can tell you a lot about what they are trying to say if you are paying attention and observing all the different forms of NVC that are happening right in front of you.
The three forms of NVC that I want to discuss a little further are eye contact, facial expressions and posture or body language. Let’s take a closer look at the importance of eye contact first. Oculesics is the study of eye contact and there are a lot of different interpretations of eye contact depending on what part of the world you live in. For example keeping eye contact with your boss or your elders while speaking to them is considered a sign of respect in the western world but if you are in Asia for example that is actually a sign of disrespect and could cause a confrontation.
Facial expressions can be some of the most descriptive forms of communication and at the same time some of the most confusing. Considering that most facial expressions are tied to a persons emotional status with the obvious ones being happiness, sadness, anger and confusion. Two of the more entertaining facial expressions at least to me are those of fear and surprise. I find them entertaining because depending on the surrounding situation these expressions can look pretty much the same even though they are two very different emotions.
The last NVC that I wanted to talk about is that of posture or body language. This is my favorite NVC because I feel of all of them this should be the easiest to observe just because it involves the whole body so even if you are not locked in a gaze with the person you are talking to you can certainly observe their body language. Obvious things like crossed arms might indicate a barrier being put up due to confrontation or the head being tilted to one side or the other might be a sign that the person is bored. Leaning forward usually indicates a positive feeling for the conversation as well as when you see two people displaying mirror images of each others posture.
Share Your Opinions and Thanks for Reading
One Comment
I think some of your comments are valid in the right context but I urge you to look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dboA8cag1M
which is a brilliant whiteboard animation and busts the Mehrabian myth in a humorous and pithy manner.
Regards
Ian
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