It's time again for another Jeff Haden post! One would start to think I'm in love; in fact I think that he is a most capable blogger. In his article, 8 Powerful Ways to Improve Your Body Language, we learn a little bit about how to feel (and project) more confidence, how to be engaging in conversation and presentation, and how to look dynamic overall when you speak:
- Prep with a power pose
- Spend two minutes standing tall, holding your arms out or towards the sky, or like Superman with your hands on your hips.
- Do this alone, it will dramatically increase confidence.
- Dial up your energy level
- Display more enthusiasm and passion than you normally would.
- When the going gets tough, start smiling
- Negative facial expressions signal the brain that something is difficult, which will cause the brain to raise stress levels.
- Forcing a smile keeps the stress down.
- People subconsciously mirror; if you smile or frown, so will they.
- Play supermodel to reduce conflict
- Shift so that you are standing at a slight angle, like supermodels do - you will come across less confrontational.
- Standing side-by-side signals collaboration, face-to-face signals confrontation.
- Don't gesture about your shoulders
- Just don't.
- Talk more with your hands
- Using the right hand gestures at the right time can punctuate, keep you confident, and help you think more clearly.
- Use props to engage
- The more that people move and open up their bodies, the more engaged they feel.
- Resistant poses (arms crossed, rigid, etc.) are naturally more defensive. Pull your audience out of such poses by getting something into their hands (a business card, glass of water, etc.) or just shake hands.
- Think before you speak
- If you have to look away to think, do it before you answer, not while you or the other person is talking.
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