Is Your Body Language "Saying" What You Want Them To "Hear"?
How you communicate with your body language is extremely important during networking and interviewing. It’s a huge factor in how well you communicate and “sell” the concept of brand you. Jan Hargrave, international body language consultant & author of Let Me See Your Body Talk says, “Research suggests that only 7 percent of the meaning in any conversation is contained in the words spoken.”
Okay, so doing the math, that means that 93% of what we say is not what comes out of our mouth!
You communicate non-verbally by:
How you come into the room
Here’s a great tip I learned from my partner, Jay, during our first Job Search Boot Camp. Before you walk into the room, stand with your back against the wall in the hallway. You’ll gain an inch or two and walk into the room with a better air of confidence because you’re standing tall with great posture.
How you introduce yourself
Do you have a good handshake? Practice. No limp or bone-crusher handshakes please! Web to web & no fishy, perspiration hands either. Always offer your hand in a vertical position. Hargrave says that if you offer your hand with palm up, you appear submissive, and if you offer it with your palm facing down, you appear too aggressive.
How you make eye contact
Moderate your eye contact so that you aren’t staring the other person down, but be sure to catch their eye frequently during the conversation or interview. You show sincerity, and, as the poet said, “The eyes are the window to the soul.” Experts seem to agree that if you don’t look a person directly in the eye you should be looking in the general direction of his or her eyes and mouth. By the way, on a related subject… Martin Yate, author of Knock ‘em Dead, advises interviewees to look upward, to the left or right but never downward.
How you sit
Leaning forward in your seat helps you to appear interested and engaged. Leaning back as though you’re lounging in your living room watching television makes you look, well, like you’re lounging in your living room. Yate says, “There is only one way to sit in the interview: bottom well back in the chair and back straight… Keep your hands on the sides of the chair; if there are no arms on the chair, keep your hands in your lap or on you pad of paper.”
Happy Hunting!
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Angela Loëb is an author, speaker and career coach. Along with partner, Jay Markunas, she helps people gain clarity and develop successful strategies for career transition. Through their company, Great Occupations, they help job seekers and career shifters by offering seminars, webinars, tele-coaching events and individualized coaching services. Listen to them on The Job Search Boot Camp Show & check out their upcoming events Find A Career You Love & the Job Search Boot Camp Webcast. Find out more about their services at www.greatoccupations.com.
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