If you're having a hard time getting more confident with your body language, here are a few tips that can help you regain a sense of control.
Choose a strong stance
A relaxed posture paints a picture of a person who is extremely confident and strong. When you stand with your legs slightly open and your hands on your hips, or sit with your arms outstretched, you'll instantly boost your confidence. It is a powerful posture that shows that you are in charge.
This pose is very effective because it boosts testosterone levels while reducing levels of the stress hormone cortisol. When your testosterone levels are high, you will feel stronger and more dominant, which is exactly how it makes people appreciate you.
Use smart hand gestures
The hand is often a mirror that reflects someone's state of mind. If you're nervous, your hands will subconsciously fidget or look for something to do. If you're not confident, your hands will sweat and try to find something to hold.
If you fold your arms, you may be seen as unapproachable, and if you keep your hands in your pocket or pants, you may appear untrustworthy. On the contrary, placing hands in the shape of a bell tower with fingertips touching is considered calm, confident and mature.
“It is extremely important to consider body language in communication because it sends nonverbal signals that can devalue the words being spoken.”
Pay attention to the head, neck and shoulders
The neck is the part that we often do not pay attention to when thinking about body language in communication. Want to make people feel comfortable when they interact with you? Simple actions like moving your head, neck, and shoulders can help you do just that.
When talking to other people, tilting your head to the side, with your shoulders relaxed and your head up, can show that you care about them and that makes them more willing to spend time with you.
If you tend to always look down to read notes, place the note in front of you and slightly to the side, just below your eye level, so you will automatically raise your head.
To help yourself maintain this body posture naturally, take a few deep breaths every half hour, drawing all the air down to your stomach, and then slowly exhaling. This will help keep your shoulders relaxed and in line with your head.
Keep your voice low
Voice is also very important when it comes to body language in communication. While a high, thin tone or nasal voice can be annoying, a deep, resonant voice is gentle and engaging. So start your sentences with a low tone and gradually increase the pitch before lowering your voice at the end of the sentence.
Using a low tone can make your speech more effective because it will feel extremely soothing to the listener. If you use bass tones in your presentation, you're showing that you're a born leader.
Smile
When you smile, you become more approachable and likable. Then all the happy hormones are released and you immediately feel relaxed and at ease. In addition, smiles are also very contagious. As a result, people around you also feel more comfortable and see you as a confident, friendly, respectable manager.
Sufficient eye contact
As you practice the above, don't forget to make eye contact. Eye contact is important in building trust and creating strong bonds with people. But the thing to remember is to maintain eye contact for the right amount of time and to know when to look away. This is because too much eye contact can make people feel uncomfortable and even overwhelming, while too little eye contact always seems dishonest or distrustful.
Therefore, you need to make sure to make enough eye contact (about 7-10 seconds) with your listeners to build trust and paint a picture of a sincere person. However, when listening to someone, you should make eye contact longer, as it shows that you are really listening to them and that you are interested in what they have to say.
If you want to make a powerful impact using body language in communication and become a truly successful manager, make sure you adapt the behaviors above. You may be surprised to find that your communication becomes much more engaging and you will always convey credibility.
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