Five Crucial Things Every Leader Needs To Know About Body Language

What sets human beings above all other beings is our ability to communicate with each other. Unlike all lower animals who fight over food and territory, the human race is much better evolved and can tackle situations in a much more intellectual manner. Indeed, we have multiple languages through which we can communicate with each other. However, this is not the only means of communication that exists in the real world. A major section of communication that takes place is of non-verbal nature.

In fact, it will be fair to say that in the business scene, a lot of the actual conversations that take place is through the non-verbal medium. In such a situation, you end up speaking a lot without actually speaking anything. Your body language is what speaks for you here.

In such a situation, we bring to you this article wherein we discuss five body language tips and its effect on your team.

1. Pointing Your Feet Away From Others

Understand that your feet are one of the first things that people notice about you. This is exactly why experts recommend that you wear good quality shoes when you meet a new person. It is equally important for you to be conscious of the body language of your feet.

If your feet are pointed away from the person whom you are addressing, it suggests that you are not interested in the conversation. This will make your teammates feel neglected and they might not take your views and opinions as seriously as they should. This is true even when your body is facing the other person but your feet are facing the other way round.

Thus, make a conscious effort to avoid such a thing from happening. This will make your teammates have greater faith in you as a leader.

2. Looking Uninterested

Now, this is an important point because looking uninterested is not the same thing as being uninterested. In many cases, it is seen that a person is fully active in the conversation but is multitasking in the form of replying to chats while listening to the other person. This will make the other person feel that you are not interested in the conversation.

Make sure that such a thing does not happen. For that, you need to ensure that no matter how trivial the matter of conversation is, you put down your phone, laptop and all other distractions before the conversation and that you take to it only after the conversation is over.

If you do not adhere to this fundamental rule of body language, your teammates might feel like you are dominating them. Since that is clearly not what you want, make sure that you maintain proper eye contact with them.

3. Forgetting To Nod

Irrespective of the culture you grew up in, you must be familiar with the concept of nodding. This is perceived as a sign of a healthy dialogue. It makes the other person feel that you are interested in this conversation as you are giving them the necessary signs of encouragement and acceptance while the conversation is still in progress.

This will make them participate in the same in a healthier manner. This simple body language modification will encourage shy employees to come out of their shell and effectively contribute to building the company. This will naturally ensure that the overall productivity of the team goes up by leaps and bounds.

Thus, make sure that no matter what the topic of the conversation is all about, you should listen actively and nod when required.

4. Failing To Mirror Habits

This is another very important aspect of corporate communications. When you see the other person engaging in a particular type of body language, try to emanate that. Doing so will make them feel more comfortable in your presence. Some people indulge in a lot of hand gestures while speaking whereas some others sit cross-legged. Others tend to take a lot of notes when you make a presentation.

A mature leader is one who tries to notice these habits in an individual and use the same to their benefit. As for example, if you find a particular candidate being over-interested in taking notes during your presentation, try to take some notes when they speak.

By mirroring their actions in this manner, you will ensure that the other person ends up paying more attention to you when you speak.

5. Striking A Power Pose

Stretching out your limbs and puffing up the chest is the power pose that most of us are familiar with. This is often known as the power pose and is known to elude confidence. Experts recommend that this is something that you must opt for while giving public lectures or facing a job interview as that boosts your confidence.

However, never assume this posture when talking to your team. This will make you appear unapproachable as a leader. An ideal posture for you would be to lean in a little towards the other person when they are speaking. Such a posture will convey it to your team that you are interested in all that is going on.

Thus, now that you see how these small actions determine the way people perceive you, we are sure that you will make conscious efforts to rectify the same. By ensuring that you stick to the body language guidelines, you will ensure that you bond better with your teammates while ensuring a better work environment in the office. This will make sure that there is better productivity coming up your way.