You’re sitting across from a person you’re trying to persuade in some way. Maybe it’s a job interview, and you’re trying to convince him to hire you. Maybe you’re in sales and you’re trying to convince him to buy your product. Maybe you’re negotiating to buy something and you’re trying to convince him to bend […]
Author Archive | Christopher Carter
Virtual Body Language
We’ve known for a long time that it’s harder to convey the full range of meaning online, due to the impossibility of viewing body language. A new study digs deeper into the problem. Put simply, they examined the ways people communicate via animated avatars. The money quote: The researchers found that the best performance was […]
A Great Example of Listening Beyond The Words
I’ll never forget when I first laid eyes on Marco. It was October of 2010. I was speaking on behalf of a large chewing gum manufacturer to independent salespeople in the candy industry. As I looked out on the audience, they were pretty much what you’d expect from people who sold candy. Mostly young, fresh faced, […]
The Body Language of Leadership
Leaders use many different strategies to motivate their ranks. Some try to be everybody’s friend, while others try to be as intimidating as possible. Which strategy is best depends on circumstances and the personality of the leader, but most studies identify two key dimensions to leadership that can be reinforced by body language: likeability and authority. Put simply, people are […]
Does It Mean Anything?
One interesting exchange I had while on my recent tour went like this: Man: “I love watching people, and I’ve noticed some interesting things.” Me: “Such as?” Man: “I’ve noticed that people who talk without moving their upper lips are usually dishonest.” Me: “Uh…..Ok. I recommend you never visit England.” If you read me even occasionally, […]
Body Language in the Workplace
The Chicago Tribune online has a column today that discusses body language in the workplace. The author, Daneen Skube, seems to know her stuff, except when she writes this: However, the body is a powerful communication channel that is mostly ignored or dimly noticed at work, even though studies find body language carries 55 percent of the […]
And….We’re Back!
This is what touring is like: Get up at 3am, take a quick shower, drive an hour and a half to the airport. Board an airplane, fly two legs to a new city, pick up a rental car, and drive another hour an a half to the hote. If possible, get in a quick nap, […]
More on TSA Behavioral Analysis
A while back I posted about the TSA’s plan to train agents to read body language. Apparently they’ve already begun to implement this in Boston’s Logan Airport. This recent story on NPR talks about it: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=139643652&m=139666500 Pay special attention to commentary by Paul Ekman, the brain behind the training. Also note a brief appearance by […]
A Reader’s Question
Recently a reader sent me a question. I deleted the original email, but here’s the paraphrase: He said his sister always insists upon having her photograph taken with her legs tucked under her and her head tilted. He wanted to know what that said about her. It’s an interesting question because it says more about […]
The Art of the Handshake
Within 30 seconds of meeting a person for the first time, the person you meet will decide two very important things about you. He will decide whether he likes you, and he will decide whether he trusts you. The scary part is that he will not make these decisions consciously. These decisions will be based on […]
