A new student walks up to you slowly, smiles, and
says, “Excuse me – where’s the lab?” Do you think
they’re desperate to find the lab? Think about it. They’re
smiling openly and approaching slowly with their head
tilted. They are only trying to get to know you.
Body language is the quiet, secret language which
is the most powerful language of all. According to
experts, our non-verbal language communicates
about 50% of what we really mean. The tone and
speed of our voice account for 38%, while words
themselves contribute only 7%. Non-verbal signals also
have five times the impact of verbal signals.
Non-verbal communication is familiar to us from birth.
A baby doesn’t talk, but it smiles or cries to express itself.
Our bodies send out messages constantly, and we don’t
always realise that we are communicating a lot more
than we say. We understand what someone’s gestures
and body position indicate, and we send out our own
messages, too – but we rarely stop to think about how
we do it. Rubbing our eyes, clearing our throat, tapping
our toes, scratching our nose, opening our arms or
keeping our legs crossed all send out strong messages.
It is important to be aware of our own body language,
as well as to understand what other people’s body
language means, so we can assess and react to them
effectively. After all, actions speak louder than words.