Body language is a way to express through body posture, gesture, facial expression, etc. It is a medium for nonverbal communication to convey a message without using words. Every species carries some or other form of body language.
Body language can be expressed through eye movement, limb movement, facial expressions, touch, and many more ways involving different parts of the body. It is vital for success at college, job interviews, workplace, and throughout life.
It is essential to have positive and confident body language for the best impression of your every appearance. You must be wondering what the body language tips are and how to learn them. We will explain some of the prominent tips to develop positive body language to excel in your goals.
Tips for effective body language
Practice proper eye contact
Confident and proper eye contact shows your good communication skills and attentive behavior. For example, if you are attending an interview or at the workplace, never avoid eye contact while someone is talking to you.
The person speaking could be the interviewer, client, senior management at the office, etc. If he/she sees you avoiding eye contact, it will be a great disadvantage for your job and career.
The best way to develop proper eye contact is to practice by yourself. You talk to dozens of people daily, starting with your daily life. Talk to people and observe your eye contact. Both listening and talking should have good eye contact.
Most people develop proper eye contact while listening but falters at the time of speaking. To overcome such situations, start practice now. Begin with home, family, and friends.
Don’t wait for the big day to display your eye contact. Instead, make eye contact a habit for speaking and listening.
Work on standing posture
The way you walk, stand, and move speaks a lot about your mental attitude and present state of mind. Your walk will vary if you are confident or confused or scared etc. To seem professional and confident, stand straight with the tucked chin.
Walk as if you own the place. To practice, imagine how your senior manager or CEO of the company walks when he/she enters the premises. They never run for opening a gate, sitting on a chair, etc. Stay calm and composed; keep patience.
Your attitude reflects how you can cope up with diverse situations smartly. So again, develop a habit for a better impression through these body language tips.
Sitting position
Everybody’s part and position matter when you appear for something important such as an interview, board meeting, client meeting, etc. A fundamental tip for the sitting position is to take enough space to sit properly. Don’t squeeze yourself with your legs and hands folded.
If you sit while taking your required space, it shows your confidence in front of the panel, clients, and bosses. Maintain your ‘power position’ or ‘power stance’ to convey your message.
Practice sitting position in everyday life with family and friends. Stretch yourself, make yourself comfortable, people will listen to you carefully. Some of the gestures and postures not to do at the interview.
In the interview board, don’t keep your hands crossed or your legs crossed. It shows an aggressive attitude. The interviewer won’t like your defensive posture; it seems that you are hesitant in replies, scared, panicked.
Stay comfortably with hands on the table or chair, don’t get distracted with anything when you are sitting in front of the interviewer. It would not happen overnight; practice daily at home, with friends and let it come naturally at the time
Keep Smiling
Smiling has a big influence on the interviewer, client, and management at the workplace. First, it shows you have a grip on your things. Second, people will be attracted to you if you seem approachable, not someone who sits in the corner and nobody has ever seen the smile on the face.
Smiling shows you know your work, confidence, and understanding of the work. If you are in the interview, it shows your grip on topics and relevant soft-skill for the workplace.
Confidence with handshake
The handshake should be gentle and full of confidence. Interviewers and clients appreciate someone who knows how to handshake. Don’t hold too tight or too casual; your handshake should be gentle and professional.
Practice handshakes with your family, friends and ask them for feedback. You should positively take feedback and improvise through more practice. Don’t get offended by someone’s negative remark; remember, these people criticize you for improvement.
Practice in front of the mirror and self-assess yourself. For example, your handshake should be decent and gentle. The person on the other end should not feel intimidated by aggressive posture while handshaking.
These are tips for making body language more professional and impressive; you need to be an effective communicator through different parts of the body.
Facial expression
The face speaks ahead of you in the interview and the workplace. It showcases reactions to the events, questions, and sudden decision-making situations, etc. Work on your facial expression, including eye contact, nose movement, hands-on cheek, and others.
Dress to impress
You must know what to wear, how to wear as per situation and place. This is an essential body language tip to make a solid impression. Different companies have different work cultures, dress requirements, and expectations.
For an interview, know about the target company. For example: at Advertising agencies, Event agencies, and similar companies, employees wear mostly casual clothes. IT companies prefer formals, ties, and suits for special purposes.
Wear your clothes as per the company’s requirements and be confident in them.
Conclusion
Practice is the key to developing effective body language. Refer above mentioned tips and use them in daily life. Your friends, family, and relatives are the best options for relevant practice and feedback for your improvement. Improve your body language and excel in everything you strive to achieve.
