Do you ever walk into a room and see someone slouching in a chair looking defeated? As a coach, that is the first thing I notice. I am there to talk with your true heart and your real soul. I look for what is not said with words.
If you think that is hard to do, turn off the sound on a movie and just watch.I bet you will get most of the plot without the words.
My guess is that we try not to tune into other people’s body language because it is often so negative. It is enough to cope with our own negativity, we don’t want any more dumped on us.
Yet, we know people we look forward to being with because they are pleasant or positive or their energy is up. They seem to have taken care of their “stuff” before we met up with them.
Here are some of the things we see them do:
Stand up straight
Look us in the eyes.
Smile encouragingly.
Here are some of the things they don’t do:
Roll their eyes and sigh,
Jump in with a smart remark before you’ve finished your sentence.
Look bored and start texting.
I think we are all tired of the quick judgments.
Watch a few people around you and observe how they are communicating. Then take a look at your own posture. You can put on your phone camera and see how you show up in a meeting. Don’t be too harsh on yourself. Just straighten up and be a little more encouraging. See if your conversations change.