Non-verbal Communication

Non-verbal communication is defined by body language, facial expressions, posture, eye contact, hand movement and touch.

• It is important to pay attention to non-verbal cues alongside spoken words.
  • For example, someone you speak to may agree with you with verbal cues. However their non-verbal cues, such as avoiding eye contact, sighing, and shrugging, may suggest disagreement via non-verbal cues.

How to effectively use non-verbal communication:

• Practice eye contact: it is important to maintain eye contact when you are speaking with someone, practice making eye contact with everyone when you are speaking to a group rather than looking at only one or two people.
  • It is also important to ensure that you are not making too much or too little eye contact- level of comfort with eye contact varies from culture to culture. However experts recommend to make eye contact in intervals of 3 to 4 seconds.
  • Effective eye contact should feel natural and comfortable for both the speaker and the audience.

• Practice speaking: one of the most important things in non-verbal communication is what remains ‘unspoken’. It is important to be aware of the tone you are using when you speak.
  • For example, a lot of people speak quickly when they are nervous, some people speak a lot more animatedly when they are passionate about the topic etc.
  • Practicing the pitch of your voice will help you engage your audience. In addition, being aware of using your body language also shows how you are feeling about the discussion/conversation.
  • If you can, try speaking in front of friends and family and ask them for feedback on your non-verbal cues, if not possible, practice speaking in front of a mirror to improve your skills.

• Practice good posture: being in the right posture will help you come off as more self-assured and self-confident when communicating with other people.

• Be present: remove all distractions and focus on the present, it will help you decode non-verbal cues better as you will be more attentive to the cues around you.