Strong communication skills can help you in your personal and professional life. Although oral and written communication skills are important, research shows that nonverbal behaviors make up a large part of our daily interpersonal communication.
Nonverbal communication
Non-verbal communication is used to express emotions such as joy, anger, sadness, interest, curiosity, resentment, annoyance, anxiety, embarrassment, joy, hope, etc. People show these emotions unconsciously in most situations. They also express their empathy through non-verbal communication.
When communicating, use your gestures and body language to compliment what you're saying. You should also pay attention to non-verbal cues from the people you interact with.
The nonverbal communication cues—the way you listen, look, move, and react—tell the person you're communicating with if you care if you're honest, and how well you listen. When your nonverbal cues match what you say, they increase trust, clarity, and rapport.
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How do I improve my non-verbal communication skills?
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Carefully observe non-verbal signals:
People can convey information in different ways, so pay attention to eye contact, gestures, posture, body movements, and tone of voice. All these signals can convey important information that cannot be expressed in words.
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Focus on incongruent or unaligned behaviors:
If someone's words don't match their nonverbal behavior, you should pay close attention. For example, someone may say they feel good by looking at the ground with a frown. When words cannot be matched with non-verbal cues, people tend to ignore what is being said and instead focus on unspoken expressions of feelings, thoughts, and emotions.
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Maintain good eye contact:
Another important and great non-verbal communication skill is good eye contact. When people can't look someone in the eye, they're running away or trying to hide something. On the other hand, too much eye contact may seem confrontational or scary. While eye communication is an important part of communication, it is important to remember that good eye communication does not mean looking at no eyes.
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Don’t be scared to ask questions:
If you are confused by other people's non-verbal cues, don't be afraid to ask questions. It's good to repeat what they said and ask for clarification.
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Keep the context of communication in mind:
When communicating with others, you should always consider the context and the context in which the communication takes place. Some situations require more formal behavior, which may have a very different interpretation in any other context.
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Be aware that signals can be misread:
Some believe that a firm handshake indicates a strong personality, while a weak handshake is considered a lack of persistence. This example illustrates an important point about the potential for misinterpretation of nonverbal cues. A weak handshake could be a sign of something else, like arthritis.
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Regularly practice:
Non-verbal communication is a skill that can be improved. You can develop this skill by paying close attention to non-verbal behavior and practicing different types of non-verbal communication with others.
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It is important to occasionally engage in nonverbal communication whether within the workplace or outside the workplace. It can help foster intimacy and understanding between people.
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