nonverbal Archives - Adam Kirk Smith

This is a guest post from Beth Kelly, who is a freelance writer and blogger. Born and raised in Michigan, she moved to Chicago to attend DePaul University where she graduated in 2011. She lived in Krakow, Poland briefly before moving to South Korea to teach English. She writes most frequently on health and technology topics.

Meeting someone for the first time means the inevitable barrage of verbal and nonverbal social cues; each party sizing up the other much like two canines at the dog park. Signals are transmitted almost instantly as both form initial intuitive “thin slice” judgments. Effective observations of expressive behavior – particularly wordless actions – are essential for optimal interpersonal relationships. The combination of body language (or kinesics) and elements of speech such as tone of voice (paraverbal communication) are responsible for up to 93 percent of communication. With practice, it is possible to increase your ability to read these subtle cues to get deeper understanding of those around you. [Read more…] about Read the One You’re With – Tips for Better NonVerbal Communication

I trust that in the last few weeks, you’ve begun to think about communication as the truly magical and monumental thing it is, and that you’ve learned to be a better liar (in the best of ways, of course) in Part 1 and Part 2 of this “Big Fat Lies” series. Today, let’s continue to fine tune our mastery of the craft by pulling the curtain on one of the sneakiest – and yet most powerful – lies of all: nonverbal communication.

I think most of us take nonverbal communication for granted, because it infuses itself into most everything we do, even without our being aware of it. However, it’s just that lack of awareness that can get us into trouble and leave us wondering what went wrong in both personal and professional communication settings where it seemed our spoken message was on track – yet, for some mysterious reason, was not received as well as we had hoped it would be. Or perhaps, you’re just wondering how to pack more punch in a presentation.