Much was made in certain quarters of the media to the body language of Alex Rodriquez in his two public responses to allegations he took steroids.
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There are those that say look at the body language of your clients to check their veracity and whether or not they might be committing mortgage fraud.
Body language expert Carol Kinsey Goman said that nonverbal signals play a key role in helping us form quick impressions. However, she added not all of our first impressions are accurate.
She gives five common mistakes people make when reading body language.
- They forget to consider the context. The meaning of nonverbal communication changes as the context changes. We can't begin to understand someone's behavior without considering the circumstances under which the behavior occurred.
- They try to find meaning in a single gesture. Nonverbal cues occur in what is called a "gesture cluster," a group of movements, postures and actions that reinforce a common point. A single gesture can have several meanings or mean nothing at all (sometimes a cigar is just a cigar), but when you couple that single gesture with other nonverbal signals, the meaning becomes clearer.
- They are too focused on what's being said. If you only hear what people are saying, you'll miss what they really mean. "A manager I was coaching appeared calm and reasonable as she listed the reasons why she should delegate more responsibility to her staff. But every time she expressed these opinions, she also (almost imperceptibly) shuddered. While her words declared her intention of empowering employees, the quick, involuntary shudder was saying loud and clear, 'I really don't want to do this!'"
- They don't know a person's baseline. You need to know how a person normally behaves so that you can spot meaningful deviations.
- They judge body language through the bias of their own culture.
Carol Kinsey Goman is an international speaker and author. Her website is
