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August 28, 2011

Keen observation is the key

Interpreting human (and also animal) nonverbal communication and body language is both an art and science. Keen observation, picking minute details and contextual analysis are absolutely necessities for becoming a proficient in people reading, before becoming expert.

It start with right from identifying the basic nonverbal patterns in different situations, environments and circumstances under which people you observe do move, behave, act, react, interact, respond and express themselves normally.

Airport, railway station, stadium, super market, auditorium, restaurant, park, garden, beach, disco bar, social club, festival, fair, party, exhibition, gathering, hospital etc. are locations where people from various age groups, ethnicity, cultures, genders, professions, places, statuses, socio-economical backgrounds, physical attributes and personalities gather, come together, share physical places and interact with each other and you can observe them very comfortably from a close distance.

While observing people, they should not notice that somebody is observing them because they may feel offended, nervous or behave differently. Subtlety, stealthiness and secrecy is the best policy. Observing without letting others notice about it is what exactly investigators, detectives, spies or secret agents do routinely by putting dark glasses, goggles or sheds on their eyes and behave normally.

Shopping malls are good places to observe a large no. of people.

Developing a non-interrogating, non-threatening and relaxed gaze helps you observe people safely. Also, the peripheral vision can greatly help you in the same. Due to wider peripheral vision, women have an innate ability to spot, observe, watch and spy on somebody without even looking at the person directly. That's the very reason why hardly anybody can catch them observing others in public.

Other safer, comfortable and convenient ways to watch people are still photographs, movie clips, television shows and candid video tapes. Beware before drawing firm conclusions from professional or paid acts, commercial advertisements and staged performances as they are scripted and shoot in a quite controlled o an artificial environments and also edited before broadcasting or making public.

However, they would greatly help you in sharpening your observation skill. Moreover, turning off the volume would be the best way to become more attuned to bare visual clues. Matter of fact is that noise, music, words and voices divert our attention from physical expressions and clues that are more profound, solid and reliable.

Silent or speechless movies are the great observational material to know underlying emotions and intentions that actors and actresses want to convey nonverbally. Watching movies in the language which you are not aware of is also a great learning material to speculate what actors and actresses would be talking in the given moment by looking at their physical expressions.

Always remember that the devil lies in details and ordinary or naïve people don't pay much attentions to same. More you start picking smaller details, better you become as an observer. It would bring you a tremendous advantage in becoming a great analyst in the future. Good and keen passive observation would enlighten you, broaden your social horizon, amuse you thoroughly and also invest your time only for good returns.

Related Articles:
1) Women are body language experts 2) Basic emotional expressions 3) Just by looking at Hands and Eyes 4) My posture discovery 5) Inside Interrogation Room 6) Body Language of James Bond 7) Asymmetrical Smile but not Contempt 8) Reading Body Language - Challenges 9) Decoding entrance of The Undertaker 10) Watching chess players 11) This is what I (want to) see. 12) Are you a 'flying' terrorist? 13) Entire body can’t lie 14) Nonverbal Advantage in Investigation

Job Interview Tips

Encountering with stranger or visiting new location at first time leads to some degree of anxiety so dose appearing for an interview. Despite of capabilities, experience and knowledge; we feel somehow uncomfortable simply because of location we would be interviewed at, kind of people we would confront and corresponding codes of conduct are not much known.

It’s the only the matter of time when interviewers form a firm opinion, a solid impression or a due judgement about you. It might happen right after some moments of conversation with you or in the end of the interview.

Keeping apart anxiety and nervousness, you can multiply opportunity of recruitment by proving yourself more compatible and self-controlling in the eyes of interviewers.

Here are some handy tips that you could follow very easily to improve your effectiveness.

1) Dress in formal and proper way. Match it with industrial norms you are going to work in. Choose fabric that suit you and help to feel comfortable.

2) Time’s the crucial part so make to it. Don’t make interviewers waiting for you.

3) Make acquaintance with other candidates facing interview. It will let you feel less tense. Avoid undue gossiping and whispering with them. Better engage in positive discussion. Try to get information about company and work you are supposed to do.

4) Wait for your turn with patience and stay calm. Try to know about the place. Read the documents you carry or read newspapers or magazines made available to you.

5) On facing interviewers, flash a smile. It will work like an ice breaker. Engage in hand shake if it is custom. Don't try to draw undue attention to yourself.

6) Never sit until interviewers ask you to. Adapt comfortable posture while you sit. Make less body movements and wobbles. Avoid fidgeting, jiggling or tapping. Avoid undue revolving the chair. Pay attention at your feet so that they don’t touch the others’.

7) Introduce yourself to them in polite tone of voice. Avoid gesturing as much as possible at this stage. Provide documents only when asked otherwise it would lead to distraction.

8) Make proper eye with contact with interviewers. Avoid sudden look away or crossing of arms over your chest. Avoid touching your face, neck or ears and running fingers through hairs. Avoid evaluating posture and signs of suspicion or boredom.

9) Make head nods when you understand questions and try lean a little bit forward while answering. If you can’t listen question clearly then ask them to repeat it with pardon. Don’t bother to repeat your answer too.

10) Remain open and mentally present in interview. More you stay focused less will be mistakes and miscommunication. Exhibit confidence and not arrogance.

11) When interview concludes, thank to the interviewers with smile. Take formal permission of leaving. Collect everything you brought at meeting place.

12) Avoid sharing your experiences with remaining candidates if you think it was a failure.

Remember that people take whatever you try to exhibit or hide in front of them and not the knowledge, abilities and experience you may have. It’s for sure that different work environments demand different things from us but some fundamentals remain same.

After all, any organization looks for basic qualities, social skills and behavioral aptitude in you perhaps more than the technical and business know-how.

Related Articles:
1) Workspace Etiquette 2) Positive Body Language 3) Confident Body Language 4) What is hand shake? 5) Are you a 'flying' terrorist? 6) Power Postures

August 07, 2011

Workspace Etiquette

Dreaming a fabulous job or a profession, greater exposure to opportunities, timely admiration and awards, confidence of succeeding, playfulness, enjoyment and easiness to express yourself? Off course, all these things revolve around hierarchy, work culture, professional environment and management that promise about them to you.

We all spend most of our occupational time at work space. We work on routine basis, stay hours with people surrounding us, interact with them and share different things. It’s all we know and do generally at surface level. But at deeper level, we always send message to others in every form and even at the time we don’t talk.

Each and every piece of verbal and non-verbal communication at work place strongly affects our perception, emotions, energy, physical health, level of satisfaction, sense of togetherness and ultimately the performance and willingness to stay working with people.

Without cooperative and caring people around, feel easy air breathe and sense of well being, rosy rewards and abundance of facilities are just like formal payoff for working in hostile and hazardous environment where no one would likely to venture.

Let’s see how we can make work place wonderful and worthy to keep on working happily.

1) Would we like to start your day with no greetings or good wishes? Definitely not. Every time you reach to office, greet your colleagues with warm and friendly tone and smile.

It doesn’t take too much time and energy but certainly helps in keeping surrounding fresh and people feel good about themselves and ultimately about you.

2) Respect people around you and their precious time. Reasonably acknowledge their presence. Don’t take them granted as they are around you daily. Ask if you can help them anyway.

3) Maintain proper eye contact and stance while listening or approaching to others. Keep the cultural and social norms in mind. Don’t hang over the others. Keep correct distance and posture with member of an opposite gender.

4) Don’t impose your personal issues, headaches, failures and shortcomings by taking out frustration, grudge or anguish on others. Better you seat calmly, take a break, have a walk or discuss it with somebody you feel favorable and let negativity pass by.

5) Avoid formality if it doesn’t fit to given situation or condition. Expression of genuine feelings about others would help in creating good rapport apart of your credentials, authorities and proficiency.

6) Communicate with all others comfortably, fluently and spontaneously. Don’t stay stiff, aggressive, bothering or too much defensive.

Always keep in mind that awkwardness adds to more awkwardness day by day.

7) Complement or Express good wishes to your colleagues on their birthdays, anniversaries, milestones and achievements. Offer gifts and give surprises. It definitely helps in creating a positive atmosphere.

8) Keep concerned persons informed about your unavailability or absence. Making others guessing about your whereabouts during work hours simply wastes their time and develops sense of uncertainty about you.

9) Remember that you are not the owner of anybody's life. Don’t interfere with others' personal lives, relationships and belongings.

10) If you feel that anybody got hurt or offended, express your apologies from bottom of heart and possibly on face. It would let bitterness fall apart between you and others.

11) Have a friendly outlook towards others. Avoid using offensive, obscene or slang words or terms. Don’t bully, grill, dominate or make unfair joke about others.

Avoid undue gossiping and back slapping. Avoid unconformable touch, gestures, gaze and facial expressions.

12) Behave with others politely and in co-operative manner as much as possible. Admire in public and reprimand in private. Don’t beat your own drum at all the time. Everybody has ego and better it’s not hurt.

13) Development of affinity, likability, attraction and attachment between two members of opposite genders is quite natural and understandable.

Respect feelings of others but flirtatious moves or solicitations should be avoided, ignored or discouraged to retain its healthiness. Avoid running into an affair with member of an opposite gender which might spoil career (of both) and devastate existing relationships.

14) Respect the diversity of skin colors, languages/dialects, geographical origins, ethnicity, costumes, traditions and individual practices, aspirations, beliefs etc.

It’s not at all necessary that others should equally posses whatever knowledge, skills or efficiency you have. If everybody’s exactly like you then you couldn’t out-stand. Correct?

Remember that we work together after coming long away from our native places, homes and families. We are to support each other to achieve best things possible with skills and capacities we posses together.

Law of action and reaction works every where. It you want to be happy and feel better about yourself then help others feel same about them.

Related Articles:
1) Conscious shift in body language 2) Elevator Etiquette 3) Job Interview Tips