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Body Language II

This document provides tips for reading body language. It discusses several body language cues and their possible meanings, including: 1. Proximity - how close someone stands indicates their comfort level. Moving closer may make them distance themselves. 2. Head and eye positioning - tilting the head can indicate sympathy or flirting. Lowered heads can mean hiding something. Cocked heads signal confusion. Avoiding eye contact can mean nervousness. 3. Mirroring another's poses is a sign of interest and rapport building. Crossed arms may mean feeling closed off. 4. Other cues include foot tapping (impatience), glasses pushing (disagreement), eyebrow positions (skeptic

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Nuno Miguel Freitas
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90 views

Body Language II

This document provides tips for reading body language. It discusses several body language cues and their possible meanings, including: 1. Proximity - how close someone stands indicates their comfort level. Moving closer may make them distance themselves. 2. Head and eye positioning - tilting the head can indicate sympathy or flirting. Lowered heads can mean hiding something. Cocked heads signal confusion. Avoiding eye contact can mean nervousness. 3. Mirroring another's poses is a sign of interest and rapport building. Crossed arms may mean feeling closed off. 4. Other cues include foot tapping (impatience), glasses pushing (disagreement), eyebrow positions (skeptic

Uploaded by

Nuno Miguel Freitas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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How to Read Body Language

1. 1

Pay attention to how close someone is to you. The closer they are, the warmer
their opinions are of you. The farther away that someone is, the less they
actually care of the situation or person. If you move slightly closer to them, do
they move slightly further away? That means they don't want your interaction to
be any more personal than it already is. If they don't move further away, then
they are receptive. And if they respond by getting even closer to you, they
probably really like you or are very comfortable around/by you.

2. 2

Watch their head position.

o Overly tilted heads are either a potential sign of sympathy, or if a person


smiles while tilting their head, they are being playful and maybe even
flirting.
o Lowered heads indicate a reason to hide something. Take note if
someone lowers their head. If it is when he is complimented, he may be
shy, ashamed, timid, keeping distance from the other person, in disbelief,
or thinking to himself. If it is after an explanation, then he may be unsure
if what he said was correct.
 It should be noted that some cultures see this as a sign of respect.
o Cocked heads mean that they are confused or challenging you,
depending on eye, eyebrow, and mouth gestures. Think of how a dog
slightly cocks its head when you make a funny noise.
3. 3

Look into their eyes.

o People who look to the sides a lot are nervous, lying, or distracted.
However, if a person looks away from the speaker, it very well could be
a comfort display or indicate submissiveness. Looking askance generally
means the person is distrustful or unconvinced.
o If someone looks down at the floor a lot, they are probably shy or timid.
o Some cultures believe that looking at someone in the eyes is a sign of
disrespect, so this could explain why someone is avoiding eye contact
with you.
o Dilated pupils mean that the person is interested. Keep in mind, however,
that many drugs cause pupils to dilate, including alcohol, cocaine,
amphetamines, MDMA, LSD and others. Don't mistake having a few
drinks for attraction. Also, some people have permanently dilated pupils
(a condition known as mydriasis).
4. 4

See if they're mirroring you. Mirroring is another common gesture. If someone


mirrors, or mimics your appearance, this is a very genuine sign that they are
interested in you and trying to establish rapport with you. Try changing your
body position here and there. If you find that they change theirs similarly, they
are mirroring.

5. 5

Check their arms.

o People with crossed arms are closing themselves to social influence.


Though some people just cross their arms as a habit, it may indicate that
the person is (slightly) reserved, uncomfortable with their weight
(therefore trying to hide it), or just trying to hide something on their shirt.
If their arms are crossed while their feet are shoulder width or wider
apart, this is a position of toughness or authority.
o If someone rests their arms behind their neck or head, they are open to
what is being discussed or just laid back in general.
o If their hands are on their hips, they might be waiting or impatient.
6. 6

Be aware of nervous gestures:

o If someone brushes their hair back with their fingers, this may be
preening, a common gesture if the person likes you, or their thoughts
about something conflict with yours. They might not voice this. If you
see raised eyebrows during this time, you can be pretty sure that they
disagree with you.
o If the person wears glasses, and is constantly pushing them up onto their
nose again, with a slight frown, that may also indicate they disagree with
what you are saying. Look to make sure they push up their glasses with
an intent, not casually adjusting them. Look for pushing on the rim with
two fingers, or an extra motion of wiggling the side of their glasses. The
frown or raised eyebrows should tip you off.
o Lowered eyebrows and squinted eyes illustrate an attempt at
understanding what is being said or going on. It's usually skeptical. This
is presuming they are not trying to observe something that's far away.
7. 7

Watch their feet:

o A fast tapping, shifting of weight, laughing, or movement of the foot will


most often mean that the person is impatient, excited, nervous, scared, or
intimidated.
 Note though that some people with ADHD will constantly jiggle
their legs. It doesn't mean anything, it's entirely subconscious
and, while eccentric, it can't be stopped.
o If the person is sitting, feet crossed at the ankles means they're generally
at ease.
o If while standing, a person seems to always keep their feet very close
together, it probably means they are trying to be "proper" in some way.
o If they purposely touch their feet to yours, they are flirting!
edit Tips
 It's easy to spot a confident person; they will make prolonged eye contact and
have a strong posture. Long eye contact can also be found in lovers' eyes.
 If a person talks at a fast rate and mumbles or isn't clear on what they are saying
they are lying (trying to stall for time) or not telling the full truth (being vague).
 Don't isolate yourself by constantly examining body language when interacting
with people. Otherwise, there is no reason to gain a social upper hand anyway.
This is paralysis by analysis.
 Watch the face, it will usually give off a quick involuntary and sometimes
subconscious twitch when something happens that irritates, excites, or amuses
them.
 Observing in context is key to understanding body language.
 Keep in mind that each person has their own unique body language called
baseline behaviors.
 When observing others, be subtle about it.
 Pay special attention to CHANGES in body language rather than the body
language itself.

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