Reading Body

Language

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 Intro
By a man's fingernails, by his coat-sleeve, by his boots, by his
trouser-knees, by the calluses of his forefinger and thumb, by his
expression, by his shirt-cuffs, by his movements- by each of these
things a man's calling is plainly revealed. That all united should
fail to enlighten the competent enquirer in any case is almost
inconceivable.
SHERLOCK HOLMES, 1892

Every day people around you people are communicating their true thoughts and feelings without ever saying a
word. The ability to work out what is really happening with a person is simple - not easy, but simple. It's about
matching what you see and hear in the environment in which it all happens and drawing probable conclusions.
Most people, however, only see the things they think they are seeing. This is contrary to the fact that non-verbal
communication makes up 55% of what our words convey every day. The remaining percentages are 7%
vocabulary and 38% vocal (tone of voice, inflection, and other sounds). This is why it is difficult to tell when non-
familiar strangers are being dishonest with us when we cannot see their body language. The human body reveals
what people’s real thoughts are even when their words say otherwise!

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Silent movie actors like Charlie
Commercialization of Body
Chaplin were the pioneers of Language
body language skills, as this was the only means of communication
available on the screen. Each actor's skill was classed as
good or bad by the extent to which he could use gestures and
body signals to communicate to the audience. When talking
films became popular and less emphasis was placed on the
non-verbal aspects of acting, many silent movie actors faded
into obscurity and only those with good verbal and non-verbal
skills survived.

As far as the academic study of body language goes,

perhaps the most influential pre-twentieth-century work was
Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Man and
Animals, published in 1872, but this work tended to be read
mainly by academics. However, it spawned the modern studies
of facial expressions and body language, and many of
Darwin's ideas and observations have since been validated by
researchers around the world. Since that time, researchers have
noted and recorded almost a million non-verbal cues and
signals.

By studying the language of the body, individuals are able to

decipher what others are not telling them which could change the
world!

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Upper Limbs Head Greetings Lower Limbs

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Uppe Head Links Greetings Main Lowe Site

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Arms Eyes Mout Kissin

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Head ad

Smiling and laughing are universally considered to be signals that show a person is happy. We cry at birth, begin
smiling at five weeks and laughing starts between the fourth and fifth months. Babies quickly learn that crying gets
our attention -and that smiling keeps us there. In humans, smiling tells another person you are non-threatening
and asks them to accept you on a personal level. Lack of smiling explains why many dominant individuals, such as
Vladimir Putin, James Cagney, Clint Eastwood, Margaret Thatcher and Charles Bronson, always seem to look
grumpy or aggressive and are rarely seen smiling - they simply don't want to appear in any way submissive. And
research in courtrooms shows that an apology offered with a smile incurs a lesser penalty than an apology without
one. Click below for more information on how others cannot fool you any longer.

The Eyes Have It Those Lips Drive Me Wild A kiss is a lovely trick

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 Ey
Eyes
es

Exasperation: A familiar sign of Winking: A wink has various

meanings, from sexual approval
exasperation, the eyes are turned
by a potential partner, to
heavenward, as though invoking
collusion between two people in
divine assistance.
the know.

Anxiety: Eyebrows raised and Skepticism: Raising just one eyebrow

furrowed is an instinctive is a common gesture of disbelief. The
response to extreme anxiety. It is two sides of the face are at odds,
a natural expression, common to registering a state of confusion.
all cultures.

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Mouth uth
Raspberry: Children the
world over stick their Be Quiet: An easily
tongue out as a rude recognized symbol of silence,
gesture—perhaps their the lips are sealed.
first insult.

I Don’t Know: This gesture Anger: Biting one’s lower

involves pulling down the lip while shaking one’s head
corners of the mouth–a facial from side to side shows
equivalent to shrugging the barely contained anger.
shoulders.

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 Kiss
Kissing ing

Cheek Kiss: This is a friendly Foot Kiss: A gesture symbolizing Hand Kiss: This gesture is a
gesture practiced in the humility and respect, performed by symbol of respect, and was
West, in which both people the Pope during Holy Week. once commonly performed
kiss each other on both by a man when greeting a
cheeks. woman.

Blowing A Kiss: A symbol of love, often from

a mother to a child, or to a friend too distant
to embrace.

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 Upper
Upper LimbsLimbs

The hands have been the most important tools in human

evolution and there are more connections between the brain
and the hands than between any other body parts. Few
people ever consider how their hands behave or the way they
shake hands when they meet someone. Yet those first five to
seven pumps establish whether dominance, submission or
power plays will take place. Throughout history, the open
palm has been associated with truth, honesty, allegiance and
submission. Many oaths are still taken with the palm of the
hand over the heart, and the palm is held in the air when
somebody is giving evidence in a court of law; the Bible is held
in the left hand and the right palm held up for the members of
the court to view. One of the most valuable clues to
discovering whether someone is being open and honest - or
not - is to watch for palm displays. Just as a dog will expose its
throat to show submission or surrender to the victor, humans
use their palms to display in a similar way to show that they
are unarmed and therefore not a threat.

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 Ar
ms

Triumph: Arms straight in

the air are a sign of Hail: Depending on the
success: the person feels stiffness of the arm, this
this big. is a friendly gesture or a
Fascist salute.

Rejoicing: This gesture which combines

jumping in the air with the slapping of
hands, is a spontaneous display of joy. It is
Praise: in this gesture, common in the field of sports. Surrender: A recognized
palms and head are gesture of submission,
turned heavenwward. this arms-raised pose
shows that the person is
not reaching for a
weapon.

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 Ha
Hands nds
Jealousy: This gesture has various Loose screw: This gesture
meanings and is generally an insult. indicates that someone is
In Mediterranean countries, it crazy, that (s)he needs to
represents the horns of a cuckold; in tighten a loose screw in
Japan, it means an angry or jealous the head.
wife.

Thinking: People adopt this Teeth flick: This gesture,

posture unconsciously. It is a flicking a thumb-nail
modified prayer with a against the teeth, is
reassuring touch of the lips. common in Mediterranean
countries, where it
denotes anger.

Stupidity: Common in Mockery: Thumbing one’s

nose is a playful insult,
Saudi Arabia, this familiar to all ages and
implies, “I can see nationalities. Often the
clearly that you are a fingers are wiggled to
fool.” emphasize mockery.

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 Greeti
Greetings ngs
Waving: This gesture is often
made on meeting or parting. The
hand raised with the palm
upward is a classic way of
drawing attention to oneself.

Nose Rubbing: Although rare

in the West, the rubbing of
nose is still practiced in other
cultures, notably among
Polynesians.

Bowing: This form of greeting is practiced mainly in Asian and is a

common sign of respect. Performers also bow to their audience to
acknowledge applause. In the West bowing still sometimes
Handshake: The clasping
of hands is a common
accompanies the handshake, suggesting humility, the person bowing
gesture both on meeting
being symbolically “smaller” than the other.
and parting. It signifies a
certain equality of status.

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 Lower
Lower LimbsLimbs

The farther away from the brain a body part is positioned, the less
awareness we have of what it is doing. This means that the legs and feet
are an important source of information about someone's attitude because
most people are unaware of what they are doing with them and never
consider faking gestures with them in the way that they would with
their face. A person can look composed and in control while their foot is
repetitively tapping or making short jabs in the air, revealing their
frustration at not being able to escape.

These results were verified by psychologist Paul Ekman, who

discovered that people also increase their lower body movements
when they lie but observers also have greater success exposing a
person's lies when they can see the liar's entire body. This explains
why many business executives feel comfortable only when sitting
behind a desk with a solid front, where their lower body is hidden.

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Legs
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Lee, Mark. (2006). Three elements of
communication—and the so called “7%-38%-55%
Rule.” Retrieved on October 19, 2009, at
http://www.ecademy.com/node.php?id=78144

Morgan, N. (2002). The Truth Behind the

Smile and Other Myths– When Body
Language Lies. Retrieved on October 19, 2009
@ http://hbswk.hbs.edu/archive/3123.html

Pease, B. and Allan Pease. (2006). The

Definitive Book of Body Language. Bantam:
New York. Available for purchase at
http://www.amazon.com/Definitive-Book-
Body-Language/dp/0553804723

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