What is the difference between body language and non verbal communication

In order to send accurate nonverbal cues, you need to be aware of your emotions and how they influence you. You also need to be able to recognize the emotions of others and the true feelings behind the cues they are sending. This is where emotional awareness comes in. Pay attention to inconsistencies. Nonverbal communication should reinforce what is being said. Is the person saying one thing, but their body language conveying something else? Look at nonverbal communication signals as a group.

Consider all of the nonverbal signals you are receiving, from eye contact to tone of voice and body language. Taken together, are their nonverbal cues consistent—or inconsistent—with what their words are saying? Trust your instincts. Eye contact — Is the person making eye contact? If so, is it overly intense or just right? Facial expression — What is their face showing? Is it masklike and unexpressive, or emotionally present and filled with interest?

Posture and gesture — Is their body relaxed or stiff and immobile? Are their shoulders tense and raised, or relaxed? Touch — Is there any physical contact? Is it appropriate to the situation?

Does it make you feel uncomfortable? Intensity — Does the person seem flat, cool, and disinterested, or over-the-top and melodramatic?

Timing and place — Is there an easy flow of information back and forth? Do nonverbal responses come too quickly or too slowly? Sounds — Do you hear sounds that indicate interest, caring or concern from the person? Authors: Jeanne Segal, Ph. About Nonverbal Communications — Different categories of nonverbal communication, along with a detailed list of signals.

Adam Blatner, M. Harvard Business Review. Wertheim, Ph. Northeastern University. This holiday season alone, millions of people will turn to HelpGuide for free mental health guidance and support. So many people rely on us in their most difficult moments. Can we rely on you? All gifts made before December 31 will be doubled. This may express to the speaker you are bored or nervous or are disinterested.

According to Jim Blythe, author of Consumer Behaviour , fidgeting is a displacement behavior and external release for whatever you are feeling within. Since facial expressions are closely tied to our emotions, they reveal what we are thinking and are perhaps our biggest nonverbal communicators in everyday life. Imagine pitching a new product to a client with a fearful and worried look on your face or with a lack of eye contact.

This would convey to your client that you have little faith in the product. Instead, if you really want to sell your product, show positive energy and enthusiasm with your facial expressions by allowing your face to be animated and smiling as you talk. The excitement on your face will help get the customer excited about your new product.

Head movements are especially rich conveyors of communication and one of the easiest nonverbal cues to understand. Certain head movements tend to be culture-specific, such as nodding in agreement for within western cultures. Hand gestures punctuate the spoken word and can offer useful context about both the speaker and what they are saying.

Trembling hands could mean the person is anxious or lying. Animated, grand hand gestures could indicate the person is excited or passionate about what she is discussing. Other times hand gestures give literal meaning to the spoken words.

Your boss may give you very detailed verbal instructions about a task with added hand gestures to reinforce his spoken words. Bad posture, like slouching, may indicate the listener is bored or uninterested in the conversation. Body posture can also give hints about personality characteristics, such as whether a person is confident, happy, friendly or submissive.

Physical distance between people can set the tone for the conversation. Other times, getting extremely close or touching someone as you speak could be considered intrusive or even hostile. However, physical distance can be misleading since different cultures require different amounts of physical distance for communicating in the workplace.

Most North Americans prefer at least 18 inches of personal space. Anything closer is viewed as too intimate in a work environment. A coworker from South America, on the other hand, may be comfortable getting much closer to talk.

Understanding the importance of nonverbal communication with a client or potential customer helps increase trust and clarity and add interest to your business-critical conversations — or does the exact opposite.

If prospects think you are bored, distracted, annoyed or anything that is off-putting, they could decline your contract. Commonly, people are not aware they are giving off negative nonverbal cues that others notice.

On the other hand, displaying positive nonverbal communication that increases your credibility and trustworthiness could help you land the deal. Clients want to see your actions and facial expressions align with your words. Companies that conduct business primarily by phone or email are leaving a large percentage of their message open to misinterpretation.

Video conferencing ensures that no inflection is missed and that facial expressions, hand gestures and body language are seen and understood. It engages both visual and audible aspects of communication in one format and puts you in control of shaping your message. Here are six tips to help you effectively communicate with your clients, colleagues and business partners using video conferencing technology.

You may be using a small device like a tablet or phone during a conference call, but people on the far end may see you on a large, ultra-high definition TV in a conference room.

Your nonverbal communication is also important for teaching your child how to relate to and get along with other people, which is an important skill for life. For example, if you use warm and caring body language towards your child, it teaches your child how to express love.

Using body language and tone of voice to improve communication Body language and tone of voice are key parts of nonverbal communication. Here are some ideas:. Improving nonverbal communication as a family Games and family challenges can be a fun way to develop your understanding of nonverbal communication as a family. For example, you could try video-recording a family conversation and then watch it together.

See who can spot the nonverbal communication like touches, hugs, gestures, eye contact and so on. Then you could talk about whether the body language matches the words. Here are more tips:. The Disney movie Inside Out can help children understand and talk about feelings and how we express them without words.

You could watch it as a family and then talk about it afterwards. You can also help your child with nonverbal communication in other ways. For example, your child might be standing very close to a friend and the friend might look uncomfortable, or start stepping back.

You can also use nonverbal communication to reinforce your words when your child is behaving in a difficult way.