Gestures are a complete means of communication. With the help of gestures we can communicate without knowing the language, enhance the meaning of what is said, convey feelings when words are not enough. By learning to understand body language, you will begin to understand people better.

Sign language is the most ancient. People used it to express themselves before they learned to speak and write, as some scientists believe.

However, it is interesting that people gesticulate mainly when speaking, and very rarely when listening. This suggests that gestures are an integral part of speech. Let's try to talk about a topic that worries us with hands tied- and we will immediately begin to “gesticulate” more expressively, to help ourselves with our heads and bodies.

Thanks to gestures we can understand people different nationalities without knowing their language. However, you have to be careful here because the same gesture different cultures may have the opposite meaning. If we nod our heads affirmatively in response to a Bulgarian’s proposal, he will understand this as a refusal, and if we shake our heads from side to side, he will decide that we agree.

The “Ok” gesture, when the thumb and index finger form a ring, will be indecent in, and. The French will also be offended, understanding it as “You are a complete zero, nonentity.”

By giving a thumbs up in approval in or Iran, we are the inhabitants of these countries. For them it will mean the same thing as being pointed up middle finger in Europe.

In Australia, Ireland and the UK, you should not show the V-shaped gesture for victory if your palm is pointed at the person - he will understand it as “Get out of here!”

Temperamental Latin Americans, Italians, Spaniards, and French actively gesticulate when talking - this is the norm for them. Among northern peoples, a person who waves his arms too much during a conversation may be called ill-mannered, although he may simply be very excited and excited. True, in this case you want to stay away from him until he cools down.

“He who lies in the language of words betrays himself in the language of gestures, to which he does not pay attention,” said the German philosopher Oswald Spengler.

Many people don't even realize how much their gestures can reveal about themselves and their intentions to an observant person.

For example, a person comes and wants to work as the head of the sales department. And he brings with him, where it is written how effective it is and. The recruiter looks at him and sees that he is sitting with his legs tucked under him and his arms crossed over his chest. “Yes, he has problems with communication!”, the recruiter thinks and politely refuses.

Or a new neighbor comes to meet us. There is a smile on his face, but we notice his hands clenched into fists. “Eh, he’s not as friendly as he wants to seem!” we conclude.

Our potential competitor, greeting us, firmly shakes our hand. So much so that his palm is on top. “He wants to dominate, he shows who is in charge,” we understand.

With the help of some gestures we can arouse antipathy in people and push them away from us, and with the help of others we can earn a reputation as an interesting person with whom we can be friends and do business.

Knowing sign language, we ourselves will be able to better understand people, understand their actions and predict their actions, because not all of them can control their gestures as much as speech. Words can say one thing, but gestures can say something completely different.

The above applies to gestures unconscious, subconscious that most people don't manage. And it is these gestures that can tell us a lot about the interlocutor. (After all, there is still a language conscious gestures, with the help of which deaf and mute people communicate.)

There are also ritual gestures. One of them is a handshake. This simple gesture can express a lot: the one whose hand is on top will certainly occupy a dominant position in the negotiations, he is the unofficial winner; and the one whose hand is at the bottom has almost lost.

Australian writer and business coach, author of the book “Body Language. How to read the thoughts of others by their gestures,” advises: in order to put yourself on an equal footing with your partner from the very beginning and not allow him to dominate, you need to extend your hand for a handshake, holding your palm vertically. In this case, it is easy to control, and if necessary, its position can be adjusted. In addition, when shaking hands, you need to feel the pressure of your partner’s hand and apply the same amount of pressure with your own hand.

Thanks to a handshake, we can form an impression of a person in the first minutes of meeting him.

What do gestures tell you?

Top managers are required to know how to interpret a particular gesture large companies, and in the West - from middle managers.

• About a person who, during a conversation, does not know where to put his hands, as if they are bothering him, we can say that he is shy, nervous, and feels awkward.
• Examines his pimples and scratches - busy with his thoughts, withdrawn into himself.
• Pulls his ear or the tip of his nose, twists the tip of his mustache or hair - he is skeptical, he doubts.
• Scratching his chest and stomach - very self-confident.
• Shakes or shakes his leg, taps his hand on the table, plays with his fingers, twirls it in his hands various items, cracks his joints - impatient, can't concentrate or is bored.
• Anyone who quite often rubs his temples, forehead, stretches, stretches his legs and arms, lacks vital energy. He is passive and dreamy.
• Chewing on a pen? Is in a state internal conflict, is afraid of something.
• Are your hands clasped behind your back and your chin pointing up? Before us is a man who is used to commanding, authoritarian.
• Are your hands clenched into fists? He is aggressive, but restrains himself.
• Did you place your elbows on the table and cover your mouth with intertwined fingers or fists? “Hidden off” from others.

Alan Pease, who wrote Body Language, has been called "Mr. Body Language." He knows everything about how to decipher people's thoughts and feelings from their gestures. He also tells “How to learn to speak body language” and even how to fake it and “tell a lie without revealing yourself.”

Experienced speakers use these techniques and, with the help of gestures, win over listeners, evoking certain emotions in them.

So there must be gestures soft, “rounded”. Hand movements are symmetrical, the breadth of gestures of both hands is approximately the same. It’s a mistake to gesture with one hand while the other is tucked into your pocket or hanging along your body. A broad gesture will show that the speaker is a confident person. Uptight - that he is shy and complex.

However, measures are needed here too. Excessively broad and active gestures in speakers who are excited and have poor self-control. It is appropriate to resort to broad gestures in front of a large audience. In a small company, active gestures will look like awkward waving of your arms. However, in countries where people with hot temperaments live, this will not surprise anyone.

You can practice symmetrical gestures, when both hands are equally active, using left-handed exercises. From the name it is clear that we must imagine ourselves as a left-hander, and all the work that was previously done by the right hand will now be done by the left. This exercise is also useful for the formation of new neural connections. The main thing is not to be lazy, and then soon we will be able to control even a computer mouse with our left hand.

Gestures must be open - palms turned towards the listeners. The mistake is to hold them with the back to them or hide your hands behind your back, in your pockets. Since ancient times, closed gestures have been perceived at the subconscious level as danger: who knows what is in your hands - maybe a stone. An open gesture shows that I have nothing to hide, here I am, in front of you, all in full view.

Exercises for training gestures

The following exercises will help you make your gestures clear, vivid and imaginative.

1. Guess the word

Here you need a company of at least three or four people. One person comes up with a word (or phrase - such as a proverb) and "shows" it using gestures. The rest must guess what the word is;

2. Mirror - imitating an experienced speaker

On the Internet, you can also find many speeches by speakers with expressive gestures. For example, the same, or, or. We watch the recording and “make monkeys” - we copy the facial expressions and gestures of our model. It is recommended to devote at least half an hour a day to this exercise;

3. Gentle gestures

First, we stretch the wrists of each hand, shake them, relax them, and then write figure eights with our hands and make waves;

4. Stroking movements

We touch all objects softly, affectionately, as if we were picking up not a teapot, or a book, or a cup, but a small, fragile kitten;

“An orator who does not know what to do with his hands should shut his mouth with them,” - “Pshekruj.”

Maybe it’s easier to give up gestures altogether, if it’s so difficult to gesture correctly? But then you need to be prepared for the fact that most the listeners will not remember our performance, for which we diligently prepared. Without reinforcing gestures they will learn 40 percent, and with it - all 80.

It is unlikely that we will impress them either. And we will not be destined to become a speaker who gathers full houses. “If you think it's going to be easy, just forget about it. And never even try to be successful,” says motivational speaker Eric Thomas. - “When you want to succeed as much as you want to breathe, then you will succeed.”

This speech cannot be forgotten. Secrets of public speaking Pozharskaya Alexandra

Master on stage: gestures, facial expressions, public staging, movements, eye contact

To begin with, an interesting example: scientists conducted an experiment, the purpose of which was to find out how strong the first impression made on listeners is and how much it is confirmed later when meeting a person. An example from the book by R. Cialdini (students + professor).

Thus, WHAT we say helps to influence the consciousness of the listeners. And the HOW we speak, i.e. our paraverbal and nonverbal parameters, directly affects the subconscious. And in the debate between the conscious and the unconscious, as we know, the latter wins.

Therefore, it is important to pay special attention to the so-called posing in public and bodily parameters.

In this section we will look at each of them separately.

1. The main position of the speaker.

2. Gestures and hand base.

3. Eye contact.

4. Movements. Now let's take a closer look at what is used in any type of communication. And once again we will put the Master on stage to evaluate how successful he is in oratory. His students have long noticed that the Master gives lectures very confidently and freely. And they couldn’t understand what was the matter? And it’s all about the Master’s gestures and the way he appears in public.

Basic speaker posture

The posture that a speaker takes during a speech affects how he is perceived by the public, because, as we know, you don't get a second chance to make a first impression.

Therefore, we train the speaker’s basic pose so that the body remembers it. Right now we stand in front of the mirror and begin.

Feet shoulder width apart

“Speaker – prop up the mountain” with legs wide apart looks too authoritarian. At the same time, the “speaker is a tin soldier” with too little distance between the legs looks unstable and therefore insecure.

Toes apart 30–35 degrees

Socks turned inwards characterize the speaker as lacking self-confidence. Toes out too wide - Charlie Chaplin's gait.

Knees straight, springy

The legs, on the one hand, should not be too bent at the knees (a speaker dripping to the floor in fear), and on the other hand, they should not be tense (like a grasshopper - with his knees back). Ideally, your knees should be slightly relaxed.

One foot is half a foot in front of the other. 60% body weight on forward leg

This demonstrates your interest in your listeners and your appeal to them. If you transfer the body weight to the leg set back, you will get the impression of detachment from them.

Straight posture

Imagine Christmas tree toy, suspended from the ceiling. The whole body straightens. The chin is at the level of acceptable arrogance. Gaze parallel to the floor.

Straighten your shoulders

Imagine that you are taking off a heavy overcoat (men) or an expensive fur coat (women). To do this, we raise our shoulders up, then move them back and then throw them down again.

Looking for a comfortable position

Now let’s look for plus or minus 2–3 cm and adjust the resulting pose to suit ourselves. At the same time, it is important that you feel comfortable and that your listeners perceive you adequately!

Gestures

What are the characteristics of good gestures?

Firstly, they must be symmetrical. It is uninteresting and strange to look at a person whose hands, for example, are not used. Symmetry is the use of both hands to gesture.

For greater persuasiveness, we use gestures of both hands, while openness also plays an important role. Therefore, 80% of the time on stage and in negotiations, palms should be open. Closed gestures indicate uncertainty and secrecy. And we will not trust a person with closed gestures. You can lie with words, but the body does not lie. When you come to negotiations, keep your palms open.

Fixation– also the quality of good gestures. Gestures should not spoil the negotiator’s speech. Some people wave their arms wildly in a manner inconsistent with their speech, while fixating their gestures is a pause in between. Besides, gestures must match words. When we talked above about the discrepancy between the language of words and the language of the body, we found out that they believe more in the body, so arms spread wide when saying “at a minimum cost” are inadequate, as well as “Hello, dear ladies (gesture towards men) and gentlemen (gesture towards women)!”

Latitude gestures indicate our confidence, as does the breadth of movements. There is such a thing as space exploration. An insecure speaker tries to minimize movements on the stage and gestures, sideways his way onto the lectern, which he then grabs as a life preserver, becoming the background. When negotiating, it is also important how, for example, we sit on a chair: completely or on the very edge, whether we move in space freely and confidently, whether we use broad gestures.

And finally, it is very important not only to gesture, but also to give your hands the opportunity to rest, to provide them with the so-called airfield - to use hand base as one of the parameters of a pose in public.

Successful basic hand positions: hands along the body, hands in a “lock”, hands in a “house” at the level of the stomach, one palm lies on the other at the level of the stomach, one palm on the other or on the fist, with the palms facing the stomach, etc.

Eye contact

Another parameter that plays a decisive role in establishing contact with the public.

If the speaker does not use this most important parameter, then one gets the feeling that he is not opening up to his listeners, is not interested in them, and will not be able to “catch” attention and hold it for a long time.

What are the basic rules for attracting the attention of listeners with the help of gaze?

Uniform coverage. No dead zones.

Let's remember dear readers, which parts of the audience fall out of sight most often. That's right, the gallery and the flanks, but there are individual preferences of the speaker, for example, women in the center can also fall out. Some look selectively only at familiar or supportive faces; the weaker sex more often looks at the male part of the audience, the stronger - at the female.

So, it is important to cover the ENTIRE audience, so that there are no “favorites” or “outcasts” among the listeners. It is also important to distribute attention evenly over time, that is, switch attention from one flank to another, from the first rows to the last, constantly!

Contact duration

How long then to look at one listener in the hall and when to switch your attention? Typically, the audience gives a variety of answers, but the average duration of contact with one person is 2-3 seconds. The key parameter is the phrase “we look until contact”, i.e. until a certain spark of understanding runs between you and your listener (externally: a short nod, a smile, a spark in the eyes), which will be a signal to switch to the next one.

We look chaotically

Sometimes, realizing that it is necessary to cover everyone with his gaze, the speaker begins to “shoot” the hall: he shoots with his eyes from right to left and vice versa. The first one went, the second one went... No, this won’t work, it’s strange and unnatural, and meanwhile the audience figures out the “scheme” of interaction and begins to fall asleep at one end of the hall, then at the other. A chaotic switching of attention is natural - because then it is difficult to guess who the speaker will look at next.

Heart to Heart

During the training, I conduct an interesting experiment: I suddenly stop moving my body and head and use ONLY eye contact, i.e. I move only my eyes to the right and left. Listeners immediately notice such behavior and evaluate it as “insincere, cold, indifferent,” etc. And one young man, who was sitting at the training without glasses, was generally at a loss whether I was looking at him or not.

Then I include a head turn, but the audience is not happy with this either.

And as a result, I begin to turn my whole body - slightly to the left or to the right when my eyes make contact with the listener. Then the audience freezes: so that’s what it’s all about!

And the young man, who had forgotten his glasses, smiles: “Now I can see when you look at me.”

So, we use heart-to-heart contact to interact with listeners even more effectively!

Strengthening contact

How to make eye contact even more memorable?

Add the following parameters:

Gesture + glance.

We look at the person and make a gesture in his direction.

Approach + glance.

Approach one or another part of the audience, making eye contact with it.

Rhetorical question + look.

We ask a question to the audience, while looking at one of the listeners.

Special cases

When answering questions, we look at everyone! The approximate distribution of attention between the person who asked the question and the audience is as follows: 30% (to the person who asked the question) to 70% (to the audience). Remember: in answer to question one, you and I give interesting information and others.

Is there a big boss in the hall?

A little more attention to him. No flattery. Depends on a situation.

Large audience of 100, 200, 1000 people?

We divide it into sectors and chaotically switch our attention, covering the entire hall!

And finally, movement around the hall - the basis for creating an effect in public.

Movement tasks

It has been proven that a moving object attracts attention 7 times more than a static one. And the speaker’s task is to become the center of attention, a figure, not a background. Accordingly, it is important to move on stage!

So, the first task of movement is to keep the attention of listeners.

The second is to relieve excess anxiety, because on stage my knees often tremble. You start moving and your anxiety disappears!

Raise the energy of the performance

We remember that if the speaker is tired and the audience falls asleep, it is necessary to change the energy of the speech. How? First of all, with the help of movements!

Engage the Difficult Listener

Surely we all remember student times, when an experienced teacher approached in the gallery, where people most often whisper, rustle notes, etc., and the audience immediately fell silent. So, you can keep the attention of a “difficult” listener by simply approaching him.

Seizing an advantageous position

Through movement we can strengthen strong positions on the stage. For example, a successful speaker spoke at the pulpit, which means we stand there and speak immediately after him from the same place. If a boring lecturer was speaking from the same pulpit, then we move to another part of the stage.

Indication of transition to the next part of the speech

By completing a phrase and a certain logical chain of reasoning, we move in space, stepping from one place to another. And thus we give a signal about the transition.

How to move around the stage correctly?

1. The 20% to 80% rule. 80% of the time a speaker needs to stand, and not rush around like a tiger in a cage.

2. Facing the audience. Under no circumstances do we move our back or side towards the audience, only at an angle of 45%, while maintaining eye contact.

3. Variety of trajectories and speeds. A monotonous pendulum-like movement is more likely to lull listeners to sleep than to amuse or interest them.

4. Fixation in end points. It is important to stop in the basic speaker position at the main end points. Otherwise, there is a feeling of instability or dancing. Fixation is a calm performance from one point for 10, 20, 130 seconds.

5. Don't back away!

6. Don't intertwine your legs!

7. We do not invade the personal space of our listeners!

Tips:

Legalization.

Naturalness.

Let's summarize

Parameters of performance in public:

The main position of the speaker.

Gestures (including hand base).

Eye contact.

Movement.