The adage goes that “a picture is worth a thousand words”, so therefore I’m curious to know what you think about this picture. What message do you think I was being sent when it arrived in my inbox? And how do you think I reacted?
We often totally under-estimate the power of non-verbal communication in our society and yet non-verbal communication is an essential component of everyday life. We can convey a simple or complex message very succinctly with how we show up.
If we are feeling bored and unenthusiastic at work our body posture will probably express this with folded arms, rounded shoulders and generally looking glum and sad. Contrast this with a team member who is happy and in flow enjoying their job. They probably have a spring in their step, are literally walking on air and have a happy countenance.
How we BE at work and in life shapes how people interact with us and therefore the experiences we have. Sure words are important, but only up to a point as research shows that our body language and tonality have a much greater impact on the impression we make than anything else.
So how do you think I responded when I received this. Well of course I laughed and immediately saw the funny side of how my actions were stopping one of my colleagues getting on with her work. What might have become a heated conversation – her chasing me for something I hadn’t completed – got deflected with with one simple image.
So how can you use non-verbal communication to convey your message in a fun and innovative way?. I’d love to hear what you are doing.
And of course if you want to learn non-verbal communication from horses, who are masters at this, then look out for my Art of Communication workshop that up soon. You can find all the details here.
Have an inspired rest of the week.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
