BODY LANGUAGE 1.3

 BODY LANGUAGE 1.3 

1. GROOMING & FIRST IMPRESSION

Well-Dressed Person:

• Neat appearance
• Color coordination of clothes
• Clean shoes
• Formals and Saturday dressing

note: What do you observe when you meet someone for the first time. [Hair style, eyes, dressing, body language, smile, body odour, etc.]

Grooming for Men:

Do wear your hair clean and styled neatly.

Do use deodorant.

Do not use a lot of cologne.

Do not smoke, chew gum or spit tobacco.

Do shave your facial hair.

If you wear a beard, it should be neatly trimmed. Mustaches should also be trimmed.

Do not have dirty fingernails no matter what type of job you are applying for. Trim nails and scrub hands if necessary. 

Clothing’s for Men:  

The following are general guidelines for successful workplace dressing:

Do wear clean, ironed clothes.

Do empty pockets – beware of bulging keys and tinkling change.

Don’t wear loud, bright colors such as greens, reds or purples. These colors can be used sparingly as accents or accessories.

Avoid wearing large checked shirt.

Avoid wearing pair of shoes without pair of socks

Avoid wearing black pair of shoes with white pair of socks.

Avoid wearing checked pair of socks, use them for other occasions.

Avoid wearing printed ties as business formals prefer wearing plain tie

Avoid wearing floaters, chappals, slippers, sandals during Saturday.

Wear sport shoes or sneakers on saturday.

Wear a belt matching your shoe color. 

  
Grooming YOUR Attitude:

• Smile Please.
• Use the magic words such as Thank you, Please and Sorry
• Avoid phrases such as can’t do, it’s not possible, I’ll try, let me see…
• Be Punctual.

note: In grooming besides our personality there are two most important aspects to be focused; our attitude and our smile. Be courteous and use magic words such as thank you, sorry & please. Use positive words and have a can do attitude rather than a negative attitude. Time management is most important as one must value his and the other persons time too. If you have an appointment at 5pm make sure you reach there by 4.30, there is no harm in waiting for your customer rather than ending up apologizing and feeling embarrassed.

2. PERSONAL SPACE

• Have you ever heard someone refer to their need for "personal space"?
• Have you ever started to feel uncomfortable when someone stands just a little too close to you? 
• The term ‘proxemics’ refers to the distance between people as they interact.
• Just as body movements and facial expressions can communicate a great deal of nonverbal information, so can this physical space between individuals.
• Personal space is the region surrounding a person which they regard as psychologically theirs.
• Permitting a person to enter personal space and entering somebody else's personal space are indicators of perception of the relationship between the people.

• There is an intimate zone reserved for lovers, children and close family members.
• There is another zone used for conversations with friends, to chat with associates, and in group discussions.
•  A further zone is reserved for strangers, newly formed groups, and new acquaintances.
• A fourth zone is used for speeches, lectures, and theater; essentially, public distance is that range reserved for larger audiences.

NOTE: It is also important to note that the level of personal distance that individuals need to feel comfortable can vary from culture to culture. Entering somebody's personal space is normally an indication of familiarity and at times of intimacy. However, in modern society, especially in crowded urban communities, it is at times difficult to maintain personal space.One oft-cited example is the different between people from Latin cultures and those from North America. People from Latin countries tend to feel more comfortable standing closer to one another as they interact, while those from North America need more personal distance. For example, in a crowded train, elevator or street.

3. EYE CONTACT

• An old proverb says, "The eyes are the mirror of the soul", and they are. Eyes can captivate an audience and express what words may not be able to deliver.
• Eye contact does not mean staring into the speaker’s eyes without a break! ‘Eye contact’ is defined as:

“The act of looking directly into another’s eyes…a meeting of the eyes of two persons, regarded as a meaningful nonverbal form of communication.”

• In human beings, eye contact is a form of nonverbal communication and is thought to have a large influence on social behavior.
• One of the most important communication skills to utilize in America is eye contact. Making and maintaining eye contact is not only important, it is essential when conversing with someone, especially if you want to be taken seriously. Think job situations, talking to a professor, meeting a new girl or guy that you like — anything!
  
  1. Making eye contact immediately tells your speaker that you are interested in what he or she has to say. And the opposite is true, too. If you look away and fail to make eye contact with someone who is speaking to you, they can and probably will take this as a sign that you are not interested in what they are talking about!
  2. Making eye contact also shows that you respect the person who is speaking and that you know that what they are saying is important (at least important to them). This is in contrast to other cultures, where a subordinate may be expected to look away. But in America, eye contact shows that you respect that the person is speaking and that they have your attention. Consider this in numerous situations, from being a student sitting in class and to being on a job interview.
  3. Maintaining eye contact is part of the process of showing your speaker that you as the listener understand what is being said. Other body language and communication techniques may accompany the eye contact to communicate comprehension, such as nodding your head up and down and confirmation sounds, such as “mmhmm” or “uh huh”. All in moderation, of course.
• Why eye contact is important: 1) Interest,     2) Respect,      3) Comprehension. 

note:  
Eye contact a powerful communication tool. Eye contact shows a  sense of confidence and an emotional connection. Eye contact is a non-verbal ability to communicate, and it often equals to our ability to verbally express a thought. If you lose eye contact or focus on everything else but the person you are speaking to, you may not be taken seriously and the truth in your points may be lost. Failing to maintain eye contact during a conversation can send mixed signals to the person you are speaking with. You might not be forthcoming or truthful in what you are saying---liars tend to not keep eye contact. On the flip side, anger, disgust, and dissatisfaction can also be easily delivered with through our eye contact. It can be used in positive ways to effectively express confidence, intellect, honesty, love and desire, friendship, compassion and sympathy, and more.

 (to be continued...)