Check out your body language right now. If a stranger approached, what opinion would they form about you?
We all make judgments on people and we make them quickly. Part of their decision is on the physical position of our body. If we are physically closed up then we could be considered weak but if we are spread out we could be considered powerful. Non-verbal language (as social psychologists call it) is an important component to how well we do in business. Powerful people tend to be more effective, assertive, confident, and optimistic.
These clues work themselves through the animal kingdom as well. A dog will tuck its’ tail when feeling insecure but will puff up its’ fur when being threatening.
So the question posed by Ann Cuddy in her TED Talk (a wonderful on-line resource of topics by forward thinking people) is if non-verbal clues govern how people think about us can non-verbal clues change the way we think about ourselves? In other words, “Can you fake it till you make it?”
In a series of tests researchers checked people’s hormone levels then asked them to strike powerful poses for two minutes and then re-tested their hormone. In a similar series of tests people were asked to strike passive poses for two minutes. What did they find? Those who struck the power pose tested much higher in testosterone and those that struck passive poses were higher in cortisol. Why does that matter? These results indicate that you can actually change the way you feel by physically changing your body.
So what this mean to you is…you can actually gain more feelings of confidence by changing your body.
Most salespeople have presentations or cold calls or any type of stressful situation when you could feel like you want to puke. So instead try this…..strike a pose. Put your shoulders back your arms on your hips, your feet spread apart (think Wonder Woman) and hold it for 2 minutes prior to walking into your sales call.
Think about it.
Here’s the link to Ann’s Ted Talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are.html