Dress For Success

Appearance and first impressions is very important in today's modern society. More so when trying to get a promotion in your workplace or an interview for a new job. Which is why I am going to talk about Making a first impression on your interview today.

People tend to focus on the negative part of a presentation more than the positive part. Remember your appearance is also a non verbal way of communicating. So if you're hair is tidy and your face is glowing, but your shirt is not tucked into your pants when walking into a job interview you are likely to fail on gaining that respect from the interviewer. It shows you don't care keep yourself well-groomed and looks sloppy. This will give the impression that you don't care about the position you are applying for, even if you know this interview is very important to you.

I have recently read a blog called I have recently read a blog called Suits and Skirts by Marinelle Garcia. She talks about When You Have To Prepare For An Interview which I find to be very useful. Visit her site to view a list of what to wear for women and men to an interview.

Also remember your gestures when greeting your interviewer. A firm handshake accompanied with a pleasant smile will complement your verbal greeting. This will show you are confident and polite. 

Thought for the day...

Have you been offered a job where you were dressed sloppy and acted rude at the interview? or have heard anyone that has?

Observing Body Language

I found this video on Youtube called Observing Body Language and would like to share it with you. It is a video of select sections of Charlie Rose interviewing Bill Gates from a body language viewpoint. As you know, body language is a form of non-verbal communication that can complete a verbal message. That means with effective body language use, you can deliver a powerful message.

Bill Gates is a celebrity and what comes with being a celebrity is able to speak professionally unconsciously. Watch this video and see for yourself how effective body language can be. I found the passages in this video useful because it focuses on areas of your non-verbal communication skills that can enhance public speaking.

Although the narrator, Tom Mucciolo also talks about some errors in Bill Gates hand gestures, he still thinks as a whole that we can learn from this celebrity. I'm sure we can always use help to improve our communication skills.

Also, see Postures and Gestures in my Functions and Forms post.

Thought for the day...

Many gestures worldwide are the same but have different meanings in diverse cultures. Can you think of a time that you used a gesture that someone interpreted the wrong way? Feel free to share your story by commenting below.

Same Gestures, Different Meaning

Non-Verbal Techniques Checklist

Now that you know more about the functions and forms of non-verbal communication, you will be more aware of these silent cues around you and be able to use it to your advantage. Visit improve non-verbal communication skills to see why it is important for you to better your skills.

Practise improving your skills everyday and you can be a great speaker. Let's begin by exploring each item on the Non-Verbal Techniques Checklist. Remember as you go through each item, think about how this will benefit you in the workplace.

Find and maintain eye contact. This item is straightforward. When you look directly into someone's eyes while you are speaking, (without making it look like you are staring,) then you come out to be an assertive, confident speaker. If you notice your audience, is not looking back at you, then this signals your conversation, presentation is boring or they can't hear you.

Use posture to show and gain interest. I think this goes hand in hand with Find and maintain eye contact because standing up straight, leaning forward and looking alert not only shows interest but also will encourage communication interaction.

Do not use physical barriers. When you are holding a team meeting and expect employees' feedback and discussion, then arrange the chairs in a circle. Also, don't stand behind a desk or lectern; this will give the room an open discussion aura.

Enhance your decoding skills. Paying attention to people's facial expressions and body language (see functions and forms) will help you understand the complete verbal and nonverbal message they send. Misunderstanding the importance of a project your boss gave you because they are smiling may cost you your job if you dismiss the task. You might make a joke and not realise your boss is serious because you are not used to how they manage. This takes us to the next step Probe for more information.

Probe for more information. Anytime nonverbal cues contradict verbal meanings, politely asking questions is the best thing to do. You don't want to assume and make a misconception of someone's message. Examples of how to seek clues: "I'm not sure I understand", or "Do you mean that..."

Avoid using nonverbal meanings out of context. Only when you understand a situation or culture you can make a professional nonverbal assessment. You don't ever want to offend or insult someone unintentionally or intentionally in your workplace.

Connect with people from different cultures. For you to avoid using nonverbal meanings out of context learning about other cultures will help. You will also broaden your knowledge and tolerance of intercultural nonverbal messages.

Appreciate the power of appearance. You can send a positive or negative message about yourself with others through your business letters, your work area and yourself. So always, take that extra step when needed to avoid any bad reviews.

Watch yourself on videotape. Try it. Videotape yourself a few days before you have to do a presentation. View it and see if you follow all the functions and forms of nonverbal communication skills to help complete your verbal message. Be your own critic.

Enlist friends and family. Be open to effective criticism from people you trust. Ask them to watch your conscious and unconscious body movements and gestures. This will help you become a more effective communicator.

I personally practice each item on this list as often as possible, especially when I have a presentation coming up. When I would present speeches, practicing in the mirror for days before the presentation made me feel more confident and prepared. There are times I present with less practice and I definitely can tell the difference in how I feel. How you feel, will show in your presentation. So I hope you take this checklist to heart, and review each item thoroughly.

If you have any questions regarding this checklist, feel free to comment below and I will look into it for you if I don't know or will respond as soon as I know something.

Thought for the day...

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT...let's become an effective communicator! 

Do you think if everyone in your workplace is an effective communicator, there would be more harmony within your work environment? Comment below and let's discuss this...

Workplace Harmony

Functions and Forms

UNDERSTANDING NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Before you can improve your non-verbal communication skills, you must first understand the different functions and forms of these silent messages. Once you perceive this knowledge, you will be more aware of non-verbal communication cues and gestures around you and then you can use it to your advantage at work.

FUNCTIONS:

There are at least five ways communicators use non-verbal communication skills:

1. To complement and illustrate. Non-verbal messages can enhance, change, complete or provide details for a verbal message.

   
   

   Example: Speaker shows how grand his idea is by using his arm
   

   
   

   
   

2. To reinforce and accentuate. This function conveys your important ideas in a verbal message.

Example: A neat and well-equipped office reinforces professionalism

     3.  To replace and substitute. Using gestures instead of words.

Example: Index finger in front of closed lips gestures 'be quiet'.

     4.  To control and regulate. Non-verbal messages can tell speakers when to continue, to repeat, to                   elaborate, to hurry-up or to finish.

Example: Audience has no eye contact with speaker-message says 'boring'.

     5.  To contradict. Actions of a person show the opposite of their verbal message.

Example: Person rubbing forehead indicates headache, but tells you they are not feeling well.

FORMS:

The following different forms of non-verbal communication range from facial expressions to body language and even clothes. I found that learning these messages can help me positively in my career. As you go through the messages sent by eye contact, facial expressions, posture, and gestures, as well as the use of time, space, territory, and appearance think about how they can help you in your career.

Eye Contact. How you look at someone or how someone looks at you can determine true feelings and attitudes. Most people cannot look at someone straight in the eyes and lie. Think about how many times you believed a speaker that didn't look at you directly. When you maintain direct but not prolonged eye contact, this suggests trust and admiration. In various cultures, eye contact have different meanings. Keep this in mind when you are doing business outside of your culture.

Facial Expression. The human face can display many different expressions. Some people can control these expressions and hide their true feelings, whereas most of us display our emotions openly. Swallowing nervously, raising or lowering the eyebrows and frowning can entirely replace verbal messages. In the workplace you should maintain an inviting expression including smiles.

Posture and Gestures. In the workplace, controlling your posture and gestures sends out a good impression. Standing up straight shows confidence and strength. Leaning back & slouching in the audience shows lack of interest. Practicing good posture and relevant gestures in presentations are key non-verbal communicators to use to keep an audience listening. Later on I will also talk about using non-verbal communication to improve your presentations.

Time. Being on time for meetings, work and interviews shows how a person's personality and attitude is. When you are always on time for work, it shows that you are dedicated and respect your company. This can go a long way for you when you want to advance in your career. Even for meetings, whether you are attending one or holding one, punctuality will send a positive message in your workplace.

Space. The design and grouping of furniture within a work space tells us how a person and their objective. For example, a formal design would suggest a more formal and closed communication environment. To show a more open environment, try arranging chairs informally in a circle. You would normally want to do this to encourage an open discussion and unrestricted flow of communication.

Territory. There are four different space zones for social interaction. Intimate Zone, Personal Zone, Social Zone and Public Zone. People in North America only intimate friends and family can stand closer than 0.45 metres. If anyone else steps that close to us, we normally take a step back to regain our space.

Appearance. How you look from what you wear, grooming and even how you stand can send a non-verbal message about you instantly. Observers will judge you based on what they see so try to keep this in mind when you think about what you are going to wear to work. Based on what they see, a quick judgement can be made. For example, if your clothes are untidy and your hair doesn't look combed, your workplace can perceive that you did not have time to get ready for work or worse, you don't care about you look like. This can also mean that you don't respect your company and your boss will not like this.

Thought for the day...

Is this what your workplace looks like? Comment and tell me what you think.

Figure 1 Professional Image

Improving your non-verbal communication skills checklist

We use non-verbal communication everyday in our lives at work, school and even just parking the car in a parking lot. Non-verbal communication is a form of communicating without using words. For example composing an email to your boss at work about an idea that you have, raising your hand in class as a gesture to show you have an answer to your teacher’s questions and waving at a pedestrian to go ahead and cross in front of you before you park the car at your local mall. Lack of skills or weak non-verbal communication can create a negative effect and a miscommunication. No matter how or where you non-verbally communicate, practising to improve this skill will help your message get across positively.

The following is a non-verbal techniques checklist that can ensure positive and clear communication.

Finally, perfecting your non-verbal communication skills will show you are professional and businesslike. You will project a positive signal consistently at work and in return, you will have more chances of promotions, credits/merits/awards and opportunities in your workplace. Remember: “Actions speak louder than words!”