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Hold Your Head Up High: Using Posture to Improve Professional Communication

Strong communication skills are essential to professional success. But effective communication goes beyond the words you say and how you say them—nonverbal communication also plays a very significant role in how you are perceived in the workplace and how your message is understood. Last week, we discussed how eye contact can improve your rapport with clients and colleagues and help communicate your message. Today, we’ll address another critical aspect of body language: posture.

Use Posture to Project Confidence:

The way you hold yourself tells your listener a lot about how you perceive yourself and the value of your message. Stand straight with your shoulders held slightly back, and position your head so that your chin is level with the floor. Imagine a string running from your tailbone, through your spine, and through the top of your head, with a gentle force constantly pulling that string upward. Once you’ve found a strong position that feels natural, try to release your muscle tension. Finding that happy medium between conscious effort and relaxation will give you a natural posture which projects confidence and self-assurance.

Very often, while working with a client in my office, I turn on my video camera to record a posture for the client to see and review. They are often unaware of their body language until we review the video together. Frequently I have clients that sit on the couch in a hunched forward position or cross their arms and legs in a hostile posture. Most recently I had a client sitting forward on the couch with his knees moving up and down while he was talking. Certainly not the postures you see on the climb to the C-suite! Sit up tall whether on a chair, a couch or while walking to let others see you for the confident and competent professional you are.

Want to learn more? Give me a call at 212-308-7725 or send me an e-mail at info@corporatespeechsolutions.com. I’d be more than happy to answer any questions you might have!

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