In continuation of the Image is Everything series, today we bring you techniques on how to improve your image with your body language, vocal tone, and vocal wording.
Have you ever met someone and before you can even say “Jack Robinson” you feel extraordinarily comfortable with that person? Is it magic or is there a physical reason? Well today I am going to touch on the methods behind creating that sort of affect.
Let’s first set one thing straight. Knowing what I am going to tell you today will do you no good unless you practice so much that it becomes natural. I have known these techniques for a while and I am not sure if I am any better off, because I just don’t focus on practicing them enough. Maybe writing this article will give me a new energy to practice my body language, vocal tone, and my word choice. Know also that this is just the bare minimum information about this topic and there are many great books that touch on this in detail. Look down further to see my book suggestions.
Body Language
Some people say that what you have to say means a lot, but I would have to disagree. It isn’t about what you have to say, but rather how you say it. The very first way that you communicate is with your body. Almost anyone can tell what kind of mood you are in just by looking at you. So if you want to appear great, first you must have a good attitude and second you must show confidence and friendliness.
Showing confidence and strength is a very easy concept, but a very difficult task.
Would you believe me that by looking at someone directly in the eyes for just a fraction of a second too long can show enormous confidence? Yep, that is the key. Easy, right? Well, give it a try and see how easy it is to remember to do it. Unless you focus on doing it you will either forget about it or be afraid to do it. When looking at someone, let them be the first one to break eye contact and then you follow immediately after. From there on out, during conversation, use your eyes to show extreme interest by looking at their eyes more often than what is initially comfortable.
Now that you have the idea of eye contact, the friendliness comes from your smile. Doesn’t it feel good to know that someone is happy to meet you? When we see someone that has a smile that overwhelms their face, we subconsciously think “can they really be that happy to see me? I guess so, this is great.” The key to a great smile is a big and slow smile. A genuine smile is a slow and powerful smile. Look at someone in the eyes and then slowly smile HUGE. Practice a Huge smile in the mirror so that you know what a Huge smile feels like. I use to always find myself half smiling in pictures in which I thought I was full smiling. It is a feeling you have to train your brain.
The best way to get good at this stuff is to first practice in a mirror and then go out and focus on using these techniques with as many people as possible. Over time it will become more natural.
Vocal Tone and Wording
Vocal tone is the key to making someone feel that you are interested and on the same level as them. When someone is sad, a vocal tone of excitement will more than likely be unexpected and awkward. When some is happy, a sad vocal tone is really awkward and depressing. So the key is to match the person vocal tone and if necessary slowly make changes to control the mood of the conversation.
Again it doesn’t matter what you say, but how you say it. With the right vocal tone any topic of conversation can sound exciting, so speak with enthusiasm when talking about yourself. If you speak with enthusiasm then they get the impression that you are an interesting person.
Another key idea about sounding enthusiastic is to always have something interesting to say. This does take some practice, but you should have a list in your head about interesting facts about the city you live in and interesting facts about yourself. Next time someone asks you “Where are you from?”, you should respond with something interesting about your city relating to the person you are talking about. For example, I am from Reno, If I was meeting someone on a backpacking trip, I might respond with “I am from Reno, 20 minutes away from the great Lake Tahoe.” This opens up the conversation to talking about Lake Tahoe and the outdoors there. This same technique can be used for any normal question like “What do you do?” or “How did you meet?”.
When talking to someone it is good to repeat and compliment stuff that they say, because it shows you are listening and interested. Use phrases like, “That is great, that you are able to take a trip to Europe.”, if they were talking how excited they are to go to Europe.
All of these techniques are just the tip of the iceberg and will only get you so far. Using these techniques regularly will indeed improve your image which directly effects your success. So take the time to practice these techniques and then when you are hungry for more check out the following books.
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attitude, body language, confidence, eyes, image is everything, Life, relationships, smile, success, vocal tone