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Nonverbal communication is far more relevant in our daily lives than we tend to remember. When we feel confident, it is without conscious thought that our bodies reflect our mindset with straight shoulders, a tall stance, and a willingness to take up space. Conversely, when we doubt ourselves our bodies naturally slump inwards, steps become shorter, and our eyes lower. This language of the body is present across animal species beyond our own, and we are probably some of the worst at reading it. Understandably, of course, because of all the other sources of information that flood our brains as we navigate our world, but the fact remains that when we pay attention to the nonverbal signals of others we can gain an incredible amount of information.
You have probably heard of things like, "power poses" and some people swear by them. You may have even heard of the research that shows that holding a pencil in one's teeth can trigger the same brain chemistry as smiling, because it uses the same muscles. Our brain triggers our body, but our body can trigger our brain as well. Thus, sitting up straight, leaving your body open, and keeping your head up in an interview might be the difference between you flawlessly navigating the questions or stumbling over something you rehearsed in your head beforehand. Confidence is imperative in the world of job searching, just as it is in dog training.
"...There she goes again, connecting dog training to professional development."
it is understandable if that connection seems foggy to you. Allow me to give an example. There is a little dog who has stayed with me a couple times. When he stays with me he seems like a perfect dog, I do not see the same snippy, loud, and ignoring behaviors the owner describes. He is calm and quiet, obedient and makes eye contact often. To me this is a dog that I can use to train other dogs, not one who needs training. However, with his mom the story is quite different. Why?
His mom is a caring, kind, loving, and selfless person. His mom exudes a sweet and loving energy to those she meets which is great... except that her little dog reads it as weak, needing of his leadership. Her natural body state is fairly closed. If anyone moves into her space she politely backs up. When seated her legs cross and hands fold in her lap. Due to the observable body language cues she gives off, her confident little dog assumes leadership over her that with me he doesn't even try. When with the dogs I have been taught the power of walking tall, taking up space, and essentially ignoring the animals around me with the expectation that they simply will do as they are supposed to.
Worry, concern, doubt, fear, insecurity, and all other negative emotions are observable. They can be seen in body and language and felt in energy, and our companion animals are often even better at reading these things in us than we are in ourselves or in each other. The dog doesn't think that mom is just a kind and considerate person and that's why she holds herself as she does, he just knows that mom looks to others before she acts and doesn't give him assertive directions, so he reacts by acting as the leader.
In leadership things move very much this way. Who looks at who when a decision needs to be made or action taken? Who takes up space, physically or conversationally? Who holds themselves up? Who compresses in upon themselves? As we move forth in our daily lives we are much more likely to command respect and attention if we walk tall, stride long, keep our eyes up, and our back straight. Influencing the dogs requires me to keep my mind calm and my body confident, just as presenting clearly, interviewing confidently, and easy networking do. Whether we know it or not the actions and shape of our body impacts the way we feel and the way others behave around us, and if you are curious about what your body language is communicating just spend an afternoon trying to work with a pack of dogs, you might be surprised what they can teach you.
Nonverbal communication is far more relevant in our daily lives than we tend to remember. When we feel confident, it is without conscious thought that our bodies reflect our mindset with straight shoulders, a tall stance, and a willingness to take up space. Conversely, when we doubt ourselves our bodies naturally slump inwards, steps become shorter, and our eyes lower. This language of the body is present across animal species beyond our own, and we are probably some of the worst at reading it. Understandably, of course, because of all the other sources of information that flood our brains as we navigate our world, but the fact remains that when we pay attention to the nonverbal signals of others we can gain an incredible amount of information.
You have probably heard of things like, "power poses" and some people swear by them. You may have even heard of the research that shows that holding a pencil in one's teeth can trigger the same brain chemistry as smiling, because it uses the same muscles. Our brain triggers our body, but our body can trigger our brain as well. Thus, sitting up straight, leaving your body open, and keeping your head up in an interview might be the difference between you flawlessly navigating the questions or stumbling over something you rehearsed in your head beforehand. Confidence is imperative in the world of job searching, just as it is in dog training.
"...There she goes again, connecting dog training to professional development."
it is understandable if that connection seems foggy to you. Allow me to give an example. There is a little dog who has stayed with me a couple times. When he stays with me he seems like a perfect dog, I do not see the same snippy, loud, and ignoring behaviors the owner describes. He is calm and quiet, obedient and makes eye contact often. To me this is a dog that I can use to train other dogs, not one who needs training. However, with his mom the story is quite different. Why?
His mom is a caring, kind, loving, and selfless person. His mom exudes a sweet and loving energy to those she meets which is great... except that her little dog reads it as weak, needing of his leadership. Her natural body state is fairly closed. If anyone moves into her space she politely backs up. When seated her legs cross and hands fold in her lap. Due to the observable body language cues she gives off, her confident little dog assumes leadership over her that with me he doesn't even try. When with the dogs I have been taught the power of walking tall, taking up space, and essentially ignoring the animals around me with the expectation that they simply will do as they are supposed to.
Worry, concern, doubt, fear, insecurity, and all other negative emotions are observable. They can be seen in body and language and felt in energy, and our companion animals are often even better at reading these things in us than we are in ourselves or in each other. The dog doesn't think that mom is just a kind and considerate person and that's why she holds herself as she does, he just knows that mom looks to others before she acts and doesn't give him assertive directions, so he reacts by acting as the leader.
In leadership things move very much this way. Who looks at who when a decision needs to be made or action taken? Who takes up space, physically or conversationally? Who holds themselves up? Who compresses in upon themselves? As we move forth in our daily lives we are much more likely to command respect and attention if we walk tall, stride long, keep our eyes up, and our back straight. Influencing the dogs requires me to keep my mind calm and my body confident, just as presenting clearly, interviewing confidently, and easy networking do. Whether we know it or not the actions and shape of our body impacts the way we feel and the way others behave around us, and if you are curious about what your body language is communicating just spend an afternoon trying to work with a pack of dogs, you might be surprised what they can teach you.
