Body Language - Interpreting Confidence

Words of confidence can be heard when spoken, likewise words of confidence can be read when written or documented. But can confidence be interpreted from the actions of a person?

Yes, it can. As a matter of fact, action has a higher degree of consistency compared to spoken or read materials regardless of the subject involved. Whenever there is a cloud of doubt on the truthfulness of an issue under discussion, the language not spoken or read serves as the confirmation of accuracy. This is the language of body movements or gestures. In this case, the issue is confidence.

Take these postures as indications of confidence:

A confident person is most likely to talk spontaneously, without second thoughts on his mind, as can be seen from his eyes. The eyes are the gates to a person’s character. A confident person gives more frequent eye contact than a non-confident individual. He can look at you straight every now and then, at a longer time, and his eyes blink less (unless the person has a habit of frequent blinking which you will notice beforehand).

A confident person talks with hands away from his face. He doesn’t cover his mouth (unless he has halitosis or unless the person he is talking to looks or reminds him of something funny) or nose (unless he smells something offensive). He doesn’t scratch his head (unless it’s itchy because of scalp disorders).

A person beaming with confidence of having achieved much stands erect and proud. He shows that he definitely knows where he is headed. A straight back with chin up shows confidence and even superiority.

One of the most reliable indications of a confident person can be seen by the gesture of his hands. When each finger of a hand (in spread position) meets each equivalent finger of the other hand at the tips, it is a very sure sign of confidence. This gesture resembles the structure of a church steeple. This is the reason why this gesture is called steepling or tapering.

Some people openly show off this hand gesture when they are seated. They proudly show their steepling hands, indicating authority and showing they are sure of what they are saying.

You may notice that when a boss and subordinate talks to each other, the boss is most likely the one doing the steepling. While seated in front of a desk, the boss usually places his elbows on top of the desk with the steepled hands almost on face level as if he is looking through a screen).

As for a woman, she usually rests her elbows on the armchair when seated with her steepled hands on her lap. If she is standing, the steepled hands are usually in the waist level.

In most of the gestures, especially when it comes to the steepled hands, it is important to know if the gesture you see from the other person is truly indicative of his true emotions or personality. Make sure you are not being misled or deceived. This is especially true in dealing with people you hardly know and when sincerity plays an important role in the deal. You can check this by looking for other clues that are congruent or related to the gesture he is exhibiting.

How's your body language? Are you portraying confidence?

Fran Watson