75% of children have an expansive bias at age fourĬuddy stated, “There is a difference in how adults carry themselves. These physical states are an indication of the speaker’s level of comfort. Or were they gesturing openly, with their hands relaxed in front of them or gently resting on the podium? Were they clutching a podium? Were there hands held tight in a fist? Even our fingers spread to take up more space! As we feel more comfortable, our bodies relax and occupy a bit more space. When we’re nervous or afraid, our bodies generally become smaller. Expansiveness conveys comfort and confidence Whitman gives a quick and powerful reminder in five words. being physically present in your environment, and conveying confidence through your body language. In voice and presentation coaching, and even in teaching, we talk a lot about “owning the space”, i.e.

“I and mine do not convince by arguments, similes, rhymes, This line comes from his poem Song of the Open Road (1856).

“We convince by our presence” Walt WhitmanĬuddy quoted Walt Whitman, one of the greatest American poets of all time. Your body will inhabit the physical space around you if you believe you are deserving of being there and speaking on the topic. You have to believe in what you are talking about, or at least believe that you are the right person to be talking about it.Īn audience wants to hear the truth – they want to see the truth communicated in voice and body. When you feel like that, it’s likely that your body language conveys your uncertainty, and that comes across to an audience. It’s when I’m not familiar with the material that I feel nervous and my voice sounds shaky.’ People will often say ‘I feel fine when I’m talking about things I know and have a handle on. Whilst it may take a trained eye to pick up on conflicting messages between your body language and what you’re saying, even an untrained eye will unconsciously read the messages coming across from the speaker and have doubts. There is a conflict between the emotions, the voice and body language. If you don’t believe your story, no one will believe your storyĬuddy stated that when we lie, the biggest giveaway is that our body language doesn’t synchronise with what we’re saying.

Amy cuddy presence