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The book that got us all thinking about the subject of Body Language was, of course, The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. I remember reading it, way back, and it is still, today, a classic.
Desmond Morris was a zoologist and worked in London Zoo primarily with chimpanzees. It was during this time that he first noticed that chimpanzees communicated with each other through a whole variety of signs and signals – both audible and otherwise – and that they exhibited, what he called, a kind of body-language.
Later, when he studied other animals and – in particular – the human animal – which he dubbed The Naked Ape – he realised that it was not just chimpanzees that had this body-language, we use it too. I remember seeing him on television explaining how he managed to get off with speeding tickets just by making use of these principles.
Today, when I teach the principles in my workshops, I find that people are generally fascinated by the subject. It can be used to develop rapport with others by doing some very simple things like getting the amount of eye-contact right or smiling at the right time or actually deliberately mirroring the other person’s body-language.
It is truly powerful stuff that any serious communicator should spend a little time investigating. We have a free book on the subject right here ...
Body Language |
