| “ | Nonverbal communication forms a social language that is in many ways richer and more fundamental than our words. | ” |
| —Leonard Mlodinow | ||
Read Section 11.1 Principles of nonverbal communication, Section 11.2 Types of nonverbal communication, and Section 11.3: Movement in your speech, in Saylor Academy (Ed.) 2012. Business Communication for Success. (See page(s) 417 - 443 in PDF version.)
These readings focus on how what we say can be strengthened, weakened, or even contradicted, by the way we say it. While there is no ‘dictionary’ of how to interpret nonverbal messages either within cultures, or between them, all audiences tend to respond well to people who speak confidently and clearly.
Some movement techniques you can learn to increase your public speaking effectiveness include using the ‘speaker’s triangle,’ the three-step arm and hand sequence, and appropriate facial expressions and eye contact.
If you're interested in examples of your own nonverbal messages, ask someone to video you while you have a conversation with a friend or family member. Watch the video and observe your body movements and facial expressions. What might you do differently if you were giving a public presentation?
Choose one or two videos of speeches you have seen before that you find engaging. These may be speeches you watched earlier in this course, or others of your choice. Watch the presentation(s) again with the sound turned off. What nonverbal communication patterns do you notice? What words would you use to describe the speaker’s body language?
Please share your responses to this exercise in this Discussion forum. Remember to identify the presentation(s) chosen in your post.
