Most Replayed Moment: Confidence Can Be Taught! Use These Body Language Cues To Your Advantage!

Do you want to better understand nonverbal communication? Do you wish you could read people’s emotions using their body language? In The Dictionary of Body Language, retired FBI Special Agent Joe Navarro offers a reference guide that explains a wide breadth of body language cues, creating a foundation for studying nonverbal communication. Navarro argues that with this knowledge, you can improve your relationships and understanding of other people, both at work and in your personal life.

In this guide, we’ll touch on Navarro’s tips for understanding the context of body language cues—for instance, why you should assess body language cues collectively, not individually. Then, we’ll examine some of the body language cues that indicate emotions, such as repetitive actions that suggest anxiousness and tense postures that indicate anger. In our commentary, we’ll delve deeper into some of the science behind body language and discuss how you can apply knowledge of nonverbal communication in everyday situations.

Have you ever wished you could tell what someone was really thinking? In What Every Body Is Saying, former FBI agent Joe Navarro provides insights into how to decipher body language. He argues that by practicing good observation skills and learning to decode universal patterns of behavior, you can master the language of nonverbal communication, gain access to people’s true thoughts and feelings, and detect signs of deception.

In this guide, we’ll explore why body language is an honest form of communication. Then, we’ll examine a process for reading body cues, as well as tips for detecting deception. Along the way, we’ll dig deeper into the psychology behind human behavior and compare Navarro’s insights to those of other guides on body language such as Robert Greene’s The Laws of Human Nature and Jack Shafer’s The Like Switch.

Have you ever felt anxious about a new social situation, an interview, a performance, or another environment where you lack confidence? In Presence, social psychologist Amy Cuddy explains how to navigate these stressful scenarios by embodying “presence”—a self-assured confidence that’s not arrogant but allows you to comfortably express your true self. She says you can achieve presence by leveraging the body-mind connection to change the way you feel about yourself rather than worrying about what others perceive.

In this guide, we’ll explore Cuddy’s popular research on how “power poses”—like the superwoman stance—and other body language shifts can boost your confidence and improve your performance in high-pressure situations. We’ll also explain how research on this topic has evolved since the book was published and include tips from other experts on how to navigate stressful experiences.

In this guide for women (men can learn something too), journalists and authors Katty Kay and Claire Shipman examine the art and science of confidence—what it is, why it matters, why women have more trouble accessing it than men, and how this shortage affects professional success, personal achievement, and even happiness. Biology plays a role, and so do systemic inequalities, but confidence is also largely a choice. Learn how to make it in The Confidence Code.

Do you wish you could better understand the ways people communicate with their body language? Nonverbal communication plays a huge role in how people express emotions and interact with each other. With an understanding of how to use and interpret body language, you can more easily form connections with others, adapt your nonverbal signals to suit different situations, and even alter your emotional state.

In Shortform’s Master Guide to Understanding and Using Body Language, we’ve collected insights from nine experts in nonverbal communication, including self-help authors, former FBI agents, behavioral experts, and leadership specialists. We’ll discuss how body language impacts our communication, as well as some of the most important contextual factors that should influence how we interpret nonverbal signals. Finally, we’ll look at a selection of nonverbal cues you can use to show others you’re open to friendship—and that may indicate whether or not others feel the same way.

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) is your ability to recognize your emotions, recognize the emotions of others, and use this awareness to develop your behavior and relationships. It’s also one of the defining characteristics of success in the workplace.

Emotional Intelligence 2.0 helps you build your EQ skills through the development of four key pillars: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. These pillars will help you process your emotions, manage your triggers, develop healthy habits, and succeed in your career path.

Even though we’re all human, most of us don’t understand what drives people (including ourselves) to feel and behave the way we do. In The Laws of Human Nature, author Robert Greene looks at several laws that explain, among other things, why we self-sabotage, behave differently in groups, and want the wrong things.

Armed with the knowledge of these fundamentals of human nature, you can manage toxic people, become more empathetic, make people like you, and control your own nature.

Way of the Wolf explains sales trainer Jordan Belfort’s Straight Line method of selling, which is designed to efficiently move a prospect from doubt to certainty about buying. It provides a conceptual framework plus a collection of principles, techniques, and psychology that he says anyone can use to sell anything in any industry.

Belfort is best known as The Wolf of Wall Street—the name of his first memoir and of a Scorcese movie depicting his high-flying life as a broker before pleading guilty in 1999 to securities fraud and money laundering. He served 22 months, then became a motivational speaker and sales trainer. Belfort rethought his ethics and refined his selling method, which he says will shorten sales cycles, dramatically increase closes, and lead to referrals and long-term customer relationships—all while bringing the seller success and wealth.

In our guide, we compare his method to other iconic sales programs like SPIN Selling and The Challenger Sale.

Do you wish you could better understand the ways people communicate with their body language? Nonverbal communication plays a huge role in how people express emotions and interact with each other. With an understanding of how to use and interpret body language, you can more easily form connections with others, adapt your nonverbal signals to suit different situations, and even alter your emotional state.

In Shortform’s Master Guide to Understanding and Using Body Language, we’ve collected insights from nine experts in nonverbal communication, including self-help authors, former FBI agents, behavioral experts, and leadership specialists. We’ll discuss how body language impacts our communication, as well as some of the most important contextual factors that should influence how we interpret nonverbal signals. Finally, we’ll look at a selection of nonverbal cues you can use to show others you’re open to friendship—and that may indicate whether or not others feel the same way.

Personal charisma and likeability are important for many different areas of life, from career success to navigating family and relationships. And at times, it can feel like you’re either born with it or without it—but this isn’t true. In reality, charisma is a skill like any other. In How to Become a People Magnet, motivational speaker and life coach Marc Reklau explains how you can improve your charisma and social abilities. His lessons are based on one main principle: People are mainly interested in themselves and what they can get from you. If you keep this in mind and tailor your conversations around it, you’ll start getting along better with others.

This guide covers Reklau’s main strategies for making positive first impressions, forming deeper connections, and persuading people. In our commentary, we’ll cover some of the psychology behind his advice and offer alternate perspectives on charisma and social success.