As much as your actions dictate how you get perceived at work, your posture and the gestures you make, are also rather important indications as well. You can be working your butt off, committing to all the deadlines and showing up on time to give the impression of how serious and dedicated you are. However, there is another important determinant that you should be taking into account, your body language.
Believe it or not, your body language could be holding you back from moving forward with your career. Unintentionally, you could be rolling your eyes too much, using your phone frequently, or indirectly denoting your feeling of boredom without realizing that this could make you come off as incompetent or unprofessional.
Here are five body language mistakes you need to stop making.
Eye Rolling
Okay, so no matter how much work was thrown on you, or how annoying your boss is, eye-rolling is a no go. It simply shows how rude and disrespectful you are.
Giving a Weak Handshake
You don’t need to pull your colleague’s whole arm towards you, but you should definitely maintain straight up posture, good eye contact, and a firm shake.
Drooping in Your Seat
All of us need a little slouching time when work gets a little crowded, however, this could be interpreted as a sign of carelessness.
Positioning Your Body Away From a Conversation
I don’t care how uninterested you are in a meeting or how boring or repetitive it becomes, never turn away to look at your phone or gaze at the artistic window ahead of you. You must be very engaged in meetings and not only with your eyes or ears, I mean your whole body.
Sitting in Your Own Bubble
It’s okay if you like to have some time for yourself, but don’t make it look like you genuinely hate the whole human race. Kick yourself out no matter how hard it is, and mingle with your co-workers.