As a recent grad on your journey of learning to become a better communicator in the workplace, you may overly focus on the verbal aspects of communication. However, non-verbal communication is the context to its verbal counterpart. Communication doesn’t stop when you finish the sentence like it does here.
Instead, in that pause you are communicating to those around you through your body language, your eye contact, and facial expressions. Maybe your arms are crossed and you’re leaning back showing you’re uncomfortable or maybe your eyes wander off to something else as soon as you stop talking showing disinterest in what’s being said. These are all things you can avoid through practice and self-awareness.
By being aware of your non-verbal communication you will be clearer and more effective when talking to your colleagues right through to friends and family.
In this article we’re going to expand on what non-verbal communication is, why it’s important to you as a recent graduate, and some strategies to improve your non-verbal communication going forward.
What is non-verbal communication?
If verbal communication is the signals you send consciously, non-verbal communication is the wordless signals you send in between. Non-verbal communication is able to clarify your message, but also confuse it. For example, saying yes and shaking your head sends a much more muddled message than saying yes and nodding your head or even not verbally responding and just nodding your head.
Comedian and video producer Brian David Gilbert (BDG) showed the power of non-verbal communication to change what is the same verbal message in this light-hearted video. While playing it off for laughs it goes to show how you can use your body language, expression, and tone to communicate more than what is said.
The five broad ways non-verbal communication can add meaning to verbal communication are:
- Repetition: They’re able to repeat the verbally communicated message. For example, if you’re agreeing to work on a project you might verbally say yes but also nod your head.
- Contradiction: They can also contradict the message that is being conveyed. As a recent graduate you may say how excited you are to start in a new position but be leaning back and have your arms crossed. Instead, this nervous stance may communicate the opposite of what you’re saying.
- Substitution: Like the saying a picture is worth a thousand words sometimes non-verbal communication can substitute for verbal. For example, a recent graduate may not need to say they’re nervous because their body language gives it away.
- Complementing: They’re able to contribute to and complement a verbal message. For example, recent graduates may thank someone for an opportunity but also shake their hand.
- Accenting: Like a bolded word in a sentence non-verbal communication is able to underline aspects of verbal communication. For example, to demonstrate how impactful a past experience was on a graduate they might also gesture with their hands.
What are the different types of non-verbal communication?
Non-verbal communication is a very broad category that includes a handshake all the way to when people arrive to a meeting. But while what it includes is broad it can be simplified down to four main categories.
- Visual: When thinking about non-verbal communication you likely first thought about the visual. This category includes body language, facial expressions, and posture to name a few. Visual non-verbal communication is one of the main ways we communicate. Your body language can communicate that you’re open and approachable or the opposite. As a recent graduate learning and being aware of your visual body language will be very useful in the workplace.
- Tactile: This is non-verbal communication through touch. It might be a pat on the back for a job well done, or a handshake.
- Vocal: By changing the tone of your voice, you can change the meaning implied even when you say the same word. Consider all the ways you can say yes. You can communicate yes confidently for example, or unsure in yourself, or with strong affirmation, and the list goes on.
- Time, space, and image:
- Time is how we view our status in comparison to others, for example, a boss may feel more comfortable arriving late to a meeting than a fresh graduate.
- Space is what we consider our personal bubble. The specific size depends on the person and culture but being able to read people’s body language to not be inside their personal space is important to make them comfortable.
- Finally, image is how people present themself. It includes things like clothing, haircut, and personal hygiene.
Why is non-verbal communication important and how can you get better at it?
As a recent graduate, non-verbal communication is important due to how much meaning it can add to what you’re saying, intentionally or not. If someone chose to ignore improving their non-verbal communication, they’d still be doing it, but wouldn’t be aware of what they’re saying.
The importance of understanding and practicing this form of communication will mean you communicate more clearly allowing everything else to flow more smoothly. Over time you’ll find interviews will go more smoothly, you’ll work better in a team, and you’ll find miscommunication happens less in all areas of your life.
Practise Observation and Self Awareness
Non-verbal communication is a transmission you can’t turn off but by observing others and being self-aware you can control what you are transmitting out.
Look at the people in your life and identify people that you feel are strong communicators. Do you have a friend that’s a people person? Or someone that people flock to? Observe their different kinds of non-verbal communication you’ve learned about in this article and make note on what people react well to or you think you could do.
Then by being self-aware of your own non-verbal communication you can adjust your body language and intonation, just as an example, to match the meaning of what you’re trying to communicate.
As a hypothetical maybe a colleague seems to be approachable and previously you’ve chalked it up to them being a people person. You now observe them and see they don’t cross their arms, they’re making eye contact with people, and have a bright expression. You’re able to then try those observations out in a way that makes sense with your personality and over time you find colleagues interacting with yourself more often.
Improve non-verbal communication in your Video Calls
Video calls have become a fact of seemingly every professional field and university. As a recent graduate you’re likely familiar with Zoom calls during university with a room full of black screens. How is non-verbal communication different in this environment?
When talking with someone in person much of the non-verbal communication happens in facial expressions, right? So, the most important thing to be a better communicator in your video calls as a recent graduate is to turn on your camera. Without it you’ll only have text chat and emojis to communicate, hardly very personal.
To further improve your non-verbal communication in your video calls you may consider eye contact. When you’re looking at the screen you’re not really making eye contact with anyone, to do that you’d need to look at the camera. By talking to the camera you’ll make the barrier of a screen feel smaller and the conversation more natural by creating the illusion of eye contact.
Talking while looking at your screen is a norm though, but that also means people notice where your eye line is while they’re talking. Computers and phones are devices designed for multitasking, but doing something on your device while someone else talks will impact the quality of your communication. It’s poor non-verbal communication that you should aim to avoid, but also just poor manners.
Consider your Audience
The meaning conveyed through non-verbal communication isn’t universal and depends strongly on an individual’s cultural background. For example, yeah-nah and nah-yeah in Australian slang seems nonsensical, well… to us, but especially to people that aren’t familiar with it. While a light hearted example it’s important to consider how people’s view of non-verbal communication might differ to yours to avoid miscommunication.
—-----
Non-verbal communication is something you’ll always be transmitting out, but by being aware of what you’re communicating you can unify that with your verbal communication strengths to find success now as a recent graduate but throughout your whole career.