PUT UP YOUR DUKES by Dani Hurst
A guide to understanding the silent language of hands.
Your hands are talking about you and you probably don't even know it. They're saying all kinds of things, blabbing about your secrets. But don't feel betrayed — this is completely normal. By examining your gestures, physical
characteristics, handwriting and palms, experts can analyze, with a certain degree of accuracy aspects of your current state of mind, health and personality. They can even delve into the secrets of your destiny.
Two of the most basic gestures are the palms-down and palm-up poses, which reveal a lot about a person's confidence level and conviction. The palms-down stance is one of assertion and domination, Givens says. It conveys stubbornness: Politicians often use a palms-down hand position to project confidence during speeches and debates. The palms-up position, on the other hand, is a softer and friendlier gesture. It is related to the shoulder
One of the primary ways experts can assess an individual is by studying hand movements and gestures. Hands in motion are a dead giveaway of what a person is feeling at any given moment to an expert like David Givens, director of the Center for Nonverbal Studies and author of The Nonverbal Dictionary, though stationary hands are just as telling, he says. Hands are naturally expressive because they are so in-tune with what the rest of the body is doing and feeling, Givens says.
"The brain is making everything happen," Givens says. "By looking at the movements of the hand, you can open a window into the brain."
"THE HUMAN HAND IS A GREAT FIDGETER, IT RARELY EVER STAYS STILL"
— DAVID GIVENS, DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR NONVERBAL STUDIES
Fidgeting is also easily analyzed, and, according to Givens, a natural behavior for everyone.
shrug and projects a level of uncertainty. It is a pleading sign that opens up a connection with an audience and allows the speaker to ask for a little help. Like the shrug, it's a type of crouching pose used to cower away from danger, or, perhaps in this case, just a dangerous conversation. Basic gestures like these are universal, Givens says, which is why they are so easily understood, interpreted and mimicked.
"The human hand is a great fidgeter," Givens says. "It rarely ever stays still."
And these movements, like the ones accompanying speech, have meanings behind them: fidgeting usually conveys nervousness, anxiety and stress. The most common type of fidgeting is known as "self-touching," a built-in consolation mechanism. It works by diverting attention away from the pain or stress
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of one part of the body by stimulating another part of the body. Givens cites the example of a person rubbing a spot that is sore or has just been injured. "It doesn't make the pain go away," he says."You just make the pain compete for attention."
Givens puts this idea in context for University students, setting the scene with a professor questioning a student in front of a large class. The student will hesitate at first, Givens says, and will then probably touch his or her neck before answering. This self-touching is a way for the student to draw attention away from the source of the stress, almost like performing acupuncture or hugging himself.
Regardless of the ultimate message, Givens says it's always better to use gestures than not. Gestures help animate the words you're speaking and help the audience remember important points. They express personality as well, and make a conversation more personable.
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