Body language expert's 'mirroring' trick is key to getting a promotion at work
Vying for a new promotion at work is never entirely without complication, but there are certain things you can do to smooth the path towards success - and a pay rise. One expert says that there is a simple and easy way to help put yourself in the best position possible to achieve your goal: mirroring the body language of your boss.
Studies have shown that 93% of communication is non-verbal, so awareness of our bodies, and what 'language' they are speaking is of the utmost importance. Particularly in times of high stress or in a professional context - where we can't assume that those around us know us intimately enough to read our non-verbal cues.
One expert is here to help, with some unbelievable easy to follow advice that could hugely impact your ability to take you to the next stage of your career. Speaking on behalf of Slingo, Inbaal Honigman explains: "Mirroring is the most important body language skill when you want to approach your boss for a promotion. If they're sitting with their knees apart, do the same. If they are holding one arm to the side and one in front of their bodies, copy them.
"The act of mirroring lets the other person feel as if you're the only one who truly gets them. It creates a bond between the two of you, and the copied party doesn't even know why."
Most of the time, we end up mirroring someone's body language because we like them and it's normally an unconscious behaviour. Imagine you're sitting across from your friend, they smile at you and you're not sure why, but you automatically smile back. Your partner yawns and you can't help but yawn too, moments later.
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Mirroring, sometimes called limbic synchrony, is a sign of empathy and connection, a study even has shown that participants who were on the receiving end of mirrored body language felt more goodwill towards the researchers and went to help them, within a matter of a few minutes. So, even though it's something that normally happens subconsciously, doing it on purpose when having an important chat with your boss in order to progress your career will still build a sense of trust and connection - two things that are crucial for your boss to feel when asking for more responsibility.
Another expert speaking on behalf of Slingo - Darren Stanton adds that while non-verbal communication is important, self-belief is also key to making a good impression: "The first thing about confidence is self belief, it is not only non-verbal communication that allows us to make judgment analysis and pretty accurate predictions about people's behaviour but it is also in their language. Therefore be very careful of the language that you use with yourself in terms of going for a job interview".
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