To understand what another person is communicating when they speak takes more than listening with our ears. It is important to know, if we pay attention to the non-verbal cues, we can have a deeper understanding of all that is being said.
To practice reading the non-verbal body language, I began to observe people and on one occasion, I was with my girlfriend eating dinner on a weekday after work. We had decided to go to the Santa Anita Mall and eat at The Cheesecake Factory. Upon entering the dimly lit restaurant, I knew this would be a good place to observe people. The time of day provided a variety of subjects to observe, but from my seat location, the only people in my view were in the bar area. I began to observe an older couple, …show more content…
The woman who I will designate, Woman 1, hardly ate as she dominated the conversation while the other, Woman 2, ate as she listened. Woman 1 appeared very animated, possibly frustratingly venting to the other, or giving her a scolding. While speaking, she made many hand gestures, perhaps emphasizing the point she was making. I noted she must be speaking about something that really bothered her because she would pick up the fork, as if to eat, but not bring it to the plate. She would set it down and continue speaking. For long periods, I saw her be the only one speaking. Woman 1 would make many gestures that conveyed anguish. For instance, she would run her hands through and pull back her hair, she would put her hands on her chest, and also bring her head down towards the tabletop. The fact that out of the two, she was only one with a glass of wine, also suggested she had something intense she needed to express. Woman 2 appeared to be supportive as she never interrupted, but I noticed she looked for something to do with her hands when she was not eating anymore. She applied lipstick, fiddled with the cloth napkin, ran hands through hair, grabbed her glass of water, or rub her hands together. This could have been out of nervousness, or tediousness with the topic of conversation. At one point, I saw her bring her phone out of the purse and scroll on …show more content…
At the onset of my observation, I believed them to be co-workers enjoying a nice dinner. One could have been in a managerial role, taking time to mentor or educate the other. As the evening progressed and I made note of all the non-verbal communication, I began to think they could be sisters, or girlfriends. As evidenced by Woman 2 being calm and extremely supportive of the other. They both had wedding rings, so they could possibly have been expressing feelings about their respective husbands and/or children. The amount of time Woman 2 spent listening, shows me she cares very much for Woman 1. In addition, even though their bill had been paid and to-go boxes made, they remained sitting in the bar top table for a long time. Unfortunately, I was not able to see them conclude their conversation, as we had finished our meals and dessert, and needed to get
To practice reading the non-verbal body language, I began to observe people and on one occasion, I was with my girlfriend eating dinner on a weekday after work. We had decided to go to the Santa Anita Mall and eat at The Cheesecake Factory. Upon entering the dimly lit restaurant, I knew this would be a good place to observe people. The time of day provided a variety of subjects to observe, but from my seat location, the only people in my view were in the bar area. I began to observe an older couple, …show more content…
The woman who I will designate, Woman 1, hardly ate as she dominated the conversation while the other, Woman 2, ate as she listened. Woman 1 appeared very animated, possibly frustratingly venting to the other, or giving her a scolding. While speaking, she made many hand gestures, perhaps emphasizing the point she was making. I noted she must be speaking about something that really bothered her because she would pick up the fork, as if to eat, but not bring it to the plate. She would set it down and continue speaking. For long periods, I saw her be the only one speaking. Woman 1 would make many gestures that conveyed anguish. For instance, she would run her hands through and pull back her hair, she would put her hands on her chest, and also bring her head down towards the tabletop. The fact that out of the two, she was only one with a glass of wine, also suggested she had something intense she needed to express. Woman 2 appeared to be supportive as she never interrupted, but I noticed she looked for something to do with her hands when she was not eating anymore. She applied lipstick, fiddled with the cloth napkin, ran hands through hair, grabbed her glass of water, or rub her hands together. This could have been out of nervousness, or tediousness with the topic of conversation. At one point, I saw her bring her phone out of the purse and scroll on …show more content…
At the onset of my observation, I believed them to be co-workers enjoying a nice dinner. One could have been in a managerial role, taking time to mentor or educate the other. As the evening progressed and I made note of all the non-verbal communication, I began to think they could be sisters, or girlfriends. As evidenced by Woman 2 being calm and extremely supportive of the other. They both had wedding rings, so they could possibly have been expressing feelings about their respective husbands and/or children. The amount of time Woman 2 spent listening, shows me she cares very much for Woman 1. In addition, even though their bill had been paid and to-go boxes made, they remained sitting in the bar top table for a long time. Unfortunately, I was not able to see them conclude their conversation, as we had finished our meals and dessert, and needed to get