Nervous gestures such as pen popping, hair twirling and nail biting are ‘little things’ that can help you lose credibility faster than anything.  Unfortunately, when someone has a nervous gesture, the person with whom they are communicating often loses focus on the conversation at hand.  The nervous gesture becomes the main attraction and the actual topic gets lost in the inadvertent ‘shuffle’.

Manner Monday: Nervous Gestures

Be aware of your gestures throughout the day, you want to appear confident and competent.  Don’t let these subtle little ‘habits’ undermine your authority and power at the table.

Here are a few of the ‘little things’ that can be misinterpreted as a lack of confidence:

• Biting or chewing fingernails
• Playing with hair
• Wringing hands
• Tapping feet, wiggling, etc.
• Avoiding eye contact
• Nervous laughter
• Drumming fingers
• Playing with objects
• Tapping feet or bouncing knees up and down
• Chewing Gum

By keeping these nervous gestures at bay, you can be the one that stands out and who is remembered for your self-confidence, poise and polish!