Body Language

How to Read Body Language If you've ever walked down the street and gotten a negative vibe from someone just from looking at them, your instincts may not have been all that off. The way people carry themselves, how they speak and where they place their bodies are all unconscious actions that broadcast their feelings.

Crossing Your Legs

Crossing Your Legs Crossing your legs is usually a signal that you're closing yourself off. "Women tend to cross their legs more than men," says Wood. "Part of it is just that the body can't reach the ground, but part of it is also keeping the crotch covered." For men, crossing the legs may be read as cockiness. Considered assertive no matter what the gender.

Touching the Face

Touching the Face Have you ever had a conversation with someone and had a gut feeling they were lying? Well, you may not have been wrong. Unconscious actions, such as touching or slightly scratching the face, may signal lying.

Licking Your Lips

Licking Your Lips It's hard enough picking out an outfit for a first date, let alone having to worry about inadvertent sexual signals. Unconsciously moistening your lips or rubbing your legs together can be taken as a sexual cue. "For females, especially, licking the lips can be sensual and purposeful.

Fidgeting

Fidgeting Fidgeting in your chair can broadcast boredom to your colleagues. When the left side of the brain is fed logical information, the right hemisphere craves stimulation. It wants to play, so your body responds by fidgeting.

The Handshake

The Handshake First impressions are hard to break, and an unnecessarily firm handshake can relay dominance while a pathetically limp one can show insecurity.

Biting the Lip

Biting the Lip Biting your lip can be a leftover habit from childhood that you haven't been able to break. People who bite their lip may be vulnerable, embarrassed and shy. It's a nervous habit and often a tell for inexperienced liars.

The Smile

Send the Right Signal - The Smile Don't fake it. A forced smile is often a dead giveaway that you're not particularly fond of the person you're speaking to. Women tend to be social smilers and smile 70 percent more than men.

Pupil Dilation

Pupil Dilation Dilated pupils have long been considered a sign of beauty. When your pupils dilate, you're probably viewing something you find exciting or attractive -- a big tell on any date provided it's not a candlelit dinner.

Crossing Your Arms

Crossing Your Arms Crossing your arms is a telltale sign of disapproval. You're closing a part of yourself off from other people. You're sending a message that you're not accessible.

Crossing Your Arms (2)

Crossing Your Arms (2) If you're having a disagreement, try to keep your arms at your sides or gesticulate with open palms in order to portray that you're being amenable.

Trivial Tasks: Example - Table Mopping

Trivial Tasks Unconsciously fiddling with jewelry, chewing your thumb or even sucking on your pen are called displacement activities and can signal tension,

The Arm Clasp

The Arm Clasp Have you ever watched passengers boarding the plane and known instinctively which ones were afraid of flying? An indication of nervousness is arms folded across the chest with each hand clasped tightly around the upper arm.