When I was in grad school, my thesis project involved studying the impact that nonverbal communication has on the verdicts that juries render. My research revealed that nonverbal factors in the courtroom have an enormous impact on the outcome of a case, almost as much the words spoken and the evidence presented. The demeanor and dress of the attorneys and the parties in the case “speak” first and most often. Does he look guilty or innocent? How fast does she talk? What do his eyes do when he answers a question? Is the defendant’s suit nice…but not too nice? How does the attorney look at the judge? Does it look like they played 18 holes together yesterday? I later practiced law and from what I experienced and from what more experienced attorneys told me, jurors are like communication sponges looking for messages to soak-up. Maybe Sting captured it best when he sang “every breathe you take; every move you make; every bond you break; every step you take, I’ll be watching you.”
Whether we are always aware of it or not, there is no denying that “everything communicates something.” You can take this one principal and apply it everywhere in life. Your marriage, your relationship with your kids, your staff meetings, your store … you get the point. People are watching what you do and listening to what you say. What can we do? When it comes to interpersonal communication, be authentic. Your actions better send the same message as your words and beliefs. Organizationally, do everything you can to be intentional about everything you do. Every piece of communication should have an intended message and if you take that too lightly, then you’ll be at the mercy of your audience, with all of their preconceived ideas and experiences that shape the way they receive communication. Can we control every aspect of the communication process? No. But, if we take to lightly the fact that everything communicates something then you may discover the hard way another foundational principal of communication: communication is irreversible.
a husband, dad, and follower of Jesus who is passionate about teaching and leading well. i love the church, urban culture and espresso. downtown phoenix arizona is my ‘hood. 
I guess another thought from all that is if you don’t believe your message your face will find you out. Non-verbal is much harder to fake than the verbal, and at the same time, it is more powerful.
I wish you would have videoed yourself typing this and then I could see what you are truly trying to say…ha ha!
Good stuff
Interesting stuff Kruk. I worked a few years with emotionally handicapped kids with all sorts of problems. Many of them are non-verbal communicators. I became pretty good at judging how a whole day would go by reading the behaviors of the kids walking in the door during the first 5 minutes of the day. I find this a cool skill to use while working with adults. It allows you to judge a situation and act accordingly and immediately . You really can’t hide what you feel.