Public Relations and Social Marketing

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND SOCIAL MARKETING 4(1+3)

Lesson 5 : Body Language in Public Speaking

Eye contact

• Our eyes are usually a mirror of our truest and innermost feelings. That is why we normally distrust people who do not maintain eye contact while telling us something, whereas we believe those who look directly at us. Since the eyes are probably the most accurate predictor of our feelings and attitudes, we should know how to use good or positive eye contact.
• Although the frequency and duration of eye contact varies from culture to cul­ture, we can learn to maintain positive eye contact with our listeners.
• Following are some suggestions in this regard:
• Maintain eye contact while listening to someone. This will indicate that you are paying attention to what the person is speaking.
• Use eye contact to show sincerity and confidence.
• Do not speak while looking at your feet. This will either mean that you are too shy or that you are telling a lie.
• Learn the cultural patterns of eye contact in order to understand the differences so that misun­derstandings can be avoided.
• If there is more than one listener, as in the case of a meeting, group discussion, and oral presen­tation, the speaker should look at all the listeners giving each of them equal importance.
• If someone is avoiding eye contact, the speaker should not try to look continuously at the person and embarrass him/her.
• The speaker should not look at a person the way a doubtful police officer would look at a convict or a doctor looks at a patient. You should adopt a relaxed and confident approach rather than one of mistrust or worry.