Nonverbal Cues Tell the Whole Story

Nonverbal communication is as important as verbal communication in delivering a message in the workplace.

The boss strolls through the office assessing their employees work space. They notice that one desk is rather messy and has a sign that reads "I'd rather be fishing," while the desk next to it is immaculately ordered and has a copy of the company mission statement prominently displayed. This alone does not reveal much about the employee, but taken with other nonverbal cues such as punctuality, attitude, and work quality, it gives an employer a load of information. 

A good employee makes sure that their nonverbal communication sends a positive message to their employer.

Nonverbal communication is simply defined as all the behaviors and cues that are not verbal. Almost all voluntary intentional acts or signals that are not words are consistently thought to communicate meaning. Sometimes these acts or signals support the verbal communication, but many times the nonverbal cues contradict verbal messages. Communication experts say that nonverbal cues are responsible for 60 to 93% of the meaning. Splitting the difference, we could safely say that approximately 75% of the communication that takes place in the workplace is nonverbal.

75% OF ALL COMMUNICATION IS NONVERBAL.

An employee should understand that most of what they are communicating to their bosses comes from the nonverbal cues they are giving. Nonverbal communication, repeats, contradicts, complements, substitutes for, accentuates, or regulates verbal communication. 

When nonverbal communication repeats verbal communication, the nonverbal cue repeats exactly what is being communicated. The office manager tells the shipping clerk to "sit the package in the corner," then the message is repeated when they use their finger to point to the exact location where the package is to be put. Often the nonverbal cues are an automatic response to clarify meaning.

It is insidious when nonverbal cues contradict verbal communications. Research shows that when verbal and nonverbal messages are not in sync, the nonverbal cues are more likely to determine the meaning of the message. The employer hands the employee a paper and tells them they need to finish the report as soon as possible. The employee says, "Yes, right away." Then they turn around and put the report on the bottom of a stack of papers on their desk. The verbal communication is compliant with the employer's instructions, but their actions are saying that they will complete the report when they get around to it. Communication contradictions usually come in the form of eye rolls, facial expressions, grunts or sighs, aggressive actions like shutting the door hard or breaking a pencil, or merely ignoring the instruction. Again, nonverbal cues are usually an automatic response to clarify meaning. In this case, nonverbal cues also reveal feelings about the communication.

Substitution describes nonverbal cues that replace verbal messages. They are especially common in environments that make hearing difficult like noisy factories or plants. Many times we raise a number of fingers to indicate the number instead of verbalizing it or lifting a fist or middle finger to show anger.

Nonverbal cues can accentuates or complements a person's message when a person pats another on the shoulder to indicate their pleasure with them or when they poke them in the chest while they are reprimanding them. When a team wins the finals, we can tell their extreme happiness by their body language, more than their words.

Nonverbal cues can regulate a conversation. Using eye contact, facial expressions, voice tone, a shake of the head, a finger over the lips, or other cues, a person can indicate when or if the other can speak and thus regulates the conversation.

There are numerous classes of nonverbal communication:

• Physical appearance is the first nonverbal cue that is sent to another in face-to-face communication. Physical appearance is everything about you that is visible to another. Appearance includes body type, physical attractiveness, clothing, and body adaptors (things involving the hair and skin which affect the appearance such as hair coloring, tattoos, and piercings). An employee should be aware of how their employers and customers will perceive them. Employees should present themselves in a way that is the most conducive for success. The old adage goes, "Dress for the job you want, not for the job that you have." Physical appearance matters in the marketplace.
• Artifacts are items the person has that provides information about themselves. Some artifacts are eye glasses, jewelry, personal items on their desk or on their walls, and even the kind of car they drive. Many of these items are meant to communicate a message such as the cross warn around the neck, the designer jacket, or the jersey of your favorite team. Its probably not a good idea to wear a t-shirt with a marijuana leaf in it because of the message it sends.
• Paralanguage is vocal features that accompany oral messages that serve to provide information about the message. These vocal features include voice pitch, voice rate, voice rhythm, voice intensity, voice duration, laughs, yells, and groans. Silence and what is not said is also paralanguage cues. 
• Kinesics is the study of movement of the body that includes posture, facial expressions, eye behavior (eye movement, eye contact, gazing, where the eye is focusing, etc.), and gestures. Much of our communication comes in the way of kinesic movement. Sitting forward in the chair, smiling, and making eye contact shows interest and engagement. Sitting back in the chair, arms folded on the chest, rolling the eyes, and frowning communicates dislike and hostility. A good employee should be a student of kinesics so they can communicate a good message.
• Proxemics is how we use spacer in relationship to others. This includes personal spaces (which are different according to culture) and how spaces are used. Sitting on the front row of seats or the back, do you hang out at the social spots or hide in a corner, and where you choose to sit in social gathering all communicated a message.
• Haptics is the study of touch. In the workplace, touch can be used for showing dominance or for power manipulation. A superior can pat an employee on the shoulder for a job well done, but seldom does a subordinate touch a superior. We are well aware of how a handshake can communicate confidence.
• Chronemics is the use or structure of time. In organizational time, there are three major effects of time influences: 1. Influence on relational structures, 2. Influence on performance perceptions, 3. Influences on the control of outcomes. Haphazard use of time (being late to work, missing deadlines, unappreciative of others time) appears unprofessional, incompetent, and rude. However, good use of time (showing up early, staying late, volunteering for extra jobs, consideration of others time) shows professionalism, dedication, and loyalty.

Good employees use all of their "tools" to become the best employee possible. Verbal and nonverbal communication is an indicator of success.

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