How to Convey Confidence without Arrogance
When it comes to voicing your opinions, you might feel like you run the risk of being perceived as anything from a “total doormat" to a "raging bitch” and both can unnecessarily zap your confidence!
IF SO, try this exercise and read on for more tips.
Take a second and think about a time you wanted to speak up in a meeting at work:
Rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 on how you tend to come across in meetings where 1 is Nearly Invisible and 10 is Overly Aggressive.
How would you rate yourself when it comes to speaking up in 1-1 conversations, on the same scale?
→ If you rated yourself closer to 1, you’re probably afraid of coming across as too passive.
→ if you rated yourself closer to 10 you’re probably afraid of coming across as too arrogant.
In either case, would you be more likely to speak up if you could express yourself from the middle of that scale, closer to a 5 - conveying confidence without arrogance?
Sure! But, easier said than done, right? True. You can’t just think your way into confidence.
That’s why I’ve got 3 Emotive Agility tips for you. (Hint: they have nothing to do with shifting your mindset)
Emotive Agility is your power to use body language to manage emotions and impact the outcome of any difficult conversation or presentation.
Here you will learn how to use these 3 body language strategies to increase your Emotive Agility and convey confidence without arrogance.
Open Your Stance
Fronting is facing someone directly as you are speaking. Square your shoulders, hips and toes towards that person. You may feel as if this is uncomfortable at first, even too forward, but the opposite is true. Studies show when fronting you’re perceived as open, warm and trustworthy.
Raise your Gaze
This is an extremely subtle strategy that has to do with eye contact. You may not realize that when you’re speaking to someone in a social setting your eyes tend to move between their eyes and mouth. When someone is speaking to you from a position of power, they tend to look at your eyes and your forehead. To convey confidence, try this subtle shift of raising your gaze from making eye contact to the forehead and back.
Maintain “High Power Postures”
We all know what low power and slouching looks like. Not only is maintaining a tall posture going to convey confidence, but you should also add these touches in as well: keep your shoulders down and back, palms visible, and your forehead and chin out & up.
For more body language tips to manage emotions and perform well under pressure, join my Emotive Agility Mavens Facebook group here!