Whether you are making a speech, giving a presentation or trying to persuade someone to your point of view, understanding how to use gestures can make you more persuasive. As you can see from this chart the experts tell us that body language (which includes gestures) is the most important element in being powerfully persuasive...
Here are the most important gestures and what they mean..
Hands at a 90 degree angle and fingers together conveys confidence in what you are saying.
Hands open with palms down means you are certain about what you are saying.
Hands open with palms up means you are asking for something from your audience.
Hands open with palms at a 45 degree angle means you are being open and honest.
Hands to your chest or on your heart is meant to convey honesty. It's easier to imagine how much more convincing President Clinton would have been had he used this gesture instead of the one he used when talking about Monica Lewinsky....
and what if you want to convey intelligence?
Steepling of your hands conveys intelligence, confidence and thoughtfulness.
Those are just some of the gestures that great speakers use to become more persuasive. And of course the most successful politicians are the most practiced at using them.
Finally I will leave you with this gesture and I'm pretty darn sure it needs no explanation...
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