Recognise via body language that someone is trying to deceive you

The job of a team manager consists in large part in communication with other people. A manager must negotiate with subordinates, managers, business partners and colleagues. The art of negotiation is the basis of management skills, which is why it is important a manager can tell when someone is trying to deceive or somehow manipulate them. Here are a few tips on how to tell when someone is not being honest with you.

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Eye contact

As Entrepreneur.com states, the eyes are windows to the soul. When someone is lying to you, it usually shows in their eye contact. Mostly their eyes start flitting and they avoid eye contact. Or, on the contrary, they try to conceal an untruth and end up staring at you unnaturally.

Change in movements and behaviour

With most people (who are not psychopaths), lying shows in their body language in one way or another. But these manifestations differ with each person. This is why it is important to look not for specific signals, but rather for sudden changes in body language. If someone normally makes a lot of gestures, but suddenly has a closed posture, becomes stiff and does not look at you, you should beware. And vice versa.

Nervous fidgeting

A typical sign of deceit is nervous movements through which someone is trying to cope with their inner stress. Liars therefore often fidget with their legs or hands, squeeze their palms together, caress their neck or scratch their head.

Final note

Lie detection through non-verbal signals is not an exact science. Each person is different and shows different signals when lying. Moreover, the above-mentioned signs do not always indicate lying. The other person may just be sleep-deprived, nervous or, for whatever reason, out of sorts. You should therefore rather pay attention to sudden changes, but do not expect to tell with 100% certainty that a person is lying.



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Article source Entrepreneur.com - website of a leading U.S. magazine for entrepreneurs
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