#also arguably recognizing *how* we interpret body language can help us be more conscientious in how we communicate with others

[nitewrighter]

if it makes you feel better, that body language book is complete nonsense and you should ignore everything it says. it's all pseudo-science pushed on insecure women. literally burn it to heat your home, at least then it'll have some use.

She actually talks a lot about the inherent sexism and racism in a lot of body language interpretation and verbal cuing and how women and people of color are judged a lot more unfairly in professional environments, and throws in loads of caveats about cultural and personal contexts. It’s not like one of those TikTok channels or the TV show “Lie To Me” it’s more like, “So. You Don’t Know What To Do With Your Hands During Presentations And Job Interviews. Here’s What we observed by interviewing a bunch of employers, conducting a bunch of mock interviews, and reviewing a bunch of TED talk footage and other effective public speakers.” It's not like "X number of blinks mean you're lying." It’s really a bunch of basic, common sense stuff like “actually face people when you talk to them” and “add notes telling yourself to breathe at certain points in your presentation if you tend to get nervous and rush.” And there’s a lot of emphasis on doing what feels comfortable and natural to you. My wish is that she’d talk about the ableism in employers and body language as well, more. I mean obviously we do need to be critical in any behavioral studies but like, people do conduct behavioral studies.