Non-Verbal
Keeping your body relaxed when communicating
Open Posture
Using simple words so your message is easy to understand
Clarity
Changing the subject instead of addressing an uncomfortable question
Deflection
Crossing your arms can often signal this attitude
Defensiveness
Anything that interferes with a message being understood.
Noise
Matching another person's posture or gestures to build rapport
Mirroring
Repeating someone's message in your own words to check understanding
Paraphrasing
Using silence to express anger instead of addressing it
Passive Aggression
Moving closer when someone is speaking to signal involvement
Proximity
A message that travels through an unofficial workplace network.
Grapevine
A deliberate pause used to create emphasis without saying anything
Strategic Silence
Adjusting your vocabulary and level of detail to match your listener
Audience Adaptation
Using vague words without defining them
Ambiguity
Looking at someone but repeatedly checking your surroundings
Divided Attention
The meaning changes because of how a sentence is stressed.
Paralinguistics
The study of how people use physical distance
Proxemics
Restating an argument before responding to show you understood it
Reflective Listening
Hearing someone's words while mentally preparing your own response
Pseudo Listening
A smile that reaches the eyes, not just the mouth
Duchenne Smile
Communicating through pauses, timing, and silence.
Chronemics
Communication through touch
Haptics
Asking a question that challenges an assumption behind someone's statement
Probing
Responding to someone's point by attacking their character instead
Ad Hominem
When your gestures contradict the words you are saying
Incongruence
When the same words produce different meanings depending on the situation.
Pragmatics