Things to Notice in a Team Meeting

     In this post I will be showing you a few things that you may want to pay attention to when involved in a team meeting. Lets start with a gesture that we see here in this photograph.

     The man second from the left and the man in the center in front of the window are both doing a very similar gesture. This is a problem, at least for whoever is talking. The reason being is that this particular gesture is one of boredom. Their hand supports their head to stop them from falling asleep. If you see these sings then you may want to look into making your presentation / speech a bit more interesting and "exciting". 

          "Drumming the fingers on the table and continual tapping of the feet on the floor are often misinterpreted by professional speakers as boredom signals, but in fact a signal of impatience." - Allan Pease  (body language book writer)

     

      As Mr. Pease has shown, knowing some of the sings of impatience will allow you insight on if your speech or meeting is starting to go on too long. 

      Now for the final bit of info to look for at a meeting, at least that this particular post will provide. This last piece of information is more so a facial and head movement. Former FBI counterintelligence special agent Joe Navarro explains this expression as, “Looking askance.”

          “It can take the form of a sideways or tilted head motion accompanied by a single glance or a brief roll of the eyes.” – Joe Navarro

      This gesture shows lack of trust or that they are unconvinced in what the current speaker is saying. If you notice this particular head and eye movement, it may help to give an example of whatever you are talking about. This will add validity to what you are speaking about.

     If you start looking for these warning signs in team meetings, even if you are not the speaker, you may be able to save time, add credibility to your speech, and even know when people are ready to get going. That is it for this post. Have a great day.

      How can you use this in animation?
   You can use the hand supporting head gesture in the obvious fashion. Whether the character be at school or in the office this is a landmark gesture for boredom, push the idea by adding an action such as nodding off. 
      Second, drumming a characters fingers could be used perhaps in a doctors office while waiting to be helped by a nurse. Just have the character at the counter, and some time in have him start drumming his fingers. 
      Lastly is looking askance. You can definitely use this affectively in dialogue pieces. If the character sounds as if they don't believe the other character push this expression. 
    
     References & Sources:
Navarro, P. (April 15th, 2008). What everybody is saying. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers
Pease, A. (July 25th, 2006). The definitive book of body language. New York, NY: Random House, Inc.
Unknown Author. (2007). weekly creative team meeting [photograph]. Retrieved October 5th, 2010 from:http://www.flickr.com/photos/tifotter/544669881/