Emotional Infection

Reading the Tipping Point this week there's an interesting section on the 'dance' that occurs when we have a conversation with someone or a person is communicating with us. You're probably aware of the importance of non-verbal cues in communication, that words are just a small part of getting the message across and that tone of voice and body language are part of that message. In order to create rapport we mimic body language and tone of voice. This is often taught as part of NLP in sales techniques. Not the best use as people can sense when they're being played and if you try too hard it just looks stilted and unnatural and has the opposite effect of making the other person feel uncomfortable. We all have a natural ability to synchronise our movement and speech with the people around us but some are better at doing this than others and they are the ones that have powerful, winning personalities.

There is another important non-verbal cue in the way we communicate. We can infect the other person with the emotion we're feeling. You know that other reasonably well-known that if some starts to yawn, it spreads. If you smile at someone there's a good probability that they'll smile too. Even if the effect is indiscernible there will be a millisecond of a smile. There's a thought that emotion may be infectious – you can pass on your emotion to other people around you. If you're feeling happy or around happy people the chances are you'll pick on their emotional state in the same way that if you're around someone who feels down or depressed, you're likely to come away in a low mood. You can also influence your own mood by turning your frown into a smile.

If you're good at expressing your emotions and feelings then you may be more emotionally contagious. Try it this week – but only in a positive way – create a happy mood in those around you who may not be feeling quite so happy.

Even if you're not emotionally infectious, at least pass on a smile and see what happens.