Subrahmanyam Jaishankar - Body language Analysis
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar our Minister of External Affairs is known for his proficiency in handling tough negotiations. A skilled diplomat who is known to handle every situation with ease. Let’s see how he uses effective body language in his work and how he effectively tweaks his body language in the various situations that he comes across.
Confident Body Language
Look how confident and relaxed Jaishankar is while interacting with students. He is also making an attempt to connect with them by moving closer to the audience and using effective gestures. He maintains good eye contact, uses specific gestures like the one depicted above. When something is very close to you, you emphasise it by bringing your hand closer to your heart region. A nonverbal way to tell all that this is very close or crucial to me. He also uses appropriate examples and anecdotes that show how great a presenter he is. This shows that he is prepared to handle any situations that he comes across.
Engaging All
Jaishankar makes sure everyone is paying attention to him. Be it the people on the dais or the audience. Here we see him adjusting himself in such a way that he is clearly visible to all. In terms of body language this not only helps people to see him clearly but also the fact that he is clearly visible people can trust him and not be threatened by him.
Acknowledging
One of the good qualities a leader may have is how they engage everyone. Mr. Jaishankar likes to acknowledge when he has been asked good questions. This shows how important it is for him to involve everyone present.
Look how eagerly he is waiting for the question and ready to give the answers. You also see him adding a bit of humour before he starts to answer. Humour, as you know, is a good way to engage the audience or to give them a break from a serious topic that has been discussed here. Obviously the kind of questions he is asked are not simple or direct. They are directly addressing concerns. But being a great presenter, he used humour very effectively to give a break to the audience from the very serious discussion that is normally going on.
Active listener
For answering questions, one needs to listen to them effectively. Here we Jaishankar listens very keenly to the question before he starts to answer. You can see him nodding and smiling. There is a neck tilt as well which in terms of his body language shows that he is listening. He has kept his mike also down which is nonverbal way of him indicating that he is not speaking and at the same time not keeping any barriers between him and the person who is asking him
Assertive
Being a leader he is sometimes in a situation wherein he had to show the right amount of authority. This shows him in command of his thoughts. He is well prepared for the answers. What we also see is that whenever he knows what the question is like he starts answering before the question is asked. Look at how he is using palms down a dominant way of communicating that I already understood the question and am ready to answer. This is commonly done by many leaders.
Disagreement
Not always you may agree with people, here we see our EAM also disagreeing. He is comfortable and relaxed when he is disagreeing with people. See how he is assertively telling the person that he is not agreeing without being aggressive. A very powerful way to assert your point without being rude or aggressive. Look how he is directly looking at the person using effective gestures to state his disagreement
What we have peculiarly observed in our minister is that everytime he becomes dominant he immediately takes a non-dominant stance. Could be because he still wants to be looked at as a person whom they can approach and not someone to be threatened by. A great way to assertively put forth your views at the same time while still being connected with the people. Observe how in the above image he has come forward and brought his entire upper body ahead. A way of connecting by bringing himself closer to the person whom they are conversing with.
Tough questions
He has a knack of handling any and every situation. When asked a tough or difficult question his body language is a clear giveaway of his discomfort. Observe how he is sitting relaxed and listening to the question. Before he starts answering there is a change in his body language. His breathing rate increases and look at how he has moved away as if telling, I don’t like where this is headed. He has also kept his hands in the middle as if blocking himself and closing down. This doesn’t mean he lacks confidence as he gives the answer by maintaining effective eye contact or using gestures as he takes his time to answer the question.
What our team has been observing is a transformation of Rahul Gandhi’s body language signals along this journey, where he has gradually shown increased interest in understanding or connecting with people all over india. And the teams that are joining in also seem to be acknowledging his efforts as the movement gains momentum.
Conclusion
This was a brief overview of Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s body language and how he modifies his body language depending on the situation that he is in. Right from showing the right form of confidence to assertively put his point forth, there are various ways in which he tweaks his body language in order to connect with all or handle difficult situations. A quick learning and understanding for anyone who is interested in our EAM’s body language.
This is how you can even tweak your body language to project your best self. The best form of learning happens when you observe and see the best and see how they use body language.
References
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2EdQD_Eag0
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkr2CWuiqSA
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vt3ByEjxy6w
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQu1jtWmI7o
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aqFUHttthE
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IL3OTSziuPA&t=1834s
