Summary
Highlights
Nonverbals are anything that communicates without words, commonly known as body language. These cues, such as how we dress or walk, are used to interpret a person's thoughts and feelings. Joe Navarro, a former FBI special agent, explains how nonverbals were crucial in his 25 years of catching spies and assessing individuals.
Navarro addresses common misconceptions about body language. Crossing arms, for instance, is often seen as a blocking behavior but is actually a self-soothing action, similar to a self-hug. Similarly, looking in certain directions during thought or touching the nose/mouth are often misconstrued as signs of deception; in reality, they are pacifying behaviors and not scientific indicators of lying. Humans are generally poor at detecting deception.
Navarro recounts a case where a suspected mole was identified not by a confession, but by a subtle nonverbal cue. The individual, believed to be a foreign intelligence officer, carried flowers in a manner specific to Eastern European cultures rather than the typical American way. This seemingly minor detail led to his confession, highlighting the power of observing cultural nonverbals.
Navarro outlines a systematic approach to reading nonverbals, starting from the head down. He looks for signs of stress or comfort in the hair, forehead, eyes, glabella (between the eyes), nose, lips, and cheeks. He also observes neck tilts (indicating relaxation or tension), shoulder shrugs (uncertainty), hand gestures (stiff fingers for trouble, steepling for confidence), and hip stance (territoriality or inquisitiveness). He also highlights ventilating behaviors and leg/foot movements as indicators of pacification, threat, or discomfort.
Nonverbals are constantly being transmitted, from our choice of clothing and grooming to our posture and energy levels. Navarro emphasizes observing 'differences in behavior'—deviations from a person's baseline. He notes the importance of initial interactions, such as handshakes, which are the first physical contact in many Western cultures and trigger bonding chemicals that influence our perception of others.
Through a demonstration, Navarro illustrates how people adjust their personal space to find a comfortable distance. When prompted to consider their comfort levels, individuals unconsciously create more space, indicated by rocking away from each other and increased foot movement. This highlights how individuals seek their 'perfect distance' and how movement can reveal an unsettled state.
The principles of nonverbal communication are highly applicable in poker, where players constantly react to stimuli. Navarro explains that observing 'poker intelligence' before a game even begins can reveal discomfort through behaviors like shifting in chairs or high shoulders. During play, hand positions on cards (caging or pressing down) can indicate increased card value. Self-soothing behaviors like shuffling chips are also common.
Navarro analyzes how players' nonverbals evolve during a poker game. A player with crossed arms might still be transmitting information through subtle cues like thumb positions. Viewing nonverbals at double speed can make critical cues more apparent. He observes how increased head or hand activity signals engagement and interest. He concludes that while a 'poker face' is possible, a 'poker body' is not, as somewhere, true feelings will be revealed. He stresses the importance of observing opponents rather than just one's own cards, as 75-80% of information is openly available through nonverbals.