7 hand gestures you can use to be a more confident leader and speaker

I read somewhere recently that your mind thinks between 2000 – 3000 thoughts per hour. Thankfully, we can rely on our unconscious mind to process all the information around us so we can function in our day to day lives. I mean it would be a nightmare if all those thoughts were conscious ones.

When it comes to a presentation; It that makes for an obvious reason for why so many of us feel huge anxiety before we stand up and speak with an audience. Once you have developed good vocal and body language skills you have a greater opportunity to insert the information you want into the minds of your audience. All being well you have a great chance of coming across as a confident and authoritative leader.

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The audience you will be presenting to will have those thousands of thoughts triggered by their 5 senses. Sight, Sound, Taste, Smell and Touch to detect the information you are delivering. If the quote in my article on sales perception stands true. 55% of how you communicate is via your body language. There is a whole host of body parts that affect your presentation success. The ones in this post that I’d like to encourage you to make more use of are your hands.

Our hands, those wonder creations at the ends of our arms. Like a lot of our body parts they are often taken for granted as we go about our business. How often have you prepared for a presentation and thought about where you should position your hands?

I hope your hands play a greater part in your presentations after reading this post.

Nice hand quote I came across attributed to Audrey Hepburn.

“As you grow older, you will discover you have two hands: one for helping yourself, the other for helping others. “

7 hand gestures you can start using today to be a more effective presenter:

1.  Palms together 

This is probably one of the most recognizing hand symbols around the world. As a symbol of worship it triggers positive respect, tranquility and peacefulness. For this reason you might be wondering its function in a presentation.

I have often seen speakers use this to follow up a major point within a presentation. When the speaker pauses leaving the audience to really contemplate and consider the importance of a point just made . It seems to work best with your eyes open, palms together and the tips of your fingers touching your chin.

Best used only once in a presentation when you really want to convey the importance of a point you have made.

2.  Finger counting

A key part of a successful presentation is that people remember what you say. You want those next few thoughts after you have left the room to be about the information you covered. A 3 finger or 5 finger count within the presentation and at the end to summarize your key points is a perfect way for people to remember what has been covered. You can also follow this up in an email as well. In this picture Bill is holding a mic but if he wasn't using the other hand to physical connected with the other fingers is a must.

3.  Steepling

Love him or hate him. Donald Trump has an incredible ability to get a crowd going. Steepling is a hand gesture that has long been used by presidents, business leaders and politicians to convey authority and confidence. In companies I’ve worked for I have definitely noticed this used and typically by the most senior leader in a business.

It’s this hand gesture that has led me take more of an interest in hand gestures and body language. If anyone know the origin of it - let me know in the comments please?

You will more often see the steeple (shaped like a house – with fingers pointed upward) – This one is worth stopping and trying now. Put those fingers together…..tell us how your feeling? Good, right?

4. Open Arms – Palms Up

I think it’s really important for everyone in a room to feel included in your presentation. Having your arms wide, high with palms facing up is the ideal gesture for putting across a message that you are in this together.

5.  Finger and thumb Squeeze

This technique was shared with me by a lawyer who recommends her clients to use when in court. It's used to help reduce anxiety in the lead up to or during a presentation. It simply requires you to press the nail of your thumb into your finger with enough pressure to feel a sting. By focusing on the pain in your finger it will help distract you from the anxiety building up before you reach the stage. Unlike all the other suggestions in this post. This one is not to be seen by others and is best performed with your hands behind your back.

As I could not find a photo of this. I thought a baby sucking their thumb would be a cute reminder of how useful our fingers can be. Obviously I wouldn’t suggest this be used during your next presentation.

6.  Hand on Heart

Placing your hand over your heart promotes honesty. When you’re looking to the audience to trust and believe in what you are saying this is a powerful gesture. It is probably over used by politicians but if you are being genuine in the words of your presentation this is an important gesture to use.

For those of you that would consider that these type of gestures are contrived. I'd ask you to go back to to my original comment that 1000s of thoughts going through the mind's of your audience. It is highly unlikely that will consciously pick something out. Subconsciously is the hand gesture matches your own sincerity - if should only promote further the strength of what you are saying.

7.  “One more thing”

I absolutely love this technique. A good friend told me about this and it’s a powerful way to leave a presentation. Timing is key in it’s delivery. Its best use is just after an applause during a large presentation. Just as you are turning to leave the stage. Raise your hands up to the sky, palms facing down and bellow. “Wait I have just, one more thing.” Why the audience are totally captured deliver your final thought, message or take away. This is the perfect time to announce a winner of a prize that people will not expect.

The more intimate for this is when presenting in front of a small group of people. As you stand up to leave the room and others do as well. (Everyone should be standing. ) Stop and turn and say “Actually before we go, just one more thing” At this point deliver the cherry on the cake of your offering. E.g By the way with everything now agreed, we will actually deliver tomorrow.

Here are some of my most viewed posts I have written:

Can you fake confidence?

What do people say about you when you leave the room?

Is Sales Perception everything?

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About the Author

James Ski works for Linkedin and advises B2B SaaS companies on recruitment, employer branding and how to achieve scalable, predictable sales growth. Please follow him on Linkedin or on Twitter @jamesas . 

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