Mirroring (Part 1 in our Non-Verbal Communication series)

In 1931, British Engineer Alan Blumlein went to the movies with his wife. What he experienced that day would change the science of audio forever.

Seated in the theater, Alan found it distracting that the movie’s audio—projected from a single speaker in the theater—didn’t match what he saw on the screen. If, for example, a car entered the scene from the left, the sound of its engine might come from the right. This asynchrony was so jarring to Alan that he resolved to find a solution, and later that year he submitted a patent and “Stereo” sound was born.

Interesting science trivia, but what does this have to do with your public speaking?

At the heart of Alan’s work was synchrony. His invention brought together two channels of communication—what we see and what we hear. And when those two channels are aligned, the message we receive is more natural, pleasing, and compelling. It’s true at the movies and it’s true when we speak.

We spend a lot of time discussing what our audience hears—the organization of our information, the examples we cite, and the stories we tell, but we would be remiss if we didn’t discuss what they see.

Over the next few Speaker Soundbites, we will delve into the fascinating science of nonverbal communication and provide actionable tips to align what your audience sees with what they hear.  And we’ll start with a fascinating concept called mirroring.

‘Mirroring’ is the term scientists use to describe when a speaker adopts the same gestures, posture, and physical tone as individuals in the audience.

I don’t know about you, but this definition makes it sound too complex and mechanical to authentically execute, but in practice, it’s really simple.

Imagine that you say something agreeable, your audience nods, and you, in response, nod along with them. You might even smile and utter a spontaneous, “Right?!? .” THIS is mirroring, and when you do it, you’re nonverbally saying:

·      I see you

·      I get you

·      We’re in this together

Don’t go overboard and mimic everything you see, but actively look for subtle moments to mirror the consequential cues you receive from your audience, like smiles, nods, sighs, laughs, and leaning forward. If you ask your audience a question and ask them to raise their hands, raise your hand along with them. And it works with negative reactions, too. If your audience looks puzzled you can furrow your brow and say something like, “When I first looked at this, I was a bit confused, but then it clicked... .” If they shake their head in skepticism, you can respond with, “If I were you...[mirroring their side-to-side head shake]...I’d be skeptical...until I told you three key things. First... ."

Almost any consequential behavior can be mirrored, and when it happens, it brings you into ‘limbic synchrony,’ or a shared emotional state with your audience. And scientists have repeatedly demonstrated that this builds trust, improves engagement, and boosts an audience’s receptivity to new ideas.

So, the next time you’re in a meeting, talking with your team, or having a sales conversation, think about mirroring as a nonverbal tool to better connect with your audience.

To learn more about the fascinating science behind mirroring, read Sue Shellenbarger’s Wall Street Journal column, “Use Mirroring To Connect With Others” or Carol Kinsey Goman’s “The Art and Science of Mirroring” in Forbes. If you want a more scientific treatment of the subject, “Connecting minds and sharing emotions through mimicry: a neurocognitive model of emotional contagion” in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews is a good starting point.

Next up in our Speaker Soundbite series on non-verbal communication, we’ll delve into eye-contact.