NLP Pacing Posture

People who are communicating well tend to have matching body postures.

To pace someone, follow the positioning of their:

- Head
o Tilted down, up or to the side
o Nodding
- Arms
o Folded, stretched open or down by the sides
- Torso
o Leaned forward, upright, leaned back or to the side
- Leg
o Crossed, opened or stretched out

NLP Pace Non Verbals

University of Pennsylvania anthropologist, DR Ray Birdwhistell, the founder of Kenesics which studies how people communicate through posture, gesture, stance, and movement, concluded from his research that the meaning of our communication is conveyed mostly by non-verbals.

The tone of our voice contributes 38%, body language 55% and our words provided a paltry 7% to the meaning of our communication.

Pay attention to non verbal cues, or we will miss much of what others are telling us.

NLP Pacing

Two people enjoying rapport, such as loving couples, will unconsciously display matching behaviours.

Rapport can be created or improved upon by consciously matching the behaviour of the person we want to have greater rapport with.

Pacing is when we let the person whom we wish to have greater rapport with, set the “pace” of matching. We follow the other person’s behaviour in order to achieve or increase rapport.

We observe pacing in action when we see people working hard on improving rapport with their superiors. They wait on and affirm their superior’s every word, and take up the same pastimes such as golfing.