Do you remember Mr. Bean, a character portrayed by Rowan Atkinson on the British comedy television program? If you remember clearly, watching just an episode of Mr. bean can make you laugh your heart out. The strange thing about Mr. Bean is that he doesn’t speak. His tools for communication are non-verbal, prominent among these are his facial expressions. It is amazing how Bean effectively communicates his thoughts and feelings, mostly using his face.
Facial expression is known to be a very powerful form of non-verbal communication. Anytime you look at the mirror, remember that your face is a reliable channel that conveys your thoughts, feelings, and emotions. The moment you feel a certain way or think a certain thought, your face almost immediately reveals those thoughts and feelings. For example, when you are happy, your face relays that happiness to the degree that balances the extent of your feeling. In other words, your face could say, I feel happy, I am happy, I am very happy, or I am in a state of euphoria. It is also true when you are sad, angry, disgusted, scared, surprised, uncertain, and the list goes on.
There are four important things you need to know about facial expressions:
They are universal
Think of it this way, if you compare (in terms of muscle movement) the facial expression of a happy child in china and a child born in the United States or South Africa, the result would be the same. There would also be a cross-cultural consistency when these same children are angry, sad, or surprised.
Darwin first mentioned the idea that facial expressions were universal in 1872. He argued that emotions and their expressions are biologically innate and evolutionarily adaptive. Earlier, scientists questioned the validity of Darwin’s conclusion, rendering it inconclusive. It was the case until Paul Ekman research on facial expression. This research is now commonly known as Universality studies.
The goal was to find out whether the emotions expressed through facial expressions are the same for all people. The result of the study confirmed Darwin’s theory that facial expressions are genetically innate and are therefore universally consistent across cultures. It is particularly true for seven distinct emotions: anger, disgust, fear, surprise, happiness, contempt, and sadness.
Microexpressions tell our secret
Have you ever had an experience where someone tells you they like your outfit, but their face says otherwise? I call this “facial leaks.” You can tell the person’s true feelings about your appearance because of their “facial leaks” or what is known academically as microexpressions.
Microexpressions are fleeting facial expressions. They are very brief, lasting between 0.04 to 0.5 seconds. These expressions reveal emotions that you suppress. The expressions betray you when you are trying to hide your excitement or disappointment or anger or fear. They expose your true feelings.
When microexpressions are captured in video recordings and played in slow motion, they appear as normal facial expressions. But in the live experience, they are barely noticeable. Paul suggests that this is the case because they are compressed expressions.
These compressed and not so noticeable facial expressions are what specialized law enforcement officers spend time to study to enable a more productive interrogation with suspects and for witness interviews.
The benefits that come with the ability to read microexpressions, go beyond the walls of law enforcement agencies. Businesses also take advantage of this. Experienced sale people can tell when a customer like a product, even when the customer does not verbally express interest.
Product researchers can tell a customer’s true feelings about a product, especially when it contradicts what they say.
My challenge to you is to pay closer attention to the face of a conservation partner and try to decipher what emotion they are suppressing. It is only applicable in situations where the individual is trying to hide a feeling. But paying close attention to facial expression with the added intention to detect microexpressions will enable more robust interactions.
They can replace spoken words
I opened this article with the case of Mr. Bean and his ability to communicate with his facial expression. Facial expressions come naturally and are part of our evolutionary history. As a result, every normal human can interpret them. One can emphasize facial expressions to replace spoken words in regular interaction. It does not suggest that facial expression can replace an entire conversation (this is not feasible), but you can pass across specific messages.
For example, one time, I took a friend out for lunch. We both had a sizable portion of our respective plates. When he finished eating, I asked if he was interested in another portion; he didn’t utter a word but made a facial expression that accurately answered my question. It was one that said, “are you seriously asking me to get another plate.” I am pretty sure you can mention situations where your facial expression or someone else’s passed across a message that was perfectly interpreted.
It reinforces spoken words
Just imagine that you are listening to a speaker describing a time when she was angry but does this with a blank expression. What do you think would be the impact of the message on her audience? You guessed right, little. Professional speakers understand this. They understand that effective use of facial expressions is a powerful way to reinforce their message and ultimately increase its impact.
While facial expressions come naturally to us, you can use it strategically to make your message more impactful, in a one-on-one conversational setting, in a small group setting, and even in a larger audience speaking situation.
My goal as a writer, public speaker, and entrepreneur, is to enable anyone that falls within the spectrum of influence to develop that ability to charm, persuade, and positively influence their circle of interaction. If you ask how facial expressions contribute to your ability to influence, it would sound like asking what the benefits of your eyelashes are. They might not be as important as the eyes itself, but when you shave them off, without the benefit of a false replacement, then you will understand how important they are.
