Is Your Body Language Respectful?

Could you be sending out strong and loud messages while being absolutely quiet?
Run through this non exhaustive checklist to see a few of the common pitfalls:

01. Being seated while speaking
Here are a few questions to ask yourself to help you stay in the green zone.
Is everyone else in the room standing? Is the person who is standing and speaking to you, a lot senior to you? Is the conversation taking longer than a couple of minutes, if so, can you grab a chair for the other person? If not, should you be offering your seat?

02. Discourteously crossing your legs
I cannot even begin to say how distasteful it is when people swing one leg over another to look superior or to look casual (or maybe it is for comfort, but surely, that should not be in my face literally or metaphorically). They only come across as pompous and arrogant – yes, I am being polite here.
Are your crossed legs taking up more real estate than they should? Do you seem to be the most comfortable in the room, while everybody else is at the edge of their seats? Is it a serious topic that is being discussed, which requires attentive body language? Are you trying to put on a false sense of superiority?

03.Tapping your feet and shaking your legs
This could symbolise impatience and nervousness or boredom respectively. Maybe you do feel that way, but do you want to give that impression?
If not, learn to stay still.

04.Keeping your hands on your hips
This again is the oldest possible body language trick to show annoyance and impatience. No, no one thinks that it could be because of a back pain.

05.Leaning Towards People Unnecessarily
Do you lean in and tap or pat people at work for no particular reason? This could be an invasion of personal space and make the other person uncomfortable.

Body language is well understood universally and unless thought of carefully, could be sending out these unwanted messages and signals. Tell me more about body language mess ups at fullofetiquette@gmail.com.