What to Do With Your Hands in Social Situations (& What NOT to Do) - Deepstash
The Startup Collection

Learn more about communication with this collection

How to secure funding

How to market and sell your product or service

How to scale and grow your business

The Startup Collection

Discover 95 similar ideas in

It takes just

14 mins to read

The 4 C’s of hand gestures

The 4 C’s of hand gestures

Imagine you're at a networking event or party. Have you ever wondered what to do with your hands?

When it comes to social interaction, keep the 4C's in mind.

  1. Calm. Keeping your hands relaxed shows that you are comfortable and confident.
  2. Confident. Display confidence with your hands by putting them in the steeple position where the fingers of both hands touch together.
  3. Connection. To connect with others, use hand-to-hand touch (if appropriate), hand-to-shoulder touching, or handshakes.
  4. Clean. Ensure your hands are clean before extending them to someone else.

14

75 reads

What to do with your hands when you’re sitting

Hand gestures that you can use to help make a good impression:

  • The Lap Desk. Let your hands rest on your lap to appear calm and relaxed.
  • Elbows on Desk. If you have a front-facing desk, consider placing your elbows on the desk with your hands clasped. Don't nervously massage your hands.
  • The Steeple. Steeple your fingers together with your elbows in the air or on the table.
  • The Resting Chin. Rest your chin on your hand to look engaged in the conversation.

13

63 reads

What to do with hands during standing conversations

What to do with hands during standing conversations

  • The Elbow Bend. Bend your elbows and keep your hands in front of you, especially if you’re dynamically using hand gestures during a conversation.
  • Carry a Drink. Whenever you’re at a party or networking event try grabbing a drink. Put your arm slightly to the side, so it’s not blocking your torso.
  • Use Charismatic Gestures. Gestures can help you be more fluent and help people to understand you.

13

63 reads

What not to do with your hands

Avoid putting your hands in your pockets. It makes it hard for people to get to know you. If you habitually put your hands in your pockets, try wearing clothes without pockets.

Avoid face touching. Touching your face is an anxious cue. You may also look more deceptive to others.

13

67 reads

CURATED BY

alana_

Unapologetic reader and proud communicator. Chocolate and coffee everyday.

Read & Learn

20x Faster

without
deepstash

with
deepstash

with

deepstash

Access to 200,000+ ideas

Access to the mobile app

Unlimited idea saving & library

Unlimited history

Unlimited listening to ideas

Downloading & offline access

Personalized recommendations

Supercharge your mind with one idea per day

Enter your email and spend 1 minute every day to learn something new.

Email

I agree to receive email updates