In the animal kingdom, the alpha male externalizes his dominance through body movement and posture. Human beings are no different. The person with the most power in a meeting is the one whose physical movements are more expansive: legs apart, arms outstretched and back reclined in the seat (you can see in the photo who is the only one with their hands apart).
Surely you have ever attended a meeting in which your boss has placed his feet on the table and supported his hands behind his head with his shoulders pointing to both sides. Although it seems a stereotype, I myself can attest to having lived this situation.
The person who performs these movements is so confident that they do not care that their movements may disturb any of the meeting attendees. Probably this security arises as a consequence of the position he occupies within the company.
On the contrary, a nervous or shy person and with less power will behave differently. It will try to occupy as little space as possible by reducing its own physical reach: shoulders contracted, feet together and back straight on the backrest. He will also cross his arms over his chest in a protective attitude.
The boss does not have to protect himself from anyone. For this reason, he unconsciously renounces the protective position and can extend his arms. However, the subordinate will remain in a protective attitude trying to go as unnoticed as possible.
We adopt these types of postures unconsciously, but they are also unconsciously perceived by the people in front of us. This means that the relationship between "power" and "posture" is a two-way street and this is where the really curious thing lies: Not only whoever holds more power will unconsciously use a certain type of posture, but also whoever consciously uses this type of posture will be perceived with greater power.. So if you consciously decide to behave expansively, your meeting partners will unconsciously assign you greater power..
With all this, I am not telling you to take off your shoes at your next meeting and put your feet on the table.. Expansive movements are possible without having to cross the threshold that separates education and knowing how to be. These movements should be very subtle at the beginning so as not to cause a very strong dissonance in whoever is next to you. Going from being the shy one to becoming the decision maker is not something that can happen overnight. Not only because you will not be credible to others, but also because you yourself will not believe or trust your new role..
Lasting changes are those that occur little by little. If you want more power and start behaving like someone who ALREADY holds that power, little by little you and others will trust your new abilities..
There is a lot of literature that explains that behaviors precede emotions. If you start to behave like someone who is in charge of the situation, little by little your body will start to feel it and finally you will end up believing it. And once you've reached the point of belief, your power will only increase naturally without having to strain..
Start behaving more naturally in meetings: Smile. Feel free to get up from your seat to explain something. Don't be afraid to interrupt someone (in a polite way) when you want to refute or clarify an issue. When it is your turn to speak, distribute your gaze to all those attending the meeting. Don't cross your arms.
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