Pawn Shop Advisor Blog

Extend Your Middle Finger

This morning I had the opportunity to speak with a long time friend of mine. This gent has known me for many years and our friendship goes well beyond being mere acquaintances. He asked me what I was doing and I told him I had just finished a book along with a cup of coffee. When he asked what I was reading - and I told him - he just groaned.

The book I finished this morning is entitled "What Every Body is Saying" by author Joe Navarro. So why did my friend groan? He groaned because this book is about nonverbal communication. Also known as body language. And he knows I've been an active student of it for many years. He asked me "don't you know enough about that subject to be an authority by now?"

Well - kind of. But there's always more to learn. I told him this book contained nonverbal communication skills I already knew - but I was much more interested in the perspective of the author. That's because Joe Navarro was an FBI counterintelligence special agent specializing in nonverbal communications. I believe he knows a bit more on the subject than I.

However, I may have a hand up on him in a few areas. Why do I say this? It's because I started to study nonverbal communication in the mid-1970s. I did so for the very specific reason of sharpening my body language reading skills to improve my poker game. It worked - and it worked great. At that time I was also opening my first pawnshop.

So right from the beginning, I took my nonverbal communications poker playing skills and move them into my business. Immediately I found out how important this is when communicating with employees and customers. This skill is so effective that I even wrote a short section entitled "Getting Inside Your Customer's Mind With Body Language" that I included as a bonus in the Pawn Shop Advisor(tm) coaching program. This important skill is very effective when working at a pawn shop. Why? Because if you're not aware of it and if you do not practice it regularly, (and most don't) you are only getting a small portion of communication with customers and employees.

I would say about half the conversation.

If you are not aware of this skill, you may be saying to yourself "Come on Steve. Nonverbal communication isn't that important. I listen very aggressively to what my customers have to say." Okay, I would agree with you. Aggressively listening to your customers is a very important skill. But many times, nonverbal communications are more important - and actually saying more - than verbal communication. Think I'm kidding? Let me give you an example.

The next time you're out in public, walk up to a stranger, maybe even a police officer if you can find one, raise up your hand while saying nothing and extend your middle finger. Of course, I'm not really suggesting that you do this. Not unless you want to cause one hell of a hubbub. What I'm telling you with this extreme example is that a person's body language - their nonverbal communication - speaks as loudly as the words coming out of their mouth. Possibly louder.

This is why I say if you are not aware of and practicing this skill - both in your pawnshop business, and in your life - you're not taking advantage of all the tools you have available to you. But of course, to develop this skill you should want to learn exactly what to look for and precisely how to look for it. We are all bombarded with nonverbal communications every day but many have no idea how to use this to their advantage. This is why it's something you should consider.

If this is something that interests you, whether you learn it in the Pawn Shop Advisor(tm) http://www.pawnshopadvisor.com/main.cfm coaching program - in Joe Navarro's book - or in any other nonverbal communication books or courses available to you, I suggest you consider developing this important skill immediately. You won't believe how this little tip will help you in your business. It's a huge advantage.

Keep your eye on the target and your mind on the goal,
Stephen Krupnik
P.S. If you are interested in Joe's book, just Google this number: 0061438294 to locate it. He writes the best section on detecting deception that I have read to date.

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