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EMOTIONAL NONVERBALS
AT A SPEECH on workplace violence for a huge military contractor, I was shocked to observe a man in the audience put his head in his hands and start to cry onto his notepad. We’d just taken a break, but I announced that we were taking another break “because I need it.”
The host approached me, asking, “What’s the matter?” I replied, “Let’s go talk to this guy right here.”
It turned out that the company was downsizing, and people were taking it out on this manager. For months, they’d been scratching his car door, letting the air out of his tires, making threats, and leaving pet poop on his office chair. He hadn’t told anyone. Afraid of being perceived as being weak and incapable of handling the pressure, and fearing ...
