What Vanessa Van Edwards has said about Body language

Van Edwards says people tend to point their toes toward the most important person in a room, revealing the boss.

“typically we point our toes towards the most important person in the room. That is because subconsciously our body is attuned to them”

The Mel Robbins Podcast: Body Language Expert: 6 Psychological Tricks to Turn Awkwardness into Confidence (Sep 26, 2026) · Listen from 25:39

Van Edwards claims hunched phone-checking posture repeatedly puts people into defeat body language before important events.

“That is what everyone does when they check their phone. So accidentally, multiple times a day, you are putting yourself into defeat and shame body language”

The Mel Robbins Podcast: Body Language Expert: 6 Psychological Tricks to Turn Awkwardness into Confidence (Sep 26, 2026) · Listen from 32:12

Van Edwards explains that hunched shoulders are an evolutionary neck-protecting cue that signals danger to the brain and triggers awkwardness symptoms.

“If you do the opposite, you're telling your brain, we are not safe, which then makes you have more cortisol, which shuts down your thinking”

The Mel Robbins Podcast: Body Language Expert: 6 Psychological Tricks to Turn Awkwardness into Confidence (Sep 26, 2026) · Listen from 31:20

Van Edwards says research found the steeple was rated the most charismatic hand gesture among leaders.

“They found there was one single gesture that people rated as the most charismatic. And it is, I call it the power pose for the hands”

The Mel Robbins Podcast: Body Language Expert: 6 Psychological Tricks to Turn Awkwardness into Confidence (Sep 26, 2026) · Listen from 37:31

Van Edwards argues people believe gestures over words because it is hard to lie with gestures.

“it is very hard to lie with gestures. We are very used to lying with our words”

The Mel Robbins Podcast: Body Language Expert: 6 Psychological Tricks to Turn Awkwardness into Confidence (Sep 26, 2026) · Listen from 40:53

Van Edwards says roughly 60 to 70 percent eye contact is ideal in Western cultures, because constant eye contact impairs complex thinking.

“We don't even want 70% eye contact. 60-70% eye contact is more ideal in Western cultures”

The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett: Vanessa Van Edwards: The Conversation Habit That Makes Smart People Unlikable (Sep 10, 2026) · Listen from 2:14:26