196: Blake Eastman - The Nonverbal Group

**Summary:** In Episode #196 Ari interviews [Blake Eastman](https://www.linkedin.com/in/beastman), the founder of [The Nonverbal Group](http://www.nonverbalgroup.com/)—a group of academics and professionals who are dedicated to conducting research on nonverbal communication. Listen as Ari and Blake talk about building the largest database of human behavior. **Special Announcements:** ## [Leave Us a Review!](https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ari-meisel-less-doing/id605938952?mt=2&uo=6) Hey Less Doing Podcast Listeners, we want to hear from YOU! Visit us on iTunes and leave a review or subscribe to the podcast if you’re not already a dedicated follower. **Time Stamped Show Notes:** - 16:00 – Introduction of Blake Eastman - 16:28 – The nonverbal group started through frustration in the process of publishing academic research – was too slow and bureaucratic. - 17:16 – First studies conducted in 2008 when the group set up a bunch of blind dates and observed them. - 18:00 – Their goal is to create the largest database of human behavior. - 19:23 – The average person has no concept of what they look like in a social situation. - 20:19 – People are constantly regulating their behavior in social interactions which creates an incongruence from their subconscious. - 21:18 – Blake’s group aims to remove some regulations instead of adding them. Getting an individual to be authentic is a hard step. - 22:03 – Blake explains how self-dialogue hinders an individual’s ability to be present in a situation. - 23:36 – Largest behavioral study ever, the group brought in poker players and recorded them from different angles – over two years they analyzed their behavior meticulously. - 24:10 – The scientific model of grounding theory in large studies - 27:07 – Offshore workers are more adept at keeping focus when counting monotonous things like blinks. - 28:00 – The nonverbal group treats individual as their own puzzle instead of generalizing certain behaviors as universal. - 30:02 – Blake finds that not holding back makes him a much better communicator. He’ll address behavior immediately. - 32:38 – To lower anxiety during presentations, it’s prudent to treat it more like an interactive conversation. - 34:49 – Blake describes his “Wizard Principle” to catch people’s attention during a presentation. - 37:27 – It’s important to tailor your perspective to an audience during a presentation. - 38:11 – Everyone overestimates how much other people pay attention to them. - 39:51 – According to Blake, people should express themselves much more often. - 40:23 – It’s good to have a mentality of “never put stuff down.” Finish what you start no matter how small. ** 3 Key Points:** 1. The Nonverbal Group is dedicated to building the largest human behavior database and sharing the academic findings in the future. They also offer classes to teach reading human body language. 2. Getting an individual to be their authentic self is probably the hardest step. 3. Generally, people overestimate how much other people pay attention to them, underestimate the value of their expressed thought, and don’t finish things that they don’t get right the first time. **Resources Mentioned:** - [Beyond Tells](https://beyondtells.com/) – Creating a new breed of poker through tell training, research and analysis - [The Nonverbal Group](http://www.nonverbalgroup.com/about) – Blake Eastman’s social science group - [Capitan](https://t.co/g01G56TY2X) – AI powered shopping list - [Solid](https://t.co/sfeuvolXG5) – Automates Your Meetings To Get The Most Out Of Them - [Howdy](https://t.co/GFu4saQ8Bg) - Your new digital coworker for Slack! - [ResumUP](https://t.co/ajUFJFTD8F) – Website that converts your resume into an infographic - [Amino](https://t.co/xHxlDu3MhE) - Make more confident decisions about your health care - [Neutun](https://t.co/IDo66F9pkB) - Smartwatch app for tracking seizures - [Website](https://t.co/FX4BwTIGg9) - Hyper-local alerts target